What is your ideal conditions to play

[dgold44]

I hate to sound like a wimp. I love playing indoors on slow hard courts. Seems to best for me. Only place where I have beaten some 4.5 players on good days.

Humidity outside- seems to sap my energy too fast.

Dry heat or elevation outside- makes it very hard to keep the ball in play. Pretty hard to play

Clay courts- I find it too hard to move around and the bounces are too random

Grass- Felt like a total beginner. The ball just dropped to my knees or ankles and skid away.

Carpet- way too fast for my game.

 

[goran_ace]

Ideal would be about 74 and sunny with a slight breeze that feels refreshing between points but isn't strong enough to really affect the ball, about 10:30AM so the air and the court have warmed up but the sun isn't at it's peak yet.

But I openly embrace playing in brutal conditions. A 1PM match in south FL on clay 90 degrees and humid? Sure let's do it. Hard court in AZ so hot it feels like you could literally fry an egg on the court? Bring it on. It's going to be physically tough but in most people your mind will quit long before your body does. In those matches I'm trying to win as quickly and efficiently as possible so it keeps you focused. If it ends up going to a third, those are the matches where it just comes down to who wants it the most and is willing to fight harder.

My least favorite conditions were 8AM start times for tournaments on a cool day, mainly because it means having to get up really early in the morning to eat, drive there, check in and go through your pre match prep, etc. Then you get out there and it takes a while to warm up because it's still cool out there so you might be a few games into the first set before you're firing on all cylinders.

 

[McLovin]

Had my idea conditions last night: outdoors, 60 degrees, no wind.

While I don't mind 90 degrees/90% humidity, I sweat profusely (just ask mikeler), and it can become uncomfortable quickly. Sure, I can bring 3 shirts and 5 wristbands, but am I really going to change socks/shorts/underware?

Surface doesn't really matter to me, although I've found that my game is better suited to faster courts. Played on grass a couple years ago (45 Grass Court Nationals) and loved it. Hope to go back this year.

 

[GlennK]

I'm with McLovin. Except maybe mid 60's. I also sweat a lot. In fact, I tick off the guys during our rec play when I insist on breaking every two games just to towel off. They never switch ends so the only breaks are when I walk over to my towel.

I prefer the hard court but have never played on clay. Carpet is tough to get used to but eventually I am able to play OK. Weirdest court I play on is what I call the Lego courts. Hard plastic squares. Never, and I mean never, fall down on that surface as the squares cut you up.

 

[J_R_B]

I prefer har-tru because my knees hurt less afterwards, but I play better on hard courts.

 

[mikeler]

I love a warm spring day in the mid 80s with low humidity on clay. Those conditions are ideal for my heavy spin game. The worst are cold, cloudy and humid conditions. Even on clay, it might as well be carpet since I can't get the ball out of my opponent's strike zone.

I used to sweat buckets but it seems to have gotten better as I've aged. McLovin on the other hand reminds me of that pilot in the Airplane movie.

 

[comeback]

Outdoor hard courts..the Hotter and Sunnier the better..I don't like indoor lighting as i'm always late seeing the ball. And my opponents can hit bigger serves indoors.

 

[Mr.Lob]

Outside. 70 degrees, mostly sunny to partly cloudy, a light 4mph breeze from the southwest, fast clay, with the Swedish bikini teams playing on the adjoining courts.

 

[MisterP]

Temps in the 60s. Low humidity. At night under high lights. About 7:30-8:00.

 

[dgold44]

I enjoy playing outside in the evenings. Not during the day at all.

I like playing outdoor night tennis but mostly play indoors about 95 percent of the time if not higher.

 

[PMac]

Yesterday was perfect for me.

Evening on the had-tru, mid sixties, light breeze.

 

[NLBwell]

Hot, 90 degrees plus. Don't like the cold. Fast hard courts (or carpet if indoors).

 

[dgold44]

NL, hot 90 degrees. I would not last more than 5 games lol. I live in Oregon and we do not get much sunshine here.
I would keal over and die in those conditions lol

I played in Arizona and 20 minutes felt like 2 hours in Oregon lol
So indoor tennis does not require as much endurance and fitness I would say as out.

 

[mmk]

Indoor hardcourts, in a building with a decent height ceiling rather than in a bubble.

 

[pc1]

I hate to sound like a wimp. I love playing indoors on slow hard courts. Seems to best for me. Only place where I have beaten some 4.5 players on good days.

Humidity outside- seems to sap my energy too fast.

Dry heat or elevation outside- makes it very hard to keep the ball in play. Pretty hard to play

Clay courts- I find it too hard to move around and the bounces are too random

Grass- Felt like a total beginner. The ball just dropped to my knees or ankles and skid away.

Carpet- way too fast for my game.

I love playing indoors on hard courts. Yes I play outdoors a lot but I prefer ideal conditions which I get all the time indoors at the place I normally play at. No rain, no sun, no wind, no insects etc.

 

[Topspin Shot]

Outdoor clay on a nice summer evening.

 

[austintennis2005]

why would anyone want to play in bright sun? looking up into the blinding sun when serving and hitting overheads sucks

i like cloudy, windy days around 60-70 degrees

 

[coloskier]

Windy days on fast courts. Takes the lobbers out of the equation, and usually the pushers, too.

 

[Govnor]

- hard court
- no wind
- no humidity
- about 67 and cloudy.

Game on!

 

[pc1]

- hard court
- no wind
- no humidity
- about 67 and cloudy.

Game on!

I would add, no insects, perfect court surface with no cracks.

I play outdoors on a nice hard court in my neighborhood and one time we actually had to stop play because a rabbit ran onto the court. lol.

I used to occasionally play on a court very close to a Bay. I was playing when an infestation of some biting flying insects came and bit us. I had about 25 or so bites on my leg. My wife who was hitting with me was bitten around 50 times. It was not good. The court is great and everything else there is great but I never play there anymore.

 

[G A S]

cloudy days are the best, but can at the same time be the worst if it rains.

 

[G A S]

Windy days on fast courts. Takes the lobbers out of the equation, and usually the pushers, too.

not on clay, if it is too dry your eyes get destroyed...

 

[G A S]

Temps in the 60s. Low humidity. At night under high lights. About 7:30-8:00.

at night all is different, the ball must be clean though, to make seeing the ball easier.