Tiebreak Strategy

Ever wondered how to master those nerve-wracking tiebreakers in tennis? Join us as we welcome Karen Rembert, a teaching pro with over 30 years of coaching experience.

Karen was a National USTA Finalist in 45 Doubles, a two-time NC State 25 Doubles Champion, and ranked #11 nationally in NAIA Doubles. Karen is a USTA High-Performance Coach, USPTA Elite Professional, and a USPTA Certified Pickleball Professional.

Whether you're just picking up a racket or you're a seasoned competitor, this episode is brimming with insights that will enhance your game and keep you cool in those decisive moments.

If you would like to learn more about her camp please check out her facebook page at Costa Rica All Inclusive Tennis Vacations,  email her at kr.crdg@gmail.com, or listen to our episode: The Ultimate Tennis Vacation.

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Transcript

Introduction to Karen Rembert

Carolyn 0:07

Hi, this is Carolyn, and I'm here with Erin, and we are excited Karen Rembert is here with us. Karen has been a teaching pro for over 30 years, played in college, and is the owner of Costa Rica all-inclusive tennis vacations. Erin and I were discussing how difficult tiebreakers are, and Erin said we had to have Karen on the podcast to discuss this. So, Erin, can you start us off with the first question?

Erin 0:30

Hey, Karen, can you tell us your philosophy on your tiebreaker? It's philosophy slash strategy, really, on tiebreakers. I learned this from you in Costa Rica, and I think about it often. Although I told Carolyn right before we started recording that I played a tiebreaker this weekend. I totally forgot to integrate it. Instead, I just went into the tiebreaker really mad. That does not work for tiebreakbreakers.

Speaker 0:54

I do not recommend going in mad. And that is part of that is part of my tiebreak philosophy, is that you're dead even. It's a wash, right? It's basically a brand new match set game, however you want to look at it. And you have to have that mindset

Tiebreaker Philosophy: Mini Games Approach

Speaker 1:10

that, all right, and if you're in a tiebreaker, you're probably playing somebody that's pretty close to your ability. So you're not gonna go out and win that tiebreaker 7-0 or 10-0. It's gonna it's gonna be a battle, and it's gonna be a lot of switches in in momentum up and down. You're going your way really well for a while, and then not going your way, and you have to you have to hang in there. So one thing that I've been doing for years is I take that tiebreaker as mini games. So every two service points is a game. And what I'm trying to do is I'm trying to win the very first point of that mini game. So if I win that very first point, then the second point is a bonus point. Right. If I don't win that, no worries, I'm gonna try and win this. I'm I'm gonna try and win the second point. So, so I'm fine. So, so if I take that philosophy the whole way, and if I don't win either of them, like no worries, I'm gonna I'm gonna go back to that same philosophy. If I'm now returning serve, we're gonna try and win that first point. If we don't win that first point, no biggie, we're gonna try and win the second. If we do, we can play loose, we've got a bonus point. So, and and that way, I'm not going, oh my goodness, it's eight seven, and I'm nervous. And if I get this point, I'm up nine, seven, and then I'm gonna congratulate them when I win 10-7, and then all of a sudden it doesn't go that way. And um that's what I do. So, and that goes kind of into my second part, and I do this a lot in the matches when I feel myself getting nervous towards the end of that breaker, is I'll lie to myself about the score. You know, if it's if I'm up 9-6, it's 3-5. Come on, bear down,

Women's vs Men's Serving Strategies

Speaker 2:56

it's 3-5. And then I'm almost a little bit surprised when I win the match because I'm like, oh, it was I thought it was three, five. So that keeps me very much grounded and in the present.

Erin 3:07

So I explained it to Carolyn incorrectly. So I actually said, when you're serving, obviously you want to hold your serve, even if that's for one point. Like if I'm the first server in a tiebreaker, my first thought is hold my serve, right? So if I hold my serve and then my opponents serve, I'm trying to at least just get one of their points, right?

Speaker 3:29

That is that is absolutely that's absolutely correct. What I've found is in women's doubles, holding serve and breaking serve are not as big of a factor in a as in a men's match. So I've kind of I've kind of moved a little bit away from the holding serve, breaking serve for women's doubles. You know, we're not six foot eight, we're not you know, hitting bomb for serves and and getting those free points. So I watched, I just got back from the Southern Cup, the senior son at the Southern Cup in Alabama, and watched a lot of matches, and especially in the women's, and these are the best women in the South, and some of them are the best women in the nation, and some of them have even one world. So we're talking about the highest caliber ladies' tennis, and this the holding of the serve um is not as big of a factor. Yeah.

Erin 4:25

Even in pro matches, there was one. Uh I just told someone this the other day, they each got broken 10 times in the match. It was like neither one could hold. So, and I've been in matches like that where it's like the first one to hold is the one, like you think six four is only a single break, right? You're like, oh, I won the first set six four, and that's like what that could be one break, but actually it was like four breaks on each side.

Speaker 4:47

Right, right. There were no holds.

Erin 4:48

Um there were no holds. Yeah, it was like someone finally actually held.

Speaker 4:52

And I think I think that's a factor of the ground strokes being better and us not working on the volleys enough. Yes, right. We're gonna talk about volleys. Yeah, I know that's a whole conversation. So you're so you are actually a hundred percent correct. Uh in the men's in the men's double, it's hold your serve and then try and get one of the one of the two return points.

Mental Toughness in Tiebreakers

Erin 5:13

And I said that to Carolyn, like I said, before we started recording. So I said, you know, if I hold and then my opponent serve, I try to get one of theirs. And if I get one of theirs, then it's a bonus, right? Then I'm like, I'm ahead. Right. And then you just try to hold serve, and but yeah, and then I said to her, I said, and then you just have to break their serve basically twice if you want to win. I mean, it would be nice to win easier than 10-8 or 7-5 or whatever, right? You don't want to play, you know, 12 to 19.

Speaker 5:39

But the reality is that's gonna happen.

Erin 5:41

Yeah, a lot. But then I said that to her, and she was like, Wait, what? I said you only have to break them twice, and you have to hold serve every time.

Carolyn 5:48

And she was like, I was like, wait, does the math add up is what I was thinking. Because and even with this, just one break. If you're serving first, well, but you have to win by two.

Erin 5:57

Well, that's true. If you first serve first, you're right.

Carolyn 5:59

It's only because that's what I was saying. I was like, so, but Karen, you're saying with women's, it's not the hold that when we go in, we need to think each two points is as okay. I want to win one of these. If I win the next, it's extra. Correct. No matter if I'm serving, no matter if I'm receiving.

Speaker 6:18

And I think that helps keep you from going into a mental slide, too. Right. And if I turn to my partner and I say, okay, let's get let's get the first one right here, instead of I'm not thinking about that easy forehand volley you just put in the net.

Speaker 1 6:32

I'm thinking about I'm thinking about it. Because that's gonna happen multiple times. Okay. Don't don't think about it that time because that's gonna happen again. Right, exactly, exactly.

Carolyn 6:42

Well, I have a question then, because I'm thinking about I I never think about it this way. Instead, I normally go to a bad place. Yes, she does when I'm down like I'm down nine to two. I'm just gonna hit it as hard as I can until you know.

Erin 6:56

I usually say, I can't believe I'm in a tiebreaker, the whole tiebreaker.

Speaker 7:00

We shouldn't even be here. We should be at the vault. Why am I? Yeah, why am I here?

Carolyn 7:03

Yes, why am I in the same way? I should have won this when I was up five too.

Speaker 7:07

We have this, we have the saying, and it's anything can happen. Your opponent can get tight. They, you know, they're up big. I saw it. Um, we had a lady in the 65s, she was probably number two in the nation, playing the number one girl in the nation. And she was up six three in the breaker, and she got tight. And the other girl didn't go away. She hang, she hung tough. The girl that was ahead six three had a double fault. And when I see that, I'm like, all right, she that's tight. She hadn't double faulted all match, and she just double faulted at the one of the most important, if not the most important point of the match. She's feeling the nerves. So as long as I'm going, I'm not going away, I'm still here. We say anything, anything can happen. And that's the great thing about tennis, is you have those comebacks and you have those matches that you shouldn't win. But if you go away mentally, it's probably not gonna happen. You're probably gonna fall fall fall short of your goals.

Carolyn 8:12

Yeah. I do have just one quick question. I may not even include this in the podcast, but Karen, when you know, when we as women, okay, for the women's game, where you're just supposed to try to win one point, take them at two points at a time for the tie break, is how you should think about it. Like, I want to win one point, then I, you know, the extra point. How do you then also keep track of score? Like look is that's the part that I've had issues with in tie breaks, is that we've tried, you know, I've sometimes kind of even flipped the score in my head, but then I'm like, oh, but I still need to keep track of the score so that do you know what I'm talking about? Like, how do you keep this all in your mind?

Speaker 8:51

So I think I think there's I think there's like a before a point thought and an after after a point thought. So so as I'm getting ready to serve, we're getting ready to return. I'm going, okay, first point, let's

Managing Score Thoughts Between Points

Speaker 9:05

get this first point. Point finishes in my head, I go, okay, we're up three, two. And then I'm getting ready to return. Okay, second point, let's go. You know, what so so it's a before a before the point thought, and then an after the point thought. And then I'm hoping somebody else is keeping up with it too. Right. And then if we're playing Komen, I'm using the score markers for that reason, right? So at least we're not gonna get too far off base. Um, but that's a good that's a good question. Yeah, I think I think I think that I I definitely I mean I wonder how many thoughts we actually have between points, because I'm sure there's a bunch of them. But but for me it's it's all right, right before I strike the ball, and then right after I hit the ball. So I'm so it's like a like a business management, you know, keeping up with the points, right? And then it's an emotional, okay, I'm trying to get one of these two. So I'm present and not going, why am I in this tiebreaker?

Erin 10:10

Look at that, Erin, comma, Erin. No, I think that's a good question too, because I've actually done just what you were saying. And when someone was serving, I I would think, oh, if I get their point, you know, if I get this point, then I'm at this score. And then maybe I haven't. And so then sometimes I'll get the score wrong because I made an assumption that was going to happen before it actually happened. Right, right. Yeah, yeah.

Speaker 10:34

That's like that's like that is that is dangerous. Yeah. Like thinking, like, oh, if I get this sum up five, two, and then, you know, and then you're and then they're like, no, you weren't.

Erin 10:44

We're only at five, four, you know, five, whatever.

Speaker 10:46

But in my head I was, so that should be enough. Right, exactly. I thought I was ahead. I'm pretty sure. Yeah. I don't even know I'm in this breaker.

unknown 10:54

Right.

Erin 10:55

I already won the breaker. In my mind. In my mind.

Speaker 1 11:00

Exactly.

Carolyn 11:02

Thanks to Karen for coming on the podcast. We have another episode with Karen where she gives us mental tips for tiebreakers, which I definitely need, and also a few pieces of advice for levels 2.5 to 4.0. We've included more information about her camp and her show notes. Thanks so much for listening and hope to see you on the court soon.