How often do you play tennis on natural grass?

[Sudacafan]

It's Wimbledon time, which reminds me that I have never played tennis on natural grass (nor artificial grass) in my whole life, and I wanted to know how many of us are in the same situation.
Also wanted to know other details such as where's the nearest grass court to your location. In my case there's none in the country I live in. I should travel 2500 km to find a few I know of.
How does it feel playing on grass to people whose main playing courts are clay or hard?

 

[mmk]

I hit on grass once at the HoF in Newport. Not being a member the only way I could get on the court was to take a lesson, the only lesson I've ever taken. It wasn't a show court, and the grass wasn't in particularly good condition. It was interesting, but I'd rather play on har-tru or hardcourt. I guess someday I'll have to try a red clay court.

 

[Bill Lobsalot]

Never. But I have played golf on clay.

 

[Rosstour]

My Dad has played at Newport. Would love to some day.

I have played on indoor carpet and I loved it.

 

[Mr.Lob]

Does hitting in the freshly mowed grass in your backyard, over a volleyball net, count?

If so...a few times. If not...never. lol

Would absolutely love to play on a real grass court though.

 

[codonnell]

I hit on grass once at the HoF in Newport. Not being a member the only way I could get on the court was to take a lesson, the only lesson I've ever taken. It wasn't a show court, and the grass wasn't in particularly good condition. It was interesting, but I'd rather play on har-tru or hardcourt. I guess someday I'll have to try a red clay court.

I love an hour or so from the HOF in Newport. You are able to rent court time being a Nonmember last year. I think there were 5 of us and we paid like 78$ for an hour. It was a great experience and can’t wait to do it again. They weren’t strict on time, but you are right that you typically play on the practice courts.

 

[mmk]

I love an hour or so from the HOF in Newport. You are able to rent court time being a Nonmember last year. I think there were 5 of us and we paid like 78$ for an hour. It was a great experience and can’t wait to do it again. They weren’t strict on time, but you are right that you typically play on the practice courts.

And if anyone decides to go, remember to wear white - at least I had to. Shoes didn't need to be white, but shorts and shirt did.

 

[dkmura]

Be sure to bring your whites to Newport if you go. It's mandatory wear on the HoF grass courts there. I've played there, but whites are not required on the grass in Maui, HI.

 

[Lleytonstation]

It's Wimbledon time, which reminds me that I have never played tennis on natural grass (nor artificial grass) in my whole life, and I wanted to know how many of us are in the same situation.
Also wanted to know other details such as where's the nearest grass court to your location. In my case there's none in the country I live in. I should travel 2500 km to find a few I know of.
How does it feel playing on grass to people whose main playing courts are clay or hard?

Grass or nothing.

 

[Sudacafan]

Grass or nothing.

Thanks for your post.

 

[Lleytonstation]

Thanks for your post.

That's it?

I was expecting more enthusiasm.

 

[Slicehand]

my mum always told me: dont play on what you smoke

 

[LOBALOT]

I played on grass once at a club that was trying to get me to join it.

It played differently than I expected. Yes the balls scoots and stays low but if your opponent doesn't hit a ball through the court you better get on your horse as the ball just dies. That part surprised me.

 

[Sudacafan]

That's it?

I was expecting more enthusiasm.

As you said you would play only on grass, I was just going to ask when you plan to start playing tennis.

 

[SystemicAnomaly]

That's it?

I was expecting more enthusiasm.

Thanks for your post!!!

 

[3loudboys]

Yes - played grass as a junior and very very seldom play it now - only if a match - wouldn’t choose to. Not a fan of the surface, slippy choppy chippy injury waiting to happen surface for me. Expensive to maintain and only usable a few months a year - at least in the UK.

 

[Sudacafan]

Is it possible to play on natural grass somewhere all year round?

 

[Crocodile]

In Sydney and Melbourne they have club competitions called Badge and Pennant respectively.
Many of the clubs were grass court clubs however some have been converted to synthetic grass. Even Australia’s current PM, Anthony Albanese plays and his club has natural grass.
It runs every Saturday afternoon and has men’s and women’s sections. It is doubles only, In Sydney they have Winter and Spring badge and then the courts are rested and reopened in January for the summer social season;

 

[Crocodile]

Is it possible to play on natural grass somewhere all year round?

Depends heavily on the climate and weather patterns. If it rains they cancel the tennis so the courts don’t get chopped up. Usually for maybe 2 months of the year the courts might need to be shut down for maintenance and restoration.

 

[Sudacafan]

Depends heavily on the climate and weather patterns. If it rains they cancel the tennis so the courts don’t get chopped up. Usually for maybe 2 months of the year the courts might need to be shut down for maintenance and restoration.

So the answer is no.
Thanks.

 

[Crocodile]

So the answer is no.
Thanks.

Sought of no because it depends on how the faculty is managed,
1. Some clubs can rotate their courts so when one court gets chopped up they move the court position to another spot and re line the courts,
3. The No part is the weather. Places with lots of rain will get you cancelled because the green keeper doesn’t want the courts to get chopped up. A place with a good dry climate would see lots of play and less cancellations. In Australia, Perth ( where TO is located ) would get maximum usage and the same with Adelaide’s Memorial drive, They have both hard court, grass and clay coming,
Stage 1 Memorial Drive redevelopment is a great place to play

 

[Crocodile]

Build your own court, how nice this is !

 

[Crocodile]

Best in the world

Mildura tennis courts 'better than Wimbledon'

No doubt about Mildura - it has Australia's premier grass court facility.

www.abc.net.au

 

[BlueB]

Thankfully never. I remember trying to play on real grass as a kid, it was horrible. OTOH, the artificial is pretty neat.
You can keep that other red stuff away from me too, I hate it.

 

[Lleytonstation]

Thanks for your post!!!

Thank you. At least someone noticed.

 

[Rago]

People here actually play/watch tennis?

You and I must have different interpretations of the forum; this is a troll-den.

 

[socallefty]

I tried it about 3 times - too slippery and low bouncing for me to enjoy it. Once I played at dusk where there was a lot of dew - spent half my time just trying not to fall down. I guess you need special shoes with sole tread pattern designed for grass.

 

[Sudacafan]

So.
Given most of the answers here... except for @Lleytonstation who has the luck to always play on grass all year round...

Why the fk is Wimbledon so important and people pay so much attention to a surface almost nobody played.
Tradition? So let's ride on carriages.

It's like the FIFA World Cup being always played on clay and being glorified just for that.

 

[socallefty]

I don’t think it should be given more importance than other Slams. But a lot of players and fans do think it is more prestigious because of the tradition and the conventional mindset that it is the most important tournament in the world.

I enjoy watching it though as the tennis style that works well on grass is a little bit different than clay or slow hard courts which we see for most of the year. But I am not in favor of extending the grass season - 3-4 weeks is enough for me.

 

[atatu]

I'm in the UK now and I signed up for a grass court tournament. Unfortunately it was raining (shocking) so they moved us to the artificial grass instead and I lost a third set tiebreaker to the number 2 seed. I'm supposed to play doubles today, fingers crossed that it works out. However, I'm going to try and play the 60's grass court nationals in Philadelphia in August and maybe a tournament in Rhode Island the following week.

 

[optic yellow]

So.
Given most of the answers here... except for @Lleytonstation who has the luck to always play on grass all year round...

Why the fk is Wimbledon so important and people pay so much attention to a surface almost nobody played.
Tradition? So let's ride on carriages.

It's like the FIFA World Cup being always played on clay and being glorified just for that.

bc it's fun to look at on the telly screen

 

[Sudacafan]

bc it's fun to look at on the telly screen

In my opinion, it's the worst tennis surface for TV viewing to appreciate the ball, especially on the barren baselines.
In all, grass is extremely overrated, although I have to concede that they do a very good job in selling it.

 

[dkmura]

As a fan of attacking tennis, I still enjoy watching tennis at the Big W. Just as the clay specialists have a decided advantage of play on a slower surface, it's interesting to see the pros adapt to the odd (and low) bounces, different footing and design strategies for this surface.

 

[bezs]

Don't have the luxury.

 

[dkmura]

Let's face it- there's probably less than 2% of the tennis playing population who have the privilege of playing on grass regularly. Personally, I savor any chance I get, even if the surface is not in my favor. I will always remember playing my brother on grass at Wailea in Hawaii and how GREEN his white shirt was by the time we finished. He dove for (and got) a lot of spectacular stretch volleys that match.

 

[WYK]

So.
Given most of the answers here... except for @Lleytonstation who has the luck to always play on grass all year round...

Why the fk is Wimbledon so important and people pay so much attention to a surface almost nobody played.
Tradition? So let's ride on carriages.

It's like the FIFA World Cup being always played on clay and being glorified just for that.

You may have had a lot of responses from outside of western Europe. Here, in the UK and Ireland, as well as many places in Western Europe, and even Australia, we have mainly grass and synthetic grass courts.
I haven't played on hard court or clay regularly in decades. It is all grass and synthetic grass. Virtually all the tennis clubs are called 'Lawn Tennis' clubs.
So it isn't only about tradition, it's also the most common type of court in the region.

And why all this push back for grass? It is the only slam that is actually different from the others. They have slowed down hard courts so much, it is nearly the same game as clay.
Do we really want to watch the same game over and over, the same people winning the same game over and over? Really? My how tennis has changed.

 

[WYK]

I'm in the UK now and I signed up for a grass court tournament. Unfortunately it was raining (shocking) so they moved us to the artificial grass instead and I lost a third set tiebreaker to the number 2 seed. I'm supposed to play doubles today, fingers crossed that it works out. However, I'm going to try and play the 60's grass court nationals in Philadelphia in August and maybe a tournament in Rhode Island the following week.

I have a doubles finals tomorrow in Ireland on synthetic. It is gonna be a slog fest. I'll have to remember to wear synthetic clothing and bring loose strings.

I don't slide often, and really prefer not to on grass, so I just use Omni court shoes on grass. They work amazingly well on both grass and synth grass.
On freshly sanded synthetic, I prefer clay court shoes, for just that bit of give and sliding.

ETA we won 64 63, and only had to put up with a small bit of rain during match play.

 

[chrischris]

Newport
London
Hastings and Eastbourne
Halle
And once in Holland... Forgot exactly where..

 

[mmk]

Never. But I have played golf on clay.

When my father was stationed in Saudi Arabia he played golf on sand, players brought a piece of artificial turf to hit off of in the fairways.

 

[Sudacafan]

When my father was stationed in Saudi Arabia he played golf on sand, players brought a piece of artificial turf to hit off of in the fairways.

Strange. Why didn't they play on the green? Couldn't they really never drive the ball away from the sand bank?

 

[mmk]

Strange. Why didn't they play on the green? Couldn't they really never drive the ball away from the sand bank?

This was on a US military base in SA, so no grass except for the tee area and the greens around the holes.