How much do you pay to play tennis?

[AndrewD]

I'm just reading an old copy of Tennis Magazine that provides some details regarding playing tennis in various parts of the world. One of the sections mentions the cost difference between nations and, as there are people here from a few different countries (not to mention quite a few states in the US) I was wondering what it cost each of us to 1) Join a club 2) hire a court? Feel free to mention if you play something like a regular social competition but dont actually belong to any club .

For the record, here in Australia it costs me roughly $120 to join our local club (same price to compete or just use the facilities), $15-25 to hire a court (depending on time of day) and $8 per week to play in a social competion (8 game sets, roughly 6 or 7 sets in the day). Those are actually quite good prices for Australia and I would think, on average, they'd be quite a bit higher (the club is linked to a University so tends to be cheaper) apart from court hire which seems standard.

 

[Kaptain Karl]

The only local Club's courts are not well maintained -- and they are not even allinged to the Sun properly. (It's a Big Time golf club -- very snooty. And tennis isn't even really an afterthought.) A "Tennis Membership" is only $6,000.00 Initiation and $200/mo after that, but I wouldn't pay that to play on such poor courts.

I don't play Indoor Tennis (except for the rare substitution for a friend) because I don't like paying for court time. So, "No," I don't play winter tennis, period.

- KK

 

[tennis-n-sc]

Andrew, I belong to a club that is primarily golf but I only have a Tennis/Swim membership for $90/Month, US. This includes unlimited use of 7 clay courts and 3 hard courts, 6 of whihch have lighting. This membership is for my wife and I and we must spend $40/Month on food, which is really quite good. We have USTA league teams and socials and of course the swim pool. Courts may be reserved 7 days in advance at no charge. It is an older facility but quite adequate. Our weather allows us to play virtually year round. (South Carolina).

 

[cak]

The tennis memberships at our club are the same as Kaptain Karl's, and this is in the SF bay area. We have 6 hard courts in good condition. You can almost always get a court, no reservations allowed except for teams (USTA and Interclub). And once you pay the membership and dues the courts are free. For USTA and Interclub the club waives guests fees. (And the golf membership dues are about double, the initiation fee is around 30K). We have no indoor courts, but in this area, hardly anyone does. I play three to seven times a week year round, except for rain like today.

 

[ChrisNC]

I have ohh...about 25 free public courts (at 3 facilities) within about 15 minutes drive from my house. I never pay to play, other than league fees.

Yes, I play in the winter when I can find opponents who aren't afraid of a little cold. (which is weird, considering I lived in Florida all my life until a year and a half ago)

 

[Kaptain Karl]

[KK ponders moving to the Carolinas....]

- KK

 

[RoddickRulez]

$150 for joining club for a year
$13 for a court 2hours

 

[RoddickRulez]

free on weekends if a member and in lessons

 

[mrwise]

Joining some snooty golf club...$1000
Monthly fees to be ABLE to play on crappy courts...$90
Court fees to play on crappy courts...$15
Having your own tennis court in your backyard...priceless.

 

[Fatmike]

57$/month for membership

8 to 18 $/hour for court depending of time (split by number of players)

13.50$ for 2 hours in weakly activities (round robins, with and without coaching)

8$ for the sunday night league (2 hours)

it cost me around 2000$ a year

 

[Aykhan Mammadov]

In my country tennis infrastructure is absent almost completely. There are say 5-6 places with open courts and only 2 with closed ( indoor). If you hire an open court for 1 hour for 2 persons you pay 6$ totally. If you hire indoor court you are paying 24$ per 1 hour for 2 persons ( not 2 x 24).

I'm training with the coach so I have to pay him also 10$ per 1 hour. Since in Baku in summer is very sunny it is not possible to play on open courts at times when I can play. In autumn and winter it rains and snows. Finally I'm playing whole year in indoor court paying 34x3x4weeks = 408$ per month. If u play with a friend y'd pay only 288$.

 

[fishuuuuu]

At the club in my area (Dallas Ft. Worth/Arlington),

Club membership is free and provided by the city (Arlington Tennis Center) and to hire a court is $3.50 an hour.

This seems really cheap compared to everyone elses :|

 

[jayserinos99]

most of the time it's free (gotta love high school courts) but i'll pay $7/hr at a city-owned court or local golf/tennis place.

 

[Marius_Hancu]

I'm in Montreal, Canada.

Winter
paying Can$20/hour/court after 17.00 during weekends.
paying Can$10/hour/court 7-8am (early risers)

Summer
paying Can$80 for unlimited use at a tennis facility
paying Can$7/hour/court for other municipal facilities
(that should be free IMO)

Would not pay for any membership fees, etc, thus I am not playing in "clubs". I hate the idea of membership fees, just hidden charges.

 

[Esatsan]

Northern California

$100.00 to sign up
$150.00 per month

32 excellent tennis courts (27 lighted) - free with membership

 

[bruce nissenbaum]

$60 per year
13 lighted hardcourts
organized men's doubles, 2 hr sessions, Tue & Thu (free)
organized women's doubles, 2 hr sessions, Mon & Fri (free)
organized men's singles, 1 hour sessions, Sat (free)
organized mixed doubles, 2 hr sessions, Sat (free)
2 organized inter-club socials per year (free)
3 organized intra-club socials per year (free)
1 age-group 'winter frolic' doubles tournament (free)
1 'club rating' singles, doubles, & mixed doubles championship ($3 per event)
open sign up whenever courts are not scheduled for organized or USTA league play (free)

 

[Tour90]

I live in Washington and it's

$12 to play at the Nordstrom tennis center if you're a student
$20 at a local indoor court


All of this for one hour and 15 minutes


I try and play outside most of the time though

 

[AndrewD]

As we say in Australia, 'strewth!!!'. I didnt expect such a wild divergence within the states and it makes me realise that we've got a pretty good deal out here in Australia. I mean, if you wanted to play at the National Tennis Centre (site of the Aus Open) it'd still only be around $20 for the hour. Up here in Queensland we dont have any indoor facilities as the weather is good pretty much 12 months of the year (apart from some excessive humidity in summer).

Sorry to hear about those membership fees Kaptain Karl, Esatsan and tennis-n-sc. Quite a lot more than I'd be able to afford. Still, very interesting. Im hoping (fingers-crossed) that I'll be able to do my PhD overseas so it looks like Canada, Texas or Arizona might be good choices lol. Actually, really good to hear that Canada isn't oppressively expensive but do you guys mostly have to play indoors?

 

[matchpoints]

At the club in my area (Dallas Ft. Worth/Arlington),

Club membership is free and provided by the city (Arlington Tennis Center) and to hire a court is $3.50 an hour.

This seems really cheap compared to everyone elses :|

Which club do you play at? I was in Arlington a while back for a futures event but can't remember the tennis centers name....

Btw, I don't pay anything as I can use work courts. In the evenings I tend to use the city courts which are in pretty good condition plus free lighting

I hope I don't move anytime soon. Hearing about all these high rates is scary. I'd go broke as much tennis as I play. Maybe it would be wise to get a part time job at a club in order to use the courts

Go Texas!

 

[Cypo]

Here in Austria in winter, indoor carpet courts cost about 30 Euro an hour, indoor clay about 25 Euro. Unlimited play on 21 outdoor clay courts from April to October costs 400 Euro at my club. Hourly fees in summer are around 15 Euro. To play in the league (USTA equivalent) costs 70 Euro per year. Tournaments fees are around 20 Euro.
In terms of purchasing power use a 1:1 exchange rate dollar to Euro - the current rate is way inflated !

 

[goober]

Most of the time when I want to play with freinds and family it is free. There are good public courts or private courts I have access to or my friends have access to.

For tennis leagues:

public park league $25/season
private club $55/season (nonmember price)
tennis ladder private club $35 season (nonmember price)

 

[backcourt]

$75 for the summer season for unlimited play on 15 town clay courts. IN winter its about $13 for 1 1/2 hours of indoor doubles, at what is one of the only indoor clubs around which doesn't have a membership fee.

 

[Kaptain Karl]

[KK ponders buying three acres ... putting in 8 courts ... and charging a yearly membership fee. KK's gonna make some money....]

- KK

 

[peter]

Sweden, Linköping area:

Annual membership fees: $20-$50
Per-hour court fees indoor: $12-$15
Per-hour court fees outdoor: $0-$10

 

[LionsNC]

I have ohh...about 25 free public courts (at 3 facilities) within about 15 minutes drive from my house. I never pay to play, other than league fees.

Yes, I play in the winter when I can find opponents who aren't afraid of a little cold. (which is weird, considering I lived in Florida all my life until a year and a half ago)

Chris, Do you play with a group in Charlotte that plays at a park, I don't recall the name. We usally play them twice a year once in Charlotte and once in Fayettevile at Mazerik park.

I too play on free courts most of the time. There are a couple of clubs here that offer clay courts and memberships, but when you can play free why bother!

 

[357sig]

My club cost 115 dollars a month unlimited playing time , 26 hard courts and all resufaced around 4 months ago, also included are ping pong, basketball swim[ three pools] and a gym with around 80-90 machines of all types indoor racket and handball, leagues for all these sports junior and senior! this I think is a really good deal! the los Caballeros racqet and sports club, in fountain valley CA

 

[equinox]

Membership / year @ small local church club 4 courts = $70

Membership / year @ larger non local church club 3 courts = $90

Wednesday night tennis 3 sets total, 14 matches x $6 = $84

Friday night tennis / 3 sets total, 14 matches x $15 = $210

Coaching lessons 4 x 1-1/2 hrs = $100

6-8 restrings / year @ $45 each = $280+

Tennis is expensive.

 

[USCfan]

usually in winter I pay $18/hr, but today it was nice and I played outdoors-for free. Boy, that felt good.

 

[peter]

usually in winter I pay $18/hr, but today it was nice and I played outdoors-for free. Boy, that felt good.

*Glares at the 2 feet of snow outside my window*

Pah!

 

[Kaptain Karl]

*Glares at the 2 feet of snow outside my window*

Living in the Rockies, I can relate. This is why I ski in the winter. (I don't like indoor tennis ... and I LOVE skiing.)

- KK

 

[USCfan]

Yep. Just got a load of snow here in PA last night...no more free tennis for a while.

 

[pchoi04]

Lets see...

-For a jr membership = $150 year.
-Works outs = $120 a month
-Private Lesson = $42 p/hr
-Social or League roughly around $4 a week I think.
-Court = $5 per person up for 1.5hrs of hitting.

 

[fan_of_reds]

USCfan, where in PA are you located?

 

[bleach]

Interesting question, since this is a big issue for us here in my town.

To play at the current Tennis Center (for USTA league play) is $2 hard, $2.50 soft for 2 hours periods. There are memberships, but I don't know the costs. The city has just built a new Center (all soft courts). The pay schedule is not set yet (at least not to the public) but they are talking about going to $4-5 for a 1 1/2 hour play periods. Plus requiring players to sweep courts after they play.

I know thats not too bad of a price, but it's one heck of an increase. The new courts will be open soon and all league play will be moved to the new center, mid-season.

 

[Bob K]

4 bucks for the day at the nation's largest public clay court facility (30 rubico courts) and people whine and complain and most don't even pay.

What are they going to say when it gets shut down??? We've got it good! I think it's around 250 for an annual membership....

 

[USCfan]

Mountain Top-NE PA, about 15 minutes from Wilkes Barre.

 

[Kaptain Karl]

bleach - Is Braham Springs still a big tennis location there?

- KK

 

[bleach]

Braham Springs is still the tennis center. Once the new one is opened, it will be torn down and replaced with something else. Right now the courts at BS are in bad shape.

 

[Geezer Guy]

Kansas City

In Kansas City there are tons of public courts - all free. The weather is great in the spring and fall, hot & muggy in the summer. The public courts get NO usage in the winter, as it's quite cold. There are maybe a dozen tennis clubs that cost between $35 & $100 per month (year-round). Some are pretty basic, and some are quite swanky. Court costs at these clubs go from $15 to $25 per hour. Private lessons go for around $50 per hour. There are lots of USTA and WTT leagues, and most of the subburbs have city leagues. There are a number of touraments (some USTA sanctioned and some not) around town. All in all, it's pretty good for tennis. I'm hoping that when I retire and move away in a couple of years I'll be able to find as much tennis as I have now.

 

[fjgarciap]

Hi from Lima, PERU (south america).

Things are quite different down here. There's not much public interest in tennis as there is for other sports as "fulbito" (mini-soccer played on asphalt courts, very popular here), soccer and volleyball, maybe because we don't have any public infrastucture for racquet sports.

Tennis clubs are mainly social clubs that offer access to soccer, volleyball, basketball, table-tennis and swimming installations apart from tennis courts. To be a member you have to pay an entering fee of about US$500 and about US$200 monthly, you get free access to tennis courts. Most of the clubs have clay courts, some of them have hard courts (mainly asphalt) and practically none have grass courts.

As Peru is a mainly poor country the majority of people can't afford this costly clubs, so we rent the local facilities available. I live 3 blocks away the Peruvian Tennis Federation, you can rent a clay court for US$3/hour (US$6/hour at nights) or an asphalt court for US$2.5/hour. They have 7 clay and 4 asphalt courts, the facility is open 7 days a week from 6am to 10pm (sundays until 8pm).

 

[gmlasam]

Here in southern california, we have lots and lots of public tennis courts. Practically any large public parks would have at least a two court.

It's been raining for the last 4 days here, and I'm getting tennis withdrawls. There are some private tennis clubs around also.

Here is a pic of a "public tennis court" in my area.

 

[adnankujundzic]

In Seattle, WA there are countless places to play tennis for free - every high school has at least 4 tennis courts, every park seems to have couple. Parks usually have lights for night tennis.

In Spokane area its the same story. My university has 5 brand new indoor tennis courts, I play there at least couple of times a week (much more as of late).

In both places, club tennis is around $100 a month (free court time with paid membership). I used to complain about the price, but seeing as to how much others pay, I will shut up and be happy.

 

[litote]

160 Euros (around 300 US $) per year, including the license to compete, and unlimited use of the indoors and outdoors courts.

If you want a Tennis teacher it costs 200$ per yer, for one lesson of 1H30 each weeks with 4 or students by courts between September and June (no teaching during holiday periods, it makes something aroung 35 lessons of 1H30 per year)

2 indoors green set courts
5 outdoor Hard courts
1 clay court with a modular structure that makes it indoor during automn and winter and outdoor during spring and summer.

Easy to play everyday if someone wants, the tennis courts reservations are rarely if not never saturated.

 

[Spielgame]

0 dollar. Just walk to the backyard and play.

 

[WYK]

Near Dublin, Ireland. €365/yr on 6 well maintained courts.
Also a member of a small club with 4 courts in pristine condition in Waterford for €100/yr. I played there a lot during Covid.
All synthetic. All by reservations on line. No court fees. Easy to get courts.
A local club to me has 3 indoor courts. Easy to get late in the evening, hard during the day. €20/hr court fee to non members. Nice synthetic semi hardcourt. I play in winter.
When I lived in North Austin, TX, I was using the municipal courts for free. Fabulous 12 hard courts in near new condition. Not too difficult to get a court.
When I lived in San Antonio it was the Blossom or Shevy tennis clubs. I had family or friends that were members or brought me, but never got a membership myself.