Court conditions (temp/humidty/wind)? ps - I like humidity.

[ChaelAZ]

Most people think of dry heat with Arizona, but usually by the end of June and right around the 4th of July weekend, the heat and humidity gets crazy here. So as temps climb into the 110 range we get that heat inversion and summer storms (monsoon season, as it is called) rage almost every evening.

And with that, storms rolled in around us last night as we stepped on court around 5:30p. Temp was around 105 degrees to start with about 20% humidity, but as the storms closed in temps dropped to about 99 degrees with around 30% humidity. And as the match continued probably down to the low 90's for temp and in the mid 30's for humidity. One thing I find is, I can absolutely swing freely when temp/humidity get in that range. The ball slows down in the thicker air and spin gets everything dropping in. Especially in comparison to that lighter, dry and hot air. We had a dust storm rolling through to start, so winds were a bit much, but I do like a decent 5mph or so wind while playing to not feel stagnant in the heat.

For me there is a point of diminishing returns, like when I played on Maui and that heat/humidity absolutely sucked the life right out of you.

So just curious, what temp or conditions do you find best?

 

[Fintft]

It's not as much that "heat/humidity absolutely sucks the life right out of you", but the slippery hands. I can't swing freely and fast if I have to hold the racquet tight and I don't want to string more than 2 identical racquets with the same string and tension. Sometimes I change the overgrip on the fly (20 seconds). Don't use lotions much, nor raisins.

 

[Yamin]

Hate humidity.... out of breath before the match even starts and can't hold onto the racket. Have spiked my racket on serve a few times...

 

[ChaelAZ]

It's not as much that "heat/humidity absolutely sucks the life right out of you", but the slippery hands. I can't swing freely and fast if I have to hold the racquet tight and I don't want to string more than 2 identical racquets with the same string and tension. Sometimes I change the overgrip on the fly (20 seconds). Don't use lotions much, nor raisins.

I go through overgrips every few matches to keep the handle tacky, and I go through, like, 6-8 wrist bands per match, with lots of towelling of between points. The slippery hands struggle is real!

 

[Fintft]

I go through overgrips every few matches to keep the handle tacky, and I go through, like, 6-8 wrist bands per match, with lots of towelling of between points. The slippery hands struggle is real!

I change my overgrips between each hit/for each match, sometimes even during play. Was using Tourna TAC but someone mentioned the purple, OG Tourna for humidity... Many wrist bands, always change them on the changeover. Toweling not as much, but using the left wristband usually to wipe my right hand and even arm.

 

[socallefty]

The ball slows down in the thicker air and spin gets everything dropping in. Especially in comparison to that lighter, dry and hot air.

You have your physics upside down. Water vapor weighs less than regular air molecules and so, humid air is less dense than dry air.

WHY IS MOIST AIR LESS DENSE THAN DRY AIR AT SAME TEMPERATURE

Humid conditions feel heavy because it seems to reduce racquet head speed (RHS) as sweat doesn’t dry and efficiently cool down the body like in dry air. Balls also might accumulate more moisture and get heavier. This is a great article which explains that humidity doesn’t affect ball flight much, but if affects players and their RHS.

Humid or Heavy?: How Air Really Affects Tennis

Cool temperatures and showers during the first week of Roland Garros this year have had a mass of pundits and players talking about the “heavy” playing conditions. Some said those condi…

fogmountaintennis.wordpress.com

 

[Fxanimator1]

Most people think of dry heat with Arizona, but usually by the end of June and right around the 4th of July weekend, the heat and humidity gets crazy here. So as temps climb into the 110 range we get that heat inversion and summer storms (monsoon season, as it is called) rage almost every evening.

And with that, storms rolled in around us last night as we stepped on court around 5:30p. Temp was around 105 degrees to start with about 20% humidity, but as the storms closed in temps dropped to about 99 degrees with around 30% humidity. And as the match continued probably down to the low 90's for temp and in the mid 30's for humidity. One thing I find is, I can absolutely swing freely when temp/humidity get in that range. The ball slows down in the thicker air and spin gets everything dropping in. Especially in comparison to that lighter, dry and hot air. We had a dust storm rolling through to start, so winds were a bit much, but I do like a decent 5mph or so wind while playing to not feel stagnant in the heat.

For me there is a point of diminishing returns, like when I played on Maui and that heat/humidity absolutely sucked the life right out of you.

So just curious, what temp or conditions do you find best?

In Florida right now the humidity is 59%, and it is oppressive when combined with 95 degrees. 30% humidity would feel like I could play all day. In the winter the humidity can get lower and it feels great out.

 

[socallefty]

My club is two miles from the ocean and so, we have a marine layer of air which causes high humidity early morning and in the evenings for most of the year. If you play at those times, humidity exceeds 60-70% and conditions seem very slow. Especially in the fall/winter when the temperature is also in the forties/low fifties at those times, it is very tough to hit through people. Singles rallies become longer and in doubles, net play gets less effective and more players stay back under these conditions.

I used to play at a club about ten miles inland a few years ago which did not have this problem and humidity would mostly be below 40%-50%. I could rely on more of a power game and flatter/harder serves there. After I changed to my current club, I’ve had to add more spin to my game so that I can hit to smaller targets closer to the sidelines/baseline as that’s the only way to force errors in high humidity and cold temperatures. If you hit hard and a bit further from the sidelines, quick players can get there and turn defense into offense against flat shots. The guys who have only flat serves also don’t do well in the colder months due to the high humidity and lower temperatures. I really enjoy playing in the hot seasons here (rarely above ninety degrees) in the middle of the day when the humidity is less as I can play more of a power game both on serves and from the baseline.

I wouldn’t consider it very humid unless it is over 65%-70% where I live in SoCal. I guess the Arizona desert or even going 10-20 miles inland here is different.

 

[Vicious49]

I hate to break it to you but what you've described are not humid conditions. As @Fxanimator1 posted above that would be a great day here (Houston for me). Last night at 10:30 when I got done playing it was 90 degrees with 70% humidity. Today is one of the coolest days we've had in the last month or two and it is currently 82 degrees with 72% humidity.

I have a buddy who is in AZ at the moment and was telling me about the 'monsoon' season there. He said everyone kept talking about it and warning him. Once it did rain he was like 'uh, these are just normal rain storms passing through'. But they have no type of drainage there so you get occasional flooding.

 

[Shroud]

before I got injured, I just enjoyed the heat and the humidity. @socallefty you beat me to the physics part. IMHO its mostly the balls get heavier due to moisture

 

[Shroud]

Most people think of dry heat with Arizona, but usually by the end of June and right around the 4th of July weekend, the heat and humidity gets crazy here. So as temps climb into the 110 range we get that heat inversion and summer storms (monsoon season, as it is called) rage almost every evening.

And with that, storms rolled in around us last night as we stepped on court around 5:30p. Temp was around 105 degrees to start with about 20% humidity, but as the storms closed in temps dropped to about 99 degrees with around 30% humidity. And as the match continued probably down to the low 90's for temp and in the mid 30's for humidity. One thing I find is, I can absolutely swing freely when temp/humidity get in that range. The ball slows down in the thicker air and spin gets everything dropping in. Especially in comparison to that lighter, dry and hot air. We had a dust storm rolling through to start, so winds were a bit much, but I do like a decent 5mph or so wind while playing to not feel stagnant in the heat.

For me there is a point of diminishing returns, like when I played on Maui and that heat/humidity absolutely sucked the life right out of you.

So just curious, what temp or conditions do you find best?

see, its not you its the conditions!

 

[ballmachineguy]

I hate to break it to you but what you've described are not humid conditions. As @Fxanimator1 posted above that would be a great day here (Houston for me). Last night at 10:30 when I got done playing it was 90 degrees with 70% humidity. Today is one of the coolest days we've had in the last month or two and it is currently 82 degrees with 72% humidity.

I have a buddy who is in AZ at the moment and was telling me about the 'monsoon' season there. He said everyone kept talking about it and warning him. Once it did rain he was like 'uh, these are just normal rain storms passing through'. But they have no type of drainage there so you get occasional flooding.

I read the first handful of posts and was going to ask, “no Houstonians here?” Ninety+ degrees with 90+ humidity was not uncommon from my recollection. Was there in late ‘80s through early ‘90s. Five steps from leaving the house and you’d be sweating. It was disgusting, but I’d run or play tennis in it. I was younger then. Never could figure out how there were overweight people there. Must have stayed in with the a/c and used the underground tunnels during the work week.

 

[tlm]

My club is two miles from the ocean and so, we have a marine layer of air which causes high humidity early morning and in the evenings for most of the year. If you play at those times, humidity exceeds 60-70% and conditions seem very slow. Especially in the fall/winter when the temperature is also in the forties/low fifties at those times, it is very tough to hit through people. Singles rallies become longer and in doubles, net play gets less effective and more players stay back under these conditions.

I used to play at a club about ten miles inland a few years ago which did not have this problem and humidity would mostly be below 40%-50%. I could rely on more of a power game and flatter/harder serves there. After I changed to my current club, I’ve had to add more spin to my game so that I can hit to smaller targets closer to the sidelines/baseline as that’s the only way to force errors in high humidity and cold temperatures. If you hit hard and a bit further from the sidelines, quick players can get there and turn defense into offense against flat shots. The guys who have only flat serves also don’t do well in the colder months due to the high humidity and lower temperatures. I really enjoy playing in the hot seasons here (rarely above ninety degrees) in the middle of the day when the humidity is less as I can play more of a power game both on serves and from the baseline.

I wouldn’t consider it very humid unless it is over 65%-70% where I live in SoCal. I guess the Arizona desert or even going 10-20 miles inland here is different.

I thought you said in the post above that high humidity doesn’t slow the ball down? I don’t care what some study says when it’s humid the ball slows down and it’s not because of RHS. I live in Illinois and we get some high humidity at times and it’s much easier to keep the ball in the court but not easy to hit through your opponent when humidity is high.

But we also get those low humidity days with high pressure and thin air and the ball flys all over if you are not careful. Quite often we will go from 75% humidity for a few days and then high pressure and low humidity come in and the ball will travel much faster and control is much harder.

I played softball for years and it was the same thing hot muggy nights it was tough to hit the long ball but on lower humidity days ball would go further much easier.

 

[socallefty]

I thought you said in the post above that high humidity doesn’t slow the ball down? I don’t care what some study says when it’s humid the ball slows down and it’s not because of RHS. I live in Illinois and we get some high humidity at times and it’s much easier to keep the ball in the court but not easy to hit through your opponent when humidity is high.

But we also get those low humidity days with high pressure and thin air and the ball flys all over if you are not careful. Quite often we will go from 75% humidity for a few days and then high pressure and low humidity come in and the ball will travel much faster and control is much harder.

I played softball for years and it was the same thing hot muggy nights it was tough to hit the long ball but on lower humidity days ball would go further much easier.

Conditions become slower in high humidity but it is not because of the air becoming thicker - read the article I attached from Fogmountaintennis in post 6.

 

[FuzzyYellowBalls]

Around 102-105, heat index 110, feels like a nice warm blanket. 40% humidity max-ish.

 

[tlm]

Conditions become slower in high humidity but it is not because of the air becoming thicker - read the article I attached from Fogmountaintennis in post 6.

I read the article and it doesn’t make sense. Doesn’t the article say that increase in air density increases the balls drag? So doesn’t that mean that the more air density the more drag?

You say it is not because of the air becoming thicker which seems strange but regardless if that’s true or not the ball moves slower when humidity is higher. I guess you are saying that it’s because the RHS speed is slower because of the added drag from the humidity? That’s strange that the humidity slows down the swing speed but not the ball.

Some say the ball absorbs moisture and that also slows it down some which is probably true but even when balls are new they play slower in high humidity compared to low.

 

[d-quik]

The ball slows down in the thicker air and spin gets everything dropping in.

humid air is not "thicker" than dry air. the molecular weight of water is lower than air meaning density decreases as humidity increases

EDIT: many here already said this. I posted before reading

 

[tlm]

humid air is not "thicker" than dry air. the molecular weight of water is lower than air meaning density decreases as humidity increases

EDIT: many here already said this. I posted before reading

So then that means if you play in 95% humidity the ball will travel faster than if you play in 15% humidity? Okay I got it, so in other words the exact opposite of what really happens on the court.

 

[Pumpkin]

I find windy conditions tough. Someone once said, I don't mind playing in the wind but I'd rather play tennis.

 

[Vicious49]

So then that means if you play in 95% humidity the ball will travel faster than if you play in 15% humidity? Okay I got it, so in other words the exact opposite of what really happens on the court is the real truth.

I'm not sure about all that but I do know your ball won't travel as fast or hard in humid conditions because it saps you of your energy way quicker.

 

[d-quik]

So then that means if you

no, that's not what not means...

 

[tlm]

I'm not sure about all that but I do know your ball won't travel as fast or hard in humid conditions because it saps you of your energy way quicker.

So as soon as you start hitting in humid conditions your energy is gone and that’s the reason the ball goes slower?

 

[Vicious49]

So as soon as you start hitting in humid conditions your energy is gone and that’s the reason the ball goes slower?

Yup, thats exactly what I said.

I learned a long time ago not to argue with a fool as they will bring you down to their level and beat you with experience. From ypur posts you sound very experienced.

 

[tlm]

Yup, thats exactly what I said.

I learned a long time ago not to argue with a fool as they will bring you down to their level and beat you with experience. From ypur posts you sound very experienced.

You said that you know that the ball won’t travel as fast in humid conditions because it saps you of your energy way faster. So indirectly that is what you are saying. But for that to be the reason the ball moves slower then the humidity would have to instantly sap your energy. Only a fool would not be able to understand that, but you must have a lot of experience in that department

 

[Vicious49]

You said that you know that the ball won’t travel as fast in humid conditions because it saps you of your energy way faster. So indirectly that is what you are saying. But for that to be the reason the ball moves slower then the humidity would have to instantly sap your energy. Only a fool would not be able to understand that, but you must have a lot of experience in that department

Sorry, I can't discuss anything with you without your moms permission. Anyone who has to post a picture of their car as their avatar is either a teenager or trying to overcompensate for something else.

 

[ChaelAZ]

So, obviously the thermodaymics and science says otherwise, but the heavier ball or whatever still makes everything feel more dense and I get so many more balls that drop in. Perfect example was out agian just now on court and it was 86 degrees and around 40% humidity. Misjudged a few incoming balls, thinking they were going long, but they dropped like rocks. Same with some shots I was hitting.

Definitely affects things for whatever the reason be! Kinda like it cuz I can just rip'em and get most in.

 

[tlm]

Sorry, I can't discuss anything with you without your moms permission. Anyone who has to post a picture of their car as their avatar is either a teenager or trying to overcompensate for something else.

Ya change the subject to my avatar, looks like your point went down the drain so now it’s about my avatar. This coming from someone calling themselves Vicious49 lol.

 

[tlm]

So, obviously the thermodaymics and science says otherwise, but the heavier ball or whatever still makes everything feel more dense and I get so many more balls that drop in. Perfect example was out agian just now on court and it was 86 degrees and around 40% humidity. Misjudged a few incoming balls, thinking they were going long, but they dropped like rocks. Same with some shots I was hitting.

Definitely affects things for whatever the reason be! Kinda like it cuz I can just rip'em and get most in.

Yes higher humidity definitely makes it easier to swing out and keep the ball in. So I could care less what a molecule of water vapor weighs compared to regular air molecule. It’s easy to prove the differences in playing in high humidity and low humidity if you live in areas that get big swings in moisture levels.
Where I live it can be 90% one day then a couple days later it might be 35% humidity and the difference is night and day. The ball moves much slower in the high humidity and I’m really surprised that any tennis player would deny this. Evidently some have not played in big differences in humidity levels.

 

[Rattler]

It’s central Texas, if you can’t handle the heat and humidity, you won’t play. Simple as that.
Or as the saying goes, ‘it’s mind over matter, if you don’t mind, it don’t matter.’
Gotta stay hydrated, I’ve drank 3, 1liter bottles of water, two Gatorades 16 oz and ate a banana on court last week for men’s doubles.

ironically no bathroom stops

Bring plenty of shirts, wristbands, socks, extra pair of shoes and shorts, and overgrips to every match.

 

[Fxanimator1]

So, obviously the thermodaymics and science says otherwise, but the heavier ball or whatever still makes everything feel more dense and I get so many more balls that drop in. Perfect example was out agian just now on court and it was 86 degrees and around 40% humidity. Misjudged a few incoming balls, thinking they were going long, but they dropped like rocks. Same with some shots I was hitting.

Definitely affects things for whatever the reason be! Kinda like it cuz I can just rip'em and get most in.

Those conditions sound so perfect to me right now! It’s ridiculous in Florida this time of year.

 

[Vicious49]

Ya change the subject to my avatar, looks like your point went down the drain so now it’s about my avatar. This coming from someone calling themselves Vicious49 lol.

You didn't deny it though did you.

Trolls like you don't like to be called out. If trolls were put in to classes like we do tennis playing styles you'd be what we call 'Mr. Literal'. Someone who takes every comment literally and to the extreme. This makes them feel better about themselves as they think they just 'pwned' someone.

Example: Someone says 'I just had the worst day ever'. Mr. Literal would reply 'so you're saying you just had a worst day than the Holocaust victims had?'
Example 2: Someone says 'It's raining cats and dogs out there'. Mr. Literal will start harping for proof of said cats and dogs.

Congratulations to you sir. You are pwning this thread. Go enjoy a cold one (purchased with your fake ID of course) in your sports car and relish in your victory.

 

[ChaelAZ]

Those conditions sound so perfect to me right now! It’s ridiculous in Florida this time of year.

Yeah, mind you that is 86 degrees and 40% humidity at 6:30am! lol. We got off court around an hour later whne my opponnet tweaked his back, and it was already 95 and still around 35% humidity. That is not as fun.

 

[Vicious49]

It’s central Texas, if you can’t handle the heat and humidity, you won’t play. Simple as that.
Or as the saying goes, ‘it’s mind over matter, if you don’t mind, it don’t matter.’
Gotta stay hydrated, I’ve drank 3, 1liter bottles of water, two Gatorades 16 oz and ate a banana on court last week for men’s doubles.

ironically no bathroom stops

Bring plenty of shirts, wristbands, socks, extra pair of shoes and shorts, and overgrips to every match.

Pretty much. I usually use a 64 oz jug of water. This past month I started running out of water so had to purchase a 128oz/1 gallon jug to take with me to the courts for the summer time. Played 3.5 hours of singles the other night and drank almost the entire thing. Changed shirts and sweatbands 4-5 times each. Only changed socks, shoes, and shorts once but that's mainly because I didn't bring a 3rd set of them with me. You just have to deal with it.

 

[yossarian]

Yeah, mind you that is 86 degrees and 40% humidity at 6:30am! lol. We got off court around an hour later whne my opponnet tweaked his back, and it was already 95 and still around 35% humidity. That is not as fun.

91 and 50 percent humidity on the east coast. Was around 75 percent earlier

not fun

 

[ChaelAZ]

91 and 50 percent humidity on the east coast. Was around 75 percent earlier

not fun

Ughhhh, reminds me of summers in Buffalo. Yeah, no fun!

 

[yossarian]

Ughhhh, reminds me of summers in Buffalo. Yeah, no fun!

Better than winters in Buffalo though

 

[ChaelAZ]

Better than winters in Buffalo though

Troof!

 

[tlm]

You didn't deny it though did you.

Trolls like you don't like to be called out. If trolls were put in to classes like we do tennis playing styles you'd be what we call 'Mr. Literal'. Someone who takes every comment literally and to the extreme. This makes them feel better about themselves as they think they just 'pwned' someone.

Example: Someone says 'I just had the worst day ever'. Mr. Literal would reply 'so you're saying you just had a worst day than the Holocaust victims had?'
Example 2: Someone says 'It's raining cats and dogs out there'. Mr. Literal will start harping for proof of said cats and dogs.

Congratulations to you sir. You are pwning this thread. Go enjoy a cold one (purchased with your fake ID of course) in your sports car and relish in your victory.

Deny what? Not sure what you are talking about. I’m not trolling anyone just making the point that the ball moves slower in heavy humidity that’s all. I’m surprised that everyone doesn’t know this. What exactly did you call me out on? I don’t mind being called out if I’m making an incorrect point but not talking about an avatar if that’s what you mean by being called out.

If you believe the ball moves faster in heavy humidity and slower in lower humidity then so be it, but my experience is the opposite and pointing that out to me would not be trolling. By the way the car is a Tesla model S not a sports car.

 

[Vicious49]

By the way the car is a Tesla model S not a sports car.

Cant get anything past you. You get a gold internet star. Good job timmy.

Also thanks for proving Mr Literal and overcompensating for something in the same sentence.

 

[tlm]

Cant get anything past you. You get a gold internet star. Good job timmy.

Also thanks for proving Mr Literal and overcompensating for something in the same sentence.

Whatever dude you must be an angry person I was discussing the topic of playing conditions in high humidity. But I guess you are hung up on my Avatar. What happened to the subject of how humidity affects tennis?
Evidently you have given up on the subject and resort to name calling and acting childish which is what happens when you have nothing to defend your position with.

 

[Vicious49]

Whatever dude you must be an angry person I was discussing the topic of playing conditions in high humidity. But I guess you are hung up on my Avatar. What happened to the subject of how humidity affects tennis?
Evidently you have given up on the subject and resort to name calling and acting childish which is what happens when you have nothing to defend your position with.

You mad bro? Let's go back and reread my post and your reply and see how you were being such a good guy.

I'm not sure about all that but I do know your ball won't travel as fast or hard in humid conditions because it saps you of your energy way quicker.

So as soon as you start hitting in humid conditions your energy is gone and that’s the reason the ball goes slower?

Yes, you were definitely trying to have a serious conversation there and not trying to be a d!$^ at all.

Thank you for being the Tsitipas to my Kyrgios. You're a waste of my time at this point so to the ignore list you go.

 

[tlm]

You mad bro? Let's go back and reread my post and your reply and see how you were being such a good guy.




Yes, you were definitely trying to have a serious conversation there and not trying to be a d!$^ at all.

Thank you for being the Tsitipas to my Kyrgios. You're a waste of my time at this point so to the ignore list you go.

Yep I definitely was trying to discuss the topic of humidity and you said that in those conditions the heat saps your energy faster which is true. But the subject was how humidity affects how live the ball plays not endurance in the heat.
So my response was right on the subject that even when fresh the ball still moves slower in high humidity.
Why would I be mad? Just a discussion with different opinions.