Winning Ugly : Mental Warfare in Tennis--Lessons from a Master

Rating:
Summary: Analytical and Intelligent Tennis
Review: Winning Ugly is a great book on how to gain the advantage in a tennis match in ways other than perfecting your strokes or training into world-class shape. The book is divided into three sections. The first is on preparing for a match and gaining an edge before the match even begins. Gilbert goes through planning, equipment preparation, stretching, overcoming nervousness, and how to mentally prepare to win the first few games. Some things in the chapters on equipment and stretching may be a little elementary but are nonetheless good tennis knowledge. The next section is on strategizing during your match and recognizing critical points. The last section is on developing a good mental game. Throughout the book, Gilbert uses examples from his own career and analyzes other players. These illustrations are perhaps the most valuable aspects of the book. Written in the early nineties, Winning Ugly talks about the top level pros of its time. The concepts, however, will never become outdated. The book is very easy to read. The reader gets a feel for Gilbert's analytical approach to playing tennis and can use it as an example for his own game. In one chapter, Gilbert goes into how to deal with certain types of players. It would have been nice if there was more of this, but overall, Winning Ugly is a great book and will help improve anyone's game.

Rating:
Summary: read ' n' weep
Review: Within a couple weeks of reading this book, I have completely transformed my game. Formerly I was a player who lived and died slugging out forehands and two handed backhands from the baseline. Somedays I had it, some days I got killed, particularly by serve and volley players. Utilizing the principles and suggestions in this book, my singles and doubles game has improved drastically... virtually overnight. Brad does an outstanding job and it is an easy read. There is a certain satisfaction beating someone who has better strokes, is faster and serves better than you. If you want that kind of reward. buy this book.

Rating:
Summary: Buy this book and you will become a better player...
Review: Within a couple weeks of reading this book, I have completely transformed my game. Formerly I was a player who lived and died slugging out forehands and two handed backhands from the baseline. Somedays I had it, some days I got killed, particularly by serve and volley players. Utilizing the principles and suggestions in this book, my singles and doubles game has improved drastically... virtually overnight. Brad does an outstanding job and it is an easy read. There is a certain satisfaction beating someone who has better strokes, is faster and serves better than you. If you want that kind of reward. buy this book.