Why do so many players miss the low volley?

• Imagine a compass, (north, south, east, and west). Think of North as the head of the racket pointing up and the handle pointing down. Think of South as the head of the racket pointing straight down and the handle pointing up. Hitting a low volley with the racket head pointing "North" tends to direct the ball down and hitting a low volley with the head of the racket pointing "South" tends to direct the ball up. The North mistake I call "palming the ball" and the South mistake I call "dumping or shoveling" the racket head. Your job is to address the low volley more "East" or "West." East would be a low forehand volley for a right-hander. West would be a low backhand volley for a right hander.
 

• Opening the face up too much will force the ball to lift too high and closing the face down will drive the ball down. Think of a quarter balancing on your racket head; with the racket head pointing more "east" or "west." Tilting the racket face up where the quarter almost falls off will be more correct. This will allow the ball to lift over the net but not go so high as to get you killed.
 

• Hitting the ball so hard that it does not have time to lift itself over the net is a very common "low volley" error.