Hitting serves by myself on public court. Waiting couple tries to kick me off.

[ti286]

I was waiting for my friend to show up. So I started to warm up and and hit serves.

5 min. in, a couple sit on the bench on my court. Then they ask to take the court ("you can't just hit serves on the court by yourself while people are waiting. the court is ours now."). I told them my friend was coming in 5 min., but regardless, that I had I right to the court for 60 min. even if I was just hitting serves alone.

What is the rule about using a court, alone, on public tennis courts?

 

[TheSubdude]

I say you were there first; it's your court.

If she's good looking, then you allow them to play Aussie with you. The dude plays singles; you get the girl.

 

[BreakPoint]

On most public courts near me, the rule is that one person is not allowed to hold a court by himself if other people are waiting. So that couple was correct in kicking you off. I've done it myself. The rules are usually clearly stated on the rules board outside the fence.

 

[decades]

one person should not be able to hold a court. sometimes there is a rule. common courtesy suggests that they had a right to the court.

 

[siowmotion]

I think it was stupid for them to try and kick you off, especially if your friend was going to come in 5 minutes. The courts near my house, is you have to either wait until the people are done with the courts or go find another.

 

[GetBetterer]

Were there rules about this? If so, then they may have done the right thing.

If there were other open courts, I would have told them to go there instead. Also, next time in order to avoid this, try to bring your friend with you.

Sorry you got kicked off. We don't have rules like this at the public courts I play at.

 

[Steve Huff]

The public courts I've played on would have given them the right to the court. 1 person could not hold a court, even if his opponent was coming within 5 minutes. People had to be on the court, ready to play, to have a court. I know it's tough to practice serving, but keep in mind, serving is going to scatter balls on adjacent courts more often. Plus, public court rules are there to benefit the most player, so one could not hold it over 2. Doubles always took precedent over singles where I've played too. In HS, my friend and I would just look for the best 2 players out there and ask them to play doubles. Rarely did anyone put up a fuss as they knew that's the way the rules were designed.

 

[atatu]

I agree that one person should not hold a court, in fact you should have offered them the court without them having to say anything.

 

[ti286]

I should note that I didn't get kicked off because my partner showed up. But I thought I was "in the right" in stating that I could keep the court and practice serving if he didn't show up.

Following the logic of this rule, a group of 4 people playing doubles could "bump" a singles match because 4 people could enjoy more tennis than 2.

I have waited for courts that were occupied by 1 person and never thought of "bumping" that person for my 2 person match. He made the trip to the park and waited his turn for the court...why shouldn't he get his 60 minutes?

 

[SoBad]

The rules do vary by court/municipality, but usually the rules state that single person cannot hold a court when there’s two people waiting to play. That being said, if your partner truly is nearly there (visible on approach, parking the car, etc.), you should be able to hang on to the court. Some courts have rules that give doubles more time (1.5hr or 2hrs instead of 1hr for singles), but I’m not sure what Steve Huff is on about there stating that doubles “take precedent” over singles. Next time just get on the phone and stall until your partner gets there (is that what you did?)

 

[TennisandMusic]

I think both parties could be more accommodating. On one hand, one guy serving maybe shouldn't be able to hold a court.

On the other hand, what selfish couple pulls rank and boots a guy practicing his serves, when his friend is due to arrive any minute?

We should all be a little more giving methinks.

 

[hfmf]

I think both parties could be more accommodating. On one hand, one guy serving maybe shouldn't be able to hold a court.

On the other hand, what selfish couple pulls rank and boots a guy practicing his serves, when his friend is due to arrive any minute?

We should all be a little more giving methinks.

NO! SOMEONE IS RIGHT AND SOMEONE IS WRONG! WE MUST PICK BLACK OR WHITE! SHAME ON YOU FOR COMPROMISING!

 

[BreakPoint]

I think it was stupid for them to try and kick you off, especially if your friend was going to come in 5 minutes. The courts near my house, is you have to either wait until the people are done with the courts or go find another.

The key word there is "people", which mean more than one person.

 

[fed_the_savior]

what about with a ball machine

 

[JoshDragon]

I was waiting for my friend to show up. So I started to warm up and and hit serves.

5 min. in, a couple sit on the bench on my court. Then they ask to take the court ("you can't just hit serves on the court by yourself while people are waiting. the court is ours now."). I told them my friend was coming in 5 min., but regardless, that I had I right to the court for 60 min. even if I was just hitting serves alone.

What is the rule about using a court, alone, on public tennis courts?

No, you are definitely entitled to have 60 minutes regardless of whether your friend was hitting with you or not. Serving is a very important part of tennis and you had the right to your time.

 

[Viper]

----edit-----

 

[grimmbomb21]

I hit on a ball machine fairly often when I don't have a hitting partner. I think I'd have to tell someone to **** off since I drive over half an hour to play. I've waited for people lots of times that were practicing serve or hitting on a ball machine. They deserve there time as much as anyone else. Good job on not giving up the court OP.

 

[SirGounder]

Most of the courts that I've played on state that one person cannot hold the court if there is another group ready to play. If it's not stated in the rule, keep the court.

The couple is somewhat in the wrong too. They could have been more polite and just asked how long you would be or if you had anyone coming instead of just saying that they should take the court.

How about this:
You politely ask the couple to wait for 5-10 minutes, until your buddy shows up. If he is late, the couple gets the court and you got some additional time to hit. If he shows up, the couple waits. I've tried that and both kept the court and gotten the boot.

 

[SystemicAnomaly]

No, you are definitely entitled to have 60 minutes regardless of whether your friend was hitting with you or not. Serving is a very important part of tennis and you had the right to your time.

This is not the accepted practice a most high-use courts.

Nobody should be practicing their serve for an hour. Even 30 minutes of serving is probably not advisable. You run the risk of an overuse injury and really not the best way to develop your serve anyway. I can see holding on to the court for 30 minutes, in some cases, if you are actively using it for most of that time and not just inefficiently knocking 3 balls around the court while spending most of your time retrieving them.

If you are using a ball machine or a basket of balls, I don't see any problem using the court by yourself for 20-30 minutes. However, if this is during prime time or the courts are particularly popular, then most people would object to a solo player holding on to a court. I've seen plenty of junior players with a ball machine holding on to a court for an hour or more while others are waiting. If they are the only one using the machine (or basket of balls), this is unfair to those who are waiting.

 

[SystemicAnomaly]

I think both parties could be more accommodating. On one hand, one guy serving maybe shouldn't be able to hold a court.

On the other hand, what selfish couple pulls rank and boots a guy practicing his serves, when his friend is due to arrive any minute?

We should all be a little more giving methinks.

Best answer.

If the solo players really is practicing their serve, they should be able to hold on to the court for a while. If they are just knocking a few balls around in a lame attempt to hold the court til their partner arrives, then no.

I should note that I didn't get kicked off because my partner showed up. But I thought I was "in the right" in stating that I could keep the court and practice serving if he didn't show up.

Following the logic of this rule, a group of 4 people playing doubles could "bump" a singles match because 4 people could enjoy more tennis than 2.

I have waited for courts that were occupied by 1 person and never thought of "bumping" that person for my 2 person match. He made the trip to the park and waited his turn for the court...why shouldn't he get his 60 minutes?

You've made to good points here but not all are valid. 4 people should be entitled to the court for twice as long as 2 (and not just 1.5x the time duration). But that does not mean that 4 people have the right to kick off two -- unless they have been waiting for an hour (if that be the rules of those particular courts). If 2 ppl are entitled to an hour of court time while others are waiting then it should follow that a solo player should get 30 mins. But this is not the accepted practice at many courts.

Sure, the solo player made the trip to the (and possibly waited his turn). He should definitely be entitled to some court time. On the other hand, for the 2 person match, 2 ppl have made that trip to the court and waited their turn. They should be entitled to more time than the solo player.

If you want to practice your serve for an extended period of time, it is best to seek out other options. You could rent a court if the option is available to you. You could seek out less popular courts for your solo practice. You could go to the park at a time other than peak/prime time.

If you are merely practicing your serve with a few balls just to hold on to the court til your buddy arrives, "fair play" dictates that you relinquish the court to the 2 or more players who are actually ready to warmup and play (or practice).

 

[Nextman916]

I would have just said I drove 35 minutes to get here, my friend is going to be here in 5 minutes. There is no way in hell I'm getting off this court for you two...but that's just me lol

 

[ProgressoR]

the best solution would be for you to continue you practicing your serve and the other pair to hit cross court on the other side to warm up. If your friend arrives then, rather than offering to play doubles, you should each play singles and take one half of the court each. It is a matter of personal preference if one pair takes deuce halves and the other takes ad halves, or if you split the court neatly in half and have a half-width court to play singles in. This way you can practice your control as well.

 

[Bad Dog]

the best solution would be for you to continue you practicing your serve and the other pair to hit cross court on the other side to warm up. If your friend arrives then, rather than offering to play doubles, you should each play singles and take one half of the court each. It is a matter of personal preference if one pair takes deuce halves and the other takes ad halves, or if you split the court neatly in half and have a half-width court to play singles in. This way you can practice your control as well.

Pure genius. Such enlightening insights are precisely why many of us read these tennis boards. Hammurabi would be proud.

 

[JoshDragon]

This is not the accepted practice a most high-use courts.

Nobody should be practicing their serve for an hour. Even 30 minutes of serving is probably not advisable. You run the risk of an overuse injury and really not the best way to develop your serve anyway. I can see holding on to the court for 30 minutes, in some cases, if you are actively using it for most of that time and not just inefficiently knocking 3 balls around the court while spending most of your time retrieving them.

If you are using a ball machine or a basket of balls, I don't see any problem using the court by yourself for 20-30 minutes. However, if this is during prime time or the courts are particularly popular, then most people would object to a solo player holding on to a court. I've seen plenty of junior players with a ball machine holding on to a court for an hour or more while others are waiting. If they are the only one using the machine (or basket of balls), this is unfair to those who are waiting.

I disagree. I think any person (unless they're an absolute n00b and don't know anything about tennis) is entitled to the courts for 1 hour, if they get there first. Beyond that, they should get off, if their partner hasn't arrived.

 

[BreakPoint]

No, you are definitely entitled to have 60 minutes regardless of whether your friend was hitting with you or not. Serving is a very important part of tennis and you had the right to your time.

Nope. Public tennis courts are built with taxpayers' money for the enjoyment of people to play tennis, not just to practice serves. You can practice serves when there's no one waiting to use the court to play tennis. Either that or you can build your own court in your own backyard with your own money so you can practice your serves as much as you want.

 

[Sidd Finch]

I think both parties could be more accommodating. On one hand, one guy serving maybe shouldn't be able to hold a court.

On the other hand, what selfish couple pulls rank and boots a guy practicing his serves, when his friend is due to arrive any minute?

We should all be a little more giving methinks.

That mirrors my opinion. Both sides should use a little common sense & courtesy. Maybe the couple should have asked if you have a friend coming and when you said yes, 5 minutes then they should have just said ok and waited a few minutes. If your friend did not show up promptly you would just give the court to the couple. In my neck of the woods one person doesn't usually hold a court if people are waiting unless it is only for a few minutes.

 

[Davis937]

I was waiting for my friend to show up. So I started to warm up and and hit serves.

5 min. in, a couple sit on the bench on my court. Then they ask to take the court ("you can't just hit serves on the court by yourself while people are waiting. the court is ours now."). I told them my friend was coming in 5 min., but regardless, that I had I right to the court for 60 min. even if I was just hitting serves alone.

What is the rule about using a court, alone, on public tennis courts?

The unwritten but accepted rule at our public courts is that one person cannot hold the court (especially if all of the courts are being used) ... that being said, most of my buddies would probably give you the 5-10 minutes to see if your partner shows up ... sounds like that couple didn't quite handle things too well ... and, yeah, how cute was the chic (that's always a factor)!

 

[Juges8932]

For me, it would all depend on how they went about it. But IMO, regardless, you should be able to hit on the courts if you were there first. And especially if your friend was going up there to meet up with you, I would have told them no and that they'd have to force me off the court or wait until I was done. I think it's a little ridiculous that you'd have to give up the court to them if your friend shows up 5-10 minutes later. Then what, you are supposed to sit around and wait until the other two are done? No. You got their first, it's yours. People saying you should have not even been told to get off the court is ridiculous. If they were nice about it and just asking, then I would have been nice as well. But the way you make them sound comes off as they were being *****s about it and I'm not going to roll over and be commanded. You could even try to compromise, maybe have them warm up with you or something while you are waiting for your friend (If they're nice, otherwise, they can sit on the bench and wait for me to be done). If I'm driving out there to use the courts, then I shouldn't have to leave just because some people deem themselves more important even thought they weren't there first. Otherwise, it's a waste of my time and gas.

 

[35ft6]

I was waiting for my friend to show up. So I started to warm up and and hit serves.

5 min. in, a couple sit on the bench on my court. Then they ask to take the court ("you can't just hit serves on the court by yourself while people are waiting. the court is ours now."). I told them my friend was coming in 5 min., but regardless, that I had I right to the court for 60 min. even if I was just hitting serves alone.

What is the rule about using a court, alone, on public tennis courts?

Are there rules posted somewhere? In Los Angeles, they would be absolutely correct. The rule here is that two people have to be present to claim a court... if two people show up to a court already taken, the people who are playing on that court can finish their set or practice for an additional 30 minutes. Rules aside, I personally think any person serving, running lines, drop hitting groundstrokes from a basket, skipping rope, etc, should step aside for two people. And "no," I don't think two people likewise need to step aside for 4 people looking to play doubles. And "yes" I've seen people try to hold a court by doing all of the above mentioned. Even stretching in the service box to let people know it's theirs. I've waited 30 minutes to get a court, only to have two more people sit down immediately, so only 30 minutes of hitting. But hey, free courts, what do you want? We have to share.

 

[35ft6]

Following the logic of this rule, a group of 4 people playing doubles could "bump" a singles match because 4 people could enjoy more tennis than 2.

Following your logic, if 6 people showed up than the doubles should leave. We're not talking about that. I've never seen "tennis" on my channel guide, turned to that channel, only to see 2 hours coverage of a person serving from a ball basket. In tennis, there is singles and doubles. Singles requires 2 people, and doubles requires 4 people.

BTW, in LA, I believe if people are playing doubles, they're allowed to complete 2 sets instead of 1.

Also, "my friend is going to be here in 5 minutes" is what they ALWAYS say. 5 minutes is the default length of time when they really have no idea when they're going to show up.

 

[raiden031]

I've never noticed a public court rules sign actually state that 1 person couldn't hold a court and that there was a 2-player minimum. Most I've seen simply say that if playing singles you have the court for 1 hour, and if playing doubles, you get it for 1 1/2 hours.

If that were the case, I think that a reasonable way to handle this would be for the serving player to give themselves 15 minutes for their partner to show up and after that, relinquish the court to the waiting couple.

I mean there needs to be some benefit to showing up early enough to grab the court. If you don't want to wait, then show up earlier than everyone else!

 

[Fifth Set]

Many, but not all, public courts do have posted rules stating that a single person can't hold a court. This is a well intentioned rule but doesn't make sense to the extent it practically prohibits someone from using a ball machine for 30 minutes!

Many important rules at the typical public court are ignored completely. At the courts near me I have seen people bring their dogs onto the courts, baseball and soccer teams try to take the courts over for a "practice," people bring glass bottles (and of course break them) onto the court and random tennis organizations without permits declare that they have a practice or a tournament at the courts "starting in 10 minutes."

Sad to say it, but the lack of good manners and common sense at public facilities make it difficult and unprofitable to administer them. That's a consideration for cash and staff strapped local governments that will increasingly decide that tennis courts aren't worth the trouble.

 

[HellBunni]

the courts around me say that a single player can hold a court, even if the all the courts are full.

it's just that the duration they can hold the court for is halved.

e.g. when all courts are full and there are ppl waiting
2 players can only play for around 60 min before they should give up the court
1 player can only practice for 30 min before giving the court.

 

[Power Player]

I would have told them : My friend should be here in 5 minutes. Can we hit 2 on 1 for that duration and if he does not show up the court is yours?

 

[r2473]

That mirrors my opinion. Both sides should use a little common sense & courtesy. Maybe the couple should have asked if you have a friend coming and when you said yes, 5 minutes then they should have just said ok and waited a few minutes. If your friend did not show up promptly you would just give the court to the couple. In my neck of the woods one person doesn't usually hold a court if people are waiting unless it is only for a few minutes.

Even though this is the correct answer, it is not realistic.

The bolded portion is is an assumption that cannot be made in most cases.

If we make the more appropriate assumption that each side is willing to show neither common sense nor courtesy, what is the solution in this (more realistic) case?

 

[Bud]

I should note that I didn't get kicked off because my partner showed up. But I thought I was "in the right" in stating that I could keep the court and practice serving if he didn't show up.

Following the logic of this rule, a group of 4 people playing doubles could "bump" a singles match because 4 people could enjoy more tennis than 2.

I have waited for courts that were occupied by 1 person and never thought of "bumping" that person for my 2 person match. He made the trip to the park and waited his turn for the court...why shouldn't he get his 60 minutes?

No. You can't play any kind of tennis match with 1 person.

You never hold a court if you're alone.

 

[subz]

I use public courts for practicing my serve and people have to wait for me. I do however, take less time and let them know when I will be leaving. I usually practice my serve for like 30 minutes, but with people waiting, I take like 15 minutes and let them know that I will be leaving soon.

Also, I try to use the courts at times when they are usually available with noone around.

 

[Slazenger07]

I say you were there first; it's your court.

If she's good looking, then you allow them to play Aussie with you. The dude plays singles; you get the girl.

lol I like that idea... but seriously the court was yours first. They can wait, you were right!

 

[Puddy]

On most public courts near me, the rule is that one person is not allowed to hold a court by himself if other people are waiting. So that couple was correct in kicking you off. I've done it myself. The rules are usually clearly stated on the rules board outside the fence.

True. That's just the way it is...