I've been playing tennis since I was 10 years old. As a 5.0 USTA-rated player today, I came up with the best tennis groundstroke game during the global pandemic. It is called: The Mountain Of Pressure.
The Mountain Of Pressure, aka The Mountain for short, is a groundstroke game to 11. The reason why The Mountain is the best tennis groundstroke game is because it combines physical skill, physical endurance, and mental toughness.
To win in tennis, you must be mentally tough. With similar level players battling, mental toughness accounts for 60% – 70% of whether a player will win or not. The Mountain trains you to get mentally tougher.
Rules Of The Mountain
Here are the rules of the best groundstroke game today.
- First to 10 points wins.
- Third ball is live. The second ball hit should be to the opponent and hit with normal pace.
- Each groundstroke point win equals one point until the pressure points.
- The pressure points are at 3, 6, 9.
- If you reach a pressure point and win, you advance by one point.
- If you reach a pressure point and lose, you fall back to the previous pressure point and your opponent wins one point. For example, you lose a pressure point at 6 and fall back to 3. If you lose again at 3, you fall back to 0. If this happens, you are falling off the mountain.
- There can be double pressure points. For example, you have 6 and your opponent has 2. If you lose, you go back to 3 and your opponent goes to 3. If you win, you go to 4 and your opponent goes back to 0.
- To increase pressure, opponents can agree that the one facing the pressure point starts the rally first. There is generally more pressure to start first because hitting the second ball into the net or out has no penalty.
- An opponent receiving the second ball may elect to pass by not hitting the ball if the second ball is hit poorly (too hard, too wide, too deep). The second ball must be normally hit to the opponent so as to not game the system.
Best Tennis Groundstroke Game Is Great Training For Matches
When you plan The Mountain, the best tennis groundstroke game, you will discover very quickly who has mental toughness and who doesn't. You will also discover your own mental toughness level as well.
To win at The Mountain should be difficult if you are playing a similar level opponent. The Mountain should feel on average three times harder than playing until 11 straight up (groundstroke game). The Mountain should also feel harder than playing until 21 (groundstroke game).
If you want to improve your winning percentage in matches, play The Mountain. If you want to have more fun and variety, The Mountain of Pressure is extremely fun. The Mountain will also help boost your physical endurance, which is necessary to outlast your opponent.
As a conference championship-winning high school tennis coach, I plan to incorporate The Mountain in every practice session once sports are allowed again. We've won back-to-back Northern California championships, and we plan to do it again!
If you're interested in tennis and growing your wealth, you can sign up for my free newsletter here. And if you appreciate playing The Mountain, I'd appreciate you let everyone know about Financial Samurai!
I started Financial Samurai in 2009 during the financial crisis to make sense of all the chaos. Today, Financial Samurai is one of the top independently owned and run personal finance sites with over 1 million page views a month. Financial Samurai is a reflection of my grit on the tennis court to never give up and to always stay focused.
Best,
Sam