Tennis Court

• Design
• Construction
• Renovation
• Maintenance
• Rules & Regulations

Tennis Court Maintenance

Maintenance
One yearly maintenance practice for all tennis courts is to remove the net and wind screens at the end of the season, unless the court is used during the winter months. The removal of nets and screens will extend their life. Furthermore, in the colder sections of the country, if the net is left up through the winter, there is a good chance of cracking around the net post on nonporous courts. The tension of the net creates a constant pull on the post, which could result in cracks near the pot due to surface expansion and contraction.
 
As with renovation, nonporous surfaces need the least maintenance and porous surfaces need the most.
 
Nonporous Courts
The most important maintenance consideration for nonporous courts is to keep the surface clean; dirt ground into the surface by players' feet can degrade the court. Clean the surface regularly with a soft nylon broom. If rainfall is not sufficient to keep the court free of dirt, clean the surface monthly with a hose and broom to prevent the accumulation of debris. Stains can be removed with cold water, detergent and a soft scrub brush. A mixture of two parts water to one part household bleach can remove fungus that may grow as a result of food, soft drinks, or decaying matter on the surface.
 
Clay Courts and Fast-Dry Courts
Besides keeping the lines visible, the most important daily maintenance process for clay and fast-dry courts is monitoring of surface moisture. Courts that are too wet or too dry, or that have standing water could delay use until conditions are more favorable. A properly working irrigation system, good surface leveling equipment and roller are the best tools to achieve this goal. Daily inspection for surface moisture is the best way to provide a playable clay or fast-dry court. Each day (or at least once or twice a week), the surface should be brushed, watered if needed, and rolled.
 
Grass Courts
Not surprisingly, the daily maintenance requirements for grass courts are the highest of all tennis surfaces. During the growing season, daily mowing and monitoring of soil moisture are time-consuming (but necessary) maintenance practices. For turf that is cut this low (typically 5/32" to 5/16"), a reel mower is a must, and to observe the one-third rule, the turf must be mowed every day. For cool season turfgrass, hand-watering (syringing) is often necessary in the afternoon during hot summer months to keep the surface cool. Of course, line repainting during the playing season is a regular maintenance requirement.
 
Along with carefully planned mowing, thatch management is critical on a grass tennis court. For most purposes, a thatch layer of ½" or less is desirable in improving turf wear tolerance. The best thatch management is achieved through topdressing the surface with light and frequent applications of a soil material similar to the existing soil (typically 1/8" depths when core aeration is performed). Also, regular light verticutting (blades set to penetrate no more than 1/8" below the turf canopy) will minimize thatch development as well as the development of grain. The vertical mowing and grooming attachments used with triplex or walk-behind reel mowers on golf greens work well for tennis courts, as well. Being very efficient in fertility and irrigation management (neither too much nor too little) further reduces the chances of thatch accumulation.
 
Since core aeration disrupts the playing surface, water injection and/or solid tine aerifiers can be used for temporary relief of compaction during periods of heavy use. Water injection can be used frequently without an appreciable effect on the playing surface. (However, core aeration is still needed at some point during the year to maintain a healthy turfgrass culture. In cool season zones, this process can be performed before or after the playing season. The best practice is to aerate once in the spring, at least two weeks before play begins, and twice in the fall after play ends. In the South, where courts are used year-round, it will be necessary to close the courts to use for a few days to allow the turf to recuperate from aeration.)
 
Disease is typically less of a problem on tennis courts than on many turf surfaces, simply because irrigation is usually kept at a minimum to maintain firm footing; many diseases are promoted by prolonged leaf wetness that promotes fungal activity. Therefore, schedule irrigation events early in the morning (if possible) to minimize the duration of leaf wetness. Diseases on most grass courts can usually be managed by applying fungicides on a curative basis. However, a disease-prone grass such as creeping bentgrass can sometimes require a preventive fungicide program at certain times of the year (see Chapter 9 for further information).
 
For more on maintenance requirements of sand-based tennis courts, see Chapter 24. Current USTA recommendations favor the United States Golf Association method of putting green construction with an amended sand growing medium. However, at this writing, ASTM standards for tennis courts are being developed with the input of the USTA, and therefore recommendations may change.