This first tip is on closing points. Every once in a while you're going to be involved in a point where your opponent just lays one right in there for you like a big juicy watermelon. You take one look at this big fat goose egg just waiting to be slammed into next Tuesday. You wind up, swing away and put the ball on the moon instead of on the table. What happened?

What happened, is what happens to many beginners. They see a real easy shot and get so excited about it that they don't think about what they are doing and in their over excited state, send the ball sailing into orbit. It's an easy thing to do, even for the more experienced player when in the middle of a big point. So the question is, what do you do to prevent this?

The answer is very simple. When you see a shot that is an easy point, take a breath and pick a spot on the table where you want to send the ball to. Not just an area, but a spot. Make that spot as small as possible and try as hard as you can to hit that spot. You will find two things happen. The first is this will force you to concentrate and slow down a bit. The second is that you will find your accuracy improve quite a bit. You may not hit the spot on the nose but with practice, you will come very close to it and in many cases you'll put that point away instead of throwing it out the window. This will show your opponent that you can put away these shots and will end up commanding more respect from him.

This next tip is a simple one but one that will save your life more times than you know. When in the middle of a point where you are forced off the table with a defensive lob, try to add more topspin to your return and lob it back as deep as you can. This will do two things. First, it will give you more time to get back into position and back to the point and second, it will make it tough for your opponent to smash tough angles.

Finally, many beginners try to fake their opponents out on the serve. Experienced players don't fake out easily. Instead, try to concentrate on putting as much spin on the ball as you can. Or if you don't think you can put extra spin on the ball then just use your serve to set up the best shot for you based on your strengths. Simply try to keep your opponent off balance. As soon as you are finished serving, what is important is to get back in position so you're ready for what's coming at you.