Part 1 of this series made the case that there is no swing in a volley. This lesson is about the exception. There is one ball at the net that invites a full swing, and Coach Tim Brielmaier's point is that it is the only one. Learn to tell it apart from every other ball in a split second and your net game gets simpler, not more complicated.
Traditional volley or swinging volley? Mostly traditional.
Coach Tim puts a number on it: 80 to 90 percent of the time you are hitting a traditional volley. Racquet out in front, no backswing, and you go straight to the ball with your feet and your racquet. The swinging volley is real, and it is a weapon when the right ball shows up, but treating it as your default is how volleys end up in the net or three feet long.
Your step is your power
Stay in the ready position with the racquet in front of you. When the ball comes, the step forward is what hits it. You do not need any backswing at all, on the forehand or the backhand. The step alone gives you enough to send the ball back to the baseline. If you feel underpowered at the net, the fix is almost never a bigger swing. It is a more committed step.
Deep volley or drop volley: same stroke
With the swing gone, the only dial you turn is how much body weight goes into the ball. Full weight behind the racquet drives the volley deep. Ease off and the same stroke becomes a drop volley that dies short. You are not learning two shots. You are learning one shot and how much of yourself to put behind it.
The ball you can't swing at
Watch the miss in the lesson, because it is the whole point. A ball arrives low, Coach Tim takes a swing at it, and it goes nowhere. “That one's too low, and that's exactly what will happen on a ball that's too low.” A swinging volley needs the ball above the net with time to spare. Anything at or below net height is a block, every time, no matter how tempting it looks.
The ball you can: the high floater
When the ball floats up high and slow, that is the invitation. Get the racquet out in front of you and push it to the target. The ball already has pace on it, so you are not generating speed, you are redirecting it. Get the racquet in front, give it a shove, and let the floater's own energy do the rest. Coach Tim's verdict on these: “not that risky to hit,” as long as you are choosing the right ball.
The swinging backhand volley
If you have a good backhand, you can take a swinging backhand on the same high floater. It looks like a shortened version of your regular backhand rather than a block. The lesson shows a regular backhand volley and a swinging one back to back so you can see the difference in the preparation.
Reading them live
The last stretch of the lesson is a rapid rally where Coach Tim calls each ball as it comes: traditional, swinging, drop, traditional, more of a swing, drop, drop, and a swinging volley to finish. That is the skill. Not the swinging volley itself, but recognising in the half second you have which of the three the ball is asking for.
How to practice this on your own
Have a partner or a ball machine feed you a mix of heights at the net. Block everything at net height or lower, and only swing when the ball is clearly above the net and floating. Say the call out loud before you hit: block, swing, drop. The verbal call builds the recognition faster than the stroke does. If you are training solo, the wall drill keeps the block volley honest, and weight control and spacing is the body-weight push every volley in this lesson depends on.
Get a lesson to build on it
Reading the floater from the low ball is something a coach can correct in real time while you are still learning to see it. Coach Tim is a mobile coach across Florida's Space Coast and Treasure Coast and comes to your court. See lessons and pricing, or read what to expect in your first lesson. Not local? Ask about online coaching and send a clip of your volleys.