About Insider's Playbook: Smart Strategies for Competitive Senior Tennis Players Over 50
If you’re over 50 and still driven by competition, Insider’s Playbook is built for you. This podcast goes beyond generic tennis advice and into the strategic, physical, and mental edge senior players need to compete longer and win more matches.
Hosted by senior tennis tournament competitor Mike Rogers, and founder os SeniorTennisUnpacked.com (http://SeniorTennisUnpacked.com), each episode features elite coaches, national champions, and performance experts sharing real strategies to help you move smarter, train efficiently, stay injury-resistant, and out-think opponents who rely on youth alone.
Subscribe now and step inside the playbook that top senior players use to keep raising their game.
How to Beat Pushers After 50 Without Beating Yourself | Ian Westermann
👉 Go Deeper with Coaches and Pros Who Actually Know Senior Tennis https://www.skool.com/senior-tennis-unpacked-8081 (https://www.skool.com/senior-tennis-unpacked-8081)
Struggling to beat tennis pushers after 50? Those slow balls can look easy, yet leave you frustrated and making unforced errors. In this episode of Insider’s Playbook, Mike Rogers talks with Ian Westermann, founder of Essential Tennis, about why this happens and how to apply pressure without beating yourself.
Ian explains how slow balls expose technical weaknesses, why hitting harder can backfire, and how pushers use consistency to win. Using footage from a student lesson, he demonstrates how swing intensity, racket face angle, and shot placement work together to create more reliable attacking shots.
For competitive tennis players over 50, especially at the 3.0–3.5 level, this conversation offers a practical approach to improving your groundstrokes and competing against defensive opponents. Learn how to find your controlled “7 out of 10” swing and practice with purpose so you can build confidence in the shots you need during matches.
Key takeaways
Why slow balls expose technical flaws that incoming pace can hide
How consistency puts pressure on opponents, and why pushers deserve respect
How Ian uses a “7 out of 10” swing intensity to balance pace and control
How small changes in racket face angle affect trajectory and depth
A five-balls-in-a-row target drill to develop consistent shot quality and placement
Contact Ian Westermann:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/EssentialTennis (https://www.youtube.com/user/EssentialTennis)
Ian’s Book: https://www.essentialtennis.com/book (https://www.essentialtennis.com/book)
Progressions List: https://essentialtennis.com/progressions.pdf (https://essentialtennis.com/progressions.pdf)
⏱️ Chapters:
00:00 Show intro
00:41 Why “easy” balls make you miss
03:26 How to pressure a pusher without beating yourself
07:41 Why consistency is a weapon
12:29 The 6–1 lesson: Finding your 7/10 swing
18:50 How racket face angle controls your shots
22:27 The five-ball drill: Practice power with precision
28:39 Show Wrap Up
#TennisServe #TennisOver50 #SeniorTennis #EssentialTennis
29 Sept 2026
Can You Improve Your Serve After 50 Without Changing Your Grip? | Ian Westermann
👉 Go Deeper with Coaches and Pros Who Actually Know Senior Tennis https://www.skool.com/senior-tennis-unpacked-8081 (https://www.skool.com/senior-tennis-unpacked-8081)
Can you improve your tennis serve after 50 without changing your grip? In this episode of Insider’s Playbook, Ian Westermann joins Mike Rogers to analyze video of a player whose serve was limited by a shallow racket drop. Ian shows her original motion, the changes she made during a lesson, and why he chose to work on her racket position before considering a grip change.
You’ll see how Ian uses video feedback and a step-by-step progression to help the player move from shadow swings to hitting serves. He also explains why an improved motion in practice may disappear when a ball is introduced, and what it takes to carry a technical change into match play. If you’re a tennis player over 50 looking to improve your serve, this conversation offers a close look at how one coach approaches the process.
Ian Westermann founded Essential Tennis to help recreational players improve through online coaching. Through its instructional courses and YouTube videos, he teaches players how to understand their strokes and build better habits on the court. He is also the author of Essential Tennis: Improve Faster, Play Smarter, and Win More Matches, a book about the process of improving your game.
5 key takeaways
A shallow racket drop can limit how much energy you put into the serve
Changing your grip may help, but it is not always the best first step
Video feedback can reveal the gap between what your serve feels like and what it actually does
A new motion may disappear as soon as a ball is introduced, so build up to hitting in stages
To carry a change into matches, you need enough practice repetitions to make the new motion familiar
Contact Ian Westermann:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/EssentialTennis (https://www.youtube.com/user/EssentialTennis)
Ian’s Book: https://www.essentialtennis.com/book (https://www.essentialtennis.com/book)
Progressions List: https://essentialtennis.com/progressions.pdf (https://essentialtennis.com/progressions.pdf)
⏱️ Chapters:
00:00 Coming Up - Show Intro
01:12 How a shallow racket drop limits your serve
05:01 Why Ian did not change her grip
13:10 What video reveals about your serve
15:02 Why the old motion returns when a ball appears
18:44 Building a new serve that holds up in matches
26:49 Show Wrap Up
#TennisServe #TennisOver50 #SeniorTennis #EssentialTennis
22 Sept 2026
I Refused a Free Point in a National Final — Here’s What Happened | Jeff Greenwald
👉 Go Deeper with Coaches and Pros Who Actually Know Senior Tennis https://www.skool.com/senior-tennis-unpacked-8081 (https://www.skool.com/senior-tennis-unpacked-8081)
In a national final with a Gold Ball on the line, Jeff Greenwald was handed a free point that would have ended the match. Instead, he stopped the official and said, “No, I don’t want the point. Replay the point.” What happened next became one of the defining moments of his competitive career, and a powerful example of how much his identity as a player had changed.
In this episode of Insider’s Playbook, Jeff looks back on the mental shift that helped him become a better competitor later in life. He talks about playing too safely as a younger pro, discovering another level of his game when he finally learned to play freer and more aggressively, and why mastery, commitment, and how you choose to compete can matter more than the result itself. For players over 50, the lesson is clear: getting older does not end the pursuit of excellence. It may simply change the path.
Key takeaways
Stop playing safe. Looser, more committed tennis can reveal a higher level of your game
Build the identity of the player you want to be, then compete in a way that matches it
Choose how you want to compete, not just whether you win
Raise your floor. Better preparation helps your bad days become much better
Keep pursuing excellence as you age by adapting your game, mindset, and standards
About Jeff Greenwald
Jeff Greenwald is the author of The Best Tennis of Your Life and creator of Fearless Tennis. His work focuses on the mental side of competitive tennis, helping players manage pressure, expectations, focus, confidence, and the emotional challenges that can interfere with playing their best.
Contact Jeff Greenwald:
Website: https://fearlesstennis.com (https://fearlesstennis.com)
Email: jeff@fearlesstennis.com (mailto:jeff@fearlesstennis.com)
⏱️ Chapters:
00:00 Coming Up - Show Intro
01:15 Stop Playing Safe and Discover Your Real Game
04:57 Build the Identity of the Player You Want to Be
07:07 Why Jeff Refused the Match-Winning Point
09:45 Raise Your Floor, Not Just Your Ceiling
10:41 Why Mastery Matters More Than More Trophies
13:14 Find a Different Path to Excellence
17:42 Show Wrap Up
#SeniorTennis #TennisMentalGame #TennisOver50 #CompetitiveTennis
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