Singles Sticks
 

Played a singles match for my USTA team the other day - we were playing away at an upscale private club. Prior to our arriving there, they had put up singles sticks on the two courts designated for the singles lines. I thought that was a nice touch, since honestly I can't remember when last I saw singles sticks in use for league play.

So... how common is it to find them used in leagues? Do you have them in place for your home matches?

I don't play League tennis anymore, but when I did, we played our home matches at a college that had singles sticks and they let us use them.. We were the only team in the league that used them.

Did you find that it gave your team an advantage? Since most people rarely if ever use them in singles, I wonder if a team that is used to them has a bit of an edge. Not that it's a huge difference, but an inch or two in net height can be the difference between a great down-the-line passing shot and an error.

I have a question about singles sticks.

My partner and I warmed up as usual, and I was to serve first. I started double-faulting my head off. Just could not get the serve over the net. It was a long game, and I eventually held. Then I noticed that the singles sticks were still in.

Could this have had anything to do with the double-faults? Does it change the height of the net compared to a doubles net?

'Cause I blamed it on the singles sticks!

Singles sticks move the height of the net at the doubles sideline to the singles sideline.....the height at the strap is the same......as result the net is slightly higher everywhere but at the strap.......

Is it high enough to make a difference in recreational play? Maybe...Maybe not.....I think it was probably more psychological than anything else......

Our home courts are even better. They have "singles courts".

(The netposts are where the singles sticks would go, just like the ones you see on TV)

However they also dont have doubles alleys which freaks out a lot of people because it looks strange.

Singles sticks would raise the net over the singles sideline, but it wont raise it much near the center. (since the center strap holds the net down to the proper height) Maybe it would affect a serve if it was on an extreme angle.

What I find in some official tournaments is that the nets are usually at the exact proper height but they seem high if we're used to playing on outdoor public courts where very few nets are at the proper height.

I did not notice an advantage. The other teams were happy that we had them in.

Javier, why have singles nets on a court with alleys? Are they removable to put in a doubles net?

Never seen that before. I've seen courts that have two holes for netposts (for singles and doubles), but never personally seen a court without alleys. Count me in as one of those that would be freaked out.

They had those at nationals in Tucson - kind of odd to get used to.

They dont have alleys. Probably because the net posts are not removable and there was no need.

I think they realized if they wanted to put in 7 courts, they were going to run out of room in the first place so they decided to make two of the courts like that to save space. (they needed 7 courts for HS tennis)

Sorry, mis-read your post. I thought it says they have alleys. My bad.

The height of the net is still 36" at the center-strap when using singles sticks. However, the net height is 42" at the location of the sticks.

Does anyone know the correct placement of the single sticks?

Yes, many of us know :-)

Haha I want to know. don't YOU know that ;) :)



But for real, I really to want to know.

Seriously how hard is it to google "tennis singles sticks placement"?
Anyway, the sticks are placed 3 feet outside of the singles sidelines.

yup 36" from the singles sidelines, also if playing with sticks if the ball hits the net between the sticks and the net post the ball is "out"

No **** Sherlocks! If you're playing singles in a tournament, it's a good idea to get some and practice with them prior to. There's some made of aluminum that collapse down to fit in your bag that are nice.

Sutter Lawn's center court in Sacto is lined for singles only and SFTC had one on their roof but not anymore.

I'm always amused by those spending several minutes pre-match tweaking the net strap the .001" as if their entire game depended on it. Never do I see them measure the net post or check overall cord tension where significant differences can be found (not as if much could be done.)

Serves cross the net from the middle to perhaps 1/4 way to sidelines; where singles sticks have virtually no impact.

I made my own from 2 x 2's. Cut a 1 inch notch at the top and painted them green. Easy peasy.