Types of Tennis Court

| TENNIS COURT |

The basic area where tennis is played is call the court. This is a rectangular flat surface of varying types including concrete, grass, and clay. The standard tennis court is 78 feet long and 27 feet wide for singles matches.  For doubles matches the width of the court is increased to 36 feet. A 3 feet 6 inch high net is stretched across the court, dividing the court in half.  There are three main types of tennis court surfaces.  Each surface allows for a different style of play to excel as the bounce and speed of the ball can vary dramatically. 

| HARDCOURT |

This term includes many different surfaces including concrete, asphalt, wood, and Astroturf, just to name a few.  Hardcourts are generally fast courts that have a good consistent bounce of the ball.  Hardcourts are the most popular type of courts and most likely the court most amateur tennis players use. The quantity of sand added to the paint can greatly affect the rate at which the ball slows down and determines the speed which means more sand means less speed and larger sand particles will slow the speed of play. It has been considered as the most equal for all playing styles. 


The US Open is played on an acrylic hard court, while the Australian Open is played on a synthetic hard court. The main difference between a synthetic hard court and a true hard court surface is the level of hardness.  The amount of sand used in the top paint and the size of the sand also determines the speed. More sand means less speed and larger sand particles will slow the speed of play. The amount of friction can also be altered and more friction will produce a clay court effect, where topspin is magnified. The extra grip and friction will resist the sliding effect of the ball and the resistance will force the ball to change its rotation.

Caption:  Andre Agassi serving 

to Pete Sampras at the Australian Open

| CLAY |

The clay surface is usually considered a slow surface because tennis balls lose speed when they hit the court.  This surface also causes the ball to bounce higher than on other surfaces.  This can make for long tennis rallies.  Because of this high bounce, players that use a LOT of topspin, like Nadal and Federer are at an advantage, since they force players to constantly hit tiring shoulder-level shots.   Most courts are made from brick because literal clay courts, like those of the olden days take too long to dry out. Usually clay courts are red and they are slower than the clay courts in America which is green in color. 

Caption:  Guillermo Coria and Carlos Moya on 

the signature red Clay Courts of the French Open

| GRASS |

Grass courts are the most traditional form of court as today's tennis was originally played on grass. Grass is considered fast like the hard courts, but the grass can be uneven and cause the ball to bounce funny making it difficult to return hard shots. The courts used to give the advantage to serve and volley-ers who would come in on every single point. This has recently given way to baseline grass court play, which makes for a more well rounded and interesting match. However, the maintenance costs of grass courts are higher than those of hard courts and clay courts. Grass courts need to be reseeded every year, and (in the absence of suitable covers) must be left for the day if rain appears, as the grass becomes very slippery when wet.

Caption:  Federer getting ready 

to serve at Wimbledon.