Tennis etiquette at public courts

Waiting for a court

When every court is taken, there is usually an unwritten queue. The customs vary by place, so watch what others do and read any sign on the fence. Posted rules always win over habit.

• Racquet on the fence. At many courts, players who are waiting leave a racquet or a bag by the gate or on the fence, in the order they arrived. When a court clears, the first racquet in line gets it. If you do not see anyone doing this, ask who is next.
• Sign-up boards and sheets. Some parks have a clipboard, a board or a paddle system. Use it if it is there, and put your name on it honestly.
• Time limits. Many places expect you to give up the court after about an hour, or after a set or two, when others are waiting. Some parks post a limit, and some do not. If nobody is waiting, you can keep playing. If somebody arrives, finish the point and offer the court when the time is up.
• Reservations. If a court is booked through the city or a club, the person with the booking has priority. Ask to see the booking if you are unsure, and move off politely if it is theirs.

Do not wait right at the gate and stare. Stand a little way off, make eye contact when a game ends, and ask. Most players are glad to hand a court over when they have had their hour.

While you are playing

• Do not walk behind a court during a point. If you need to cross to another court or reach the gate, wait until the point is over and then go behind the baseline quickly, or use the side where the players are not hitting. A person crossing behind the baseline mid-point can cause an injury.
• Return stray balls. When a ball from another court rolls onto yours, stop and hit it back, or roll it gently along the ground toward the court it came from. Do not drive it back hard. When a ball from your court heads onto someone else’s, call “ball back, please” or ask for it politely, and wait for a pause in their point.
• Call ball on court. If a ball rolls onto your court during a point, call out right away so that the point can be stopped. Without a call, a player can step on a ball and turn an ankle.
• Keep spare balls out of the way. Put them in a pocket, a ball hopper or at the back fence, not along the sidelines or near the net post.

Line calls and the score

Without an umpire, players make their own calls. The usual standard is simple: you call the lines on your own side of the net, because you have the best view of them. If you are not sure whether a ball was in, it was in. Give your opponent the benefit of the doubt.

• Call it quickly and clearly. Say “out” or “no” right away and, for a ball that landed a long way out, with a hand signal if that helps. Make the call as soon as the ball lands, before or as you return it. Playing on and calling it out afterwards is not fair to your opponent.
• Say the score before each point. The server calls the score out loud so that both players agree. If you disagree, talk it through and, if necessary, replay the game or the point.
• Be generous. If a ball is on the line it is good. If you made a wrong call, admit it and give the point to your opponent.

Some surfaces, such as clay, leave a mark. Showing the mark is fair if there is a dispute. Do not wipe it before the other player has seen it.

Warming up, noise and temper

A warm-up before a match is normal, but keep it short. A few minutes of easy hitting is enough when others are waiting. Do not take a long warm-up as a way of extending your hour.

Keep noise down, particularly early in the morning or late at night near houses. Music is fine if it stays on your side of the court and nobody nearby can hear it. Frustration is part of tennis, but throwing a racquet, shouting or hitting balls out of the court is noticed by everyone, including children and families in the park.

Sharing with lessons and teams

Public courts are also where coaches teach and school teams practise. If a coach has a block of courts, there is usually a sign or a reservation to say so. Stay off those courts, and do not hit balls onto them from the next court.

If a team has the whole facility for a match, you will usually find the gates marked or locked. A school court can be the school’s first, and the public’s whenever the school is not using it. Our guide to finding public tennis courts explains how access types differ.

Lights and leaving the court

• Lights. Some courts have a switch, a timer, a coin or card box, or a button. Work out how yours works before it gets dark. If the lights are paid by timer, tell the people waiting how much time is left. Switch them off if you are the last to leave and the system is not automatic. Do not hold the lights on a court that you are not using. See our guide to playing tennis at night.
• Take everything with you. Pick up empty ball cans, water bottles, grip wrappers and wet towels. A court with litter on it gets less public support.
• Close the gate. Latch it behind you so that dogs and children cannot wander onto a court, and so the gate is as you found it.
• Report damage. A torn net, a broken lock or a large crack is worth passing to the parks department. You can also flag a wrong listing from the court’s menu on Where.Tennis.

Find a court to practise on

Browse by state in the court directory, or open the map to see every court within your drive time.