Here are some simple descriptions of the basic grips you'll need for your forehand, backhand, serve, volley, and overhead.
Experiment with all of them until you feel comfortable with one or more, then decide on what's best suited for you and the game you like to play.
A pro will charge you upwards of $50 to $100 per hour to teach you how to hold your racket - Ace is giving you this info for free!!! Nada!!, Nothing!!! Just tell all your friends if Ace helped you out and send them my way!
General: Not hard at all! A forehand grip is very easy. There are 4 basic grips - the Eastern, Continental, Semi-Western, and Western grips. Most people play with either an Eastern (the classic grip) or a Semi-Western.
The Eastern Forehand: The Eastern Forehand is simple to learn - put your racket on edge on a table or other flat surface, then shake hands with it. Or, simply put the palm of your hand against the strings and slide it down to the handle.That's all there is to it! You've learned the Eastern Forehand. The palm of your hand should be flat against the side of the handle.
The Continental: This grip is a good one to use if you don't feel comfortable changing your grip during a point because it can be used for both the forehand and backhand. For this reason, a lot of people use it for volleying as well. Your hand is positioned between an Eastern Forehand and an Eastern Backhand (described below). A simple way to learn this grip is to put your racket on edge on a table, then grab it like a frying pan. The knuckle at the base of your index finger should be right on top of the first beveled side of the handle, next to the top of the handle. The Continental is also a good grip to use for your overhead, and sometimes your serve.
The Western Forehand: Most of the pros you see who have extremely heavy topspin (think Spanish Armada) use a Western Forehand. It's a little tricky to learn. Put your racket flat on a table then grab it like a frying pan. This time, when you hold the racket so the strings are perpendicular to the court, the palm of your hand should be flat against the "bottom" of the racket. You get lots of topsin, but, you pay a price when you try hitting low balls. If you are ever getting your butt kicked by someone using this grip, try chipping a lot of slow slices at his forehand. Ace guarantees you'll win a lot of cheap points this way.
The Semi-Western Forehand: Finally, this grip is a compromise between the classic Eastern and the Western Forehands. It's simple - the knuckle at the base of your index finger should be on top of the beveled part of the handle between the side and bottom of the handle. It tends to generate more topspin than an Eastern, but, it's more flexible than a Western. This is the grip that Ace prefers, although, of course, Ace is a master of them all!
The Eastern Backhand: Most people, Ace You included, use an Eastern Backhand grip. From an Eastern Forehand grip (see above), move the handle so that the knuckle at the base of your index finger is on the top side of the racket handle. Ace You recommends learning a one handed back-hand - you'll have much more range - and, except for the top pros, you'll be able to hit with as much power as anyone else.
The Two-Handed Backhand: Well, if you insist. There are a couple ways to hit this. Assuming you're right-handed (lefties do the reverse), most two-handers use an Eastern Backhand grip with their right hand and an Eastern Forehand with their left.
The Continental: The Continental was described above. John McEnroe used to use this for his backhand. It's described in the forehand section above.
