diff --git a/index.html b/index.html
index 0bf9c32..d67378b 100644
--- a/index.html
+++ b/index.html
@@ -471,6 +471,6 @@ if (location.hostname !== 'splatter-tennis.wuwi.one') {
     </div>
   </div>
 </div>
-<script type="module" src="src/main.js?v=236"></script>
+<script type="module" src="src/main.js?v=237"></script>
 </body>
 </html>
diff --git a/src/config.js b/src/config.js
index 68c212b..af10f70 100644
--- a/src/config.js
+++ b/src/config.js
@@ -657,10 +657,14 @@ export const MENU = [
 // how long its racket is (reach), the FLOOR of its shot quality (qMin — a raised floor means every
 // ball comes back with pace), how often it just misses (flub), and its serve. MEDIUM repeats the
 // shipped TUNE values dial for dial (pinned by test), so the middle chip IS the old game.
+// `smart` is the probability the CPU aims at the OPEN court instead of a random lane (trySwing) —
+// the dial that turns "returns everything" into "plays you". HARD got a second pass after
+// Oliver's "still too easy": it now reads your shot in 0.22 s, covers court at 1.3x, floors its
+// quality at 0.70, and hunts the corner you are not standing in four times out of five.
 export const DIFFS = [
-  { id: 'easy',   name: 'EASY',   flub: 0.30, quality: 0.62, qMin: 0.45, speed: 0.80, reaction: 0.62, reach: 1.45, serve: 0.75 },
-  { id: 'medium', name: 'MEDIUM', flub: 0.10, quality: 0.86, qMin: 0.45, speed: 1.0,  reaction: 0.45, reach: 1.6,  serve: 1.0 },
-  { id: 'hard',   name: 'HARD',   flub: 0.02, quality: 1.0,  qMin: 0.62, speed: 1.18, reaction: 0.28, reach: 1.75, serve: 1.1 },
+  { id: 'easy',   name: 'EASY',   flub: 0.30, quality: 0.62, qMin: 0.45, speed: 0.80, reaction: 0.62, reach: 1.45, serve: 0.75, smart: 0 },
+  { id: 'medium', name: 'MEDIUM', flub: 0.10, quality: 0.86, qMin: 0.45, speed: 1.0,  reaction: 0.45, reach: 1.6,  serve: 1.0,  smart: 0 },
+  { id: 'hard',   name: 'HARD',   flub: 0.01, quality: 1.0,  qMin: 0.70, speed: 1.30, reaction: 0.22, reach: 1.85, serve: 1.15, smart: 0.8 },
 ];
 
 // THE TOURNAMENT (Oliver's pick over the endless ladder, 2026-08-13): four rounds up the club's
diff --git a/src/gameplay.js b/src/gameplay.js
index 591e835..d62a2e6 100644
--- a/src/gameplay.js
+++ b/src/gameplay.js
@@ -1174,8 +1174,15 @@ function trySwing(ch, isAI, qCap = TUNE.aiQualityMax) {
   if (Math.abs(t - center) * 1000 < TUNE.perfectMs) q = 1;
   ch.facing = dx >= 0 ? 1 : -1; // forehand right (righty), backhand left → mirrored sprite
   const flick = isAI ? null : takeFlickAim();
+  // SMART AIM (G.diff.smart, classic difficulty): with this probability the CPU plays the OPEN
+  // COURT — the corner away from where you stand — instead of rolling a random lane. Random aim
+  // sends a third of everything straight back to your racket; hunting the open corner is what
+  // makes a hard CPU feel like it is PLAYING you. ax is an absolute court lane (see doHit).
+  const smart = isAI && G.diff && Math.random() < (G.diff.smart || 0);
   const aim = isAI
-    ? { ax: [ -1, 0, 1 ][Math.floor(Math.random() * 3)], az: Math.random() < 0.25 ? -1 : 0 }
+    ? { ax: smart ? (P.x > 0.6 ? -1 : P.x < -0.6 ? 1 : (Math.random() < 0.5 ? -1 : 1))
+                  : [ -1, 0, 1 ][Math.floor(Math.random() * 3)],
+        az: Math.random() < 0.25 ? -1 : 0 }
     : flick || { ax: axisX(), az: axisZ() * (ch.side === 'P' ? 1 : -1) };
   // G.diff (classic difficulty) moves the FLOOR too: a raised qMin is what makes HARD's every
   // ball arrive with pace, where a cap alone just trims the best ones. Null outside classic, so
diff --git a/test.js b/test.js
index 2bd951a..c010594 100644
--- a/test.js
+++ b/test.js
@@ -1126,6 +1126,8 @@ test('classic wears the match feel, and the difficulty table is a ladder', () =>
   assert.ok(e.reach < m.reach && m.reach < h.reach, 'harder swings a longer racket');
   assert.ok(e.qMin <= m.qMin && m.qMin < h.qMin, 'harder raises the quality floor');
   assert.ok(e.serve < m.serve && m.serve < h.serve, 'harder serves better');
+  assert.ok(e.smart <= m.smart && m.smart < h.smart, 'harder plays the open court');
+  assert.equal(m.smart, 0, 'MEDIUM aims at random, as the shipped classic did');
   assert.equal(m.flub, TUNE.classicFlub, 'MEDIUM flub IS classicFlub');
   assert.equal(m.quality, TUNE.classicQualityMax, 'MEDIUM quality IS classicQualityMax');
   assert.equal(m.speed, 1.0, 'MEDIUM leaves aiSpeed alone');