As the Executive Committee considers the potential

replacement of Court No. 10 with two padel courts, we

respectfully present reasons to retain the court.

A Balanced Debate?

  • In May 2024 there was an information night held in the club to explain Padel tennis to our members.

  • This information evening failed to provide enough balance to allow the members to make an informed decision as it failed to fully explain the impact that the loss of Court No 10 (or any court) would have on an already packed booking schedule during peak times.

  • It also failed to properly illustrate the potential long term negative impact of reducing our tennis playing facilities in order to introduce a second racket sport into our club.

  • We take issue with the information that was provided at the Padel Information evening in May 2024 e.g. assertion re 80% of matches on the Court are singles, or that Padel is described as generating 'slightly more noise than traditional tennis'.

  • Selecting court 10 as the site for padel courts is the easy option and we’d encourage instead a full exploration of wider options.


  • We have made significant efforts to balance the debate but to no avail.

  • Several concerned members, including some former Presidents, made appeals to consider an alternative approach that would ensure the information provided to Members would be more balanced and open. This failed to elicit a response.

  • It was suggested that a group be established to gather ALL information, to the satisfaction of both sides, for presentation to members. This failed to elicit a response.

  • A request was put forward to make a presentation to the Executive on all matters of concern regarding the installation of Padel on Court 10. This failed to elicit a response.

Impact of replacing a tennis court with Padel

The proposal is to lose a tennis court to make way for padel courts.

  1. Court 10 has unique characteristics which are valued by many club members

  2. Setting a precedent that courts are “up for grabs”

  3. No long-term strategy for padel in the club and how it will impact on court requirements in the future. (There is no guarantee that we won’t lose more courts)

  4. The presence of another sport in our club could lead to division amongst members. This is already evident.

  5. Jeopardizing our goodwill with neighbours. Could this impact floodlit tennis late at night, hosting gigs, balcony drinks during long summer evenings?

About Court 10

  • Court 10 is the only fully enclosed court.

  • Includes the only hitting wall in the club

  • Families, Juniors and starters like the privacy of the court

  • Preferred advantage for some league players

  • There are many people for whom court 10 is the preferred choice when booking a court

Loss of Court No. 10 is an 8% Loss of Tennis Courts

Our research shows that at peak times Court No. 10 is just as popular as every other court in the club

The impact of losing Court No. 10 is:

  • Increased congestion on other courts

  • Longer waiting times

  • Increased dissatisfaction amongst members

  • Lack of court availability for regular group and social tennis

Fastest Finger First

Demand for bookings:

  • The current demand for tennis at our club remains high

  • Regular friendly / group bookings

  • Participation in leagues,

  • Internal championships, and tournaments,

  • Daily coaching / practice schedules

 

The strain is already evident:

  • At peak times it is extremely difficult to book a court.

  • You need to set your alarm and have your finger on the button at 12 noon a week in advance. This is the current reality if you want to book a court at peak times. This already results in disappointment for many members.

Good things come to those who wait

We consistently have a long waiting list of people who want to play tennis:

  • Part time members who want to be full time

  • Ex members who want to rejoin

  • Family of current members who want to join

  • Talented potential league players who want to join

  • Members of the local community who want to join

  • While we have been told the waiting list will be cleared this year, it is important to note that the waiting list has been closed for a long time, so who knows how long the real waiting list is in the community?

Losing a court will impact all of the above and the queue will grow

Lack of Certainty / Unanswered Questions

 

What happens if there are eventually enough Padel Players to demand extra court space?

Is there a safety net which prevents this? NO

 

What happens if the Padel playing community have enough numbers to demand financial resources from the club?

Is there a safety net which prevents this? NO

 

If padel is going to be 14% (2 of 14 courts) of total playing courts will there be new club rules required?

  • Will Padel members demand representation on the Executive?
  • Will the Padel playing members use their collective vote to push for more courts / resources?

No answer on this.

 

 

What happens if Padel players demand facilities in the future for competitions and social events based around padel?

Is there a safety net which prevents this? NO

 

Will the current or future plans for Padel facilities in the club be charged to Tennis playing members or impact on their fees?

Is there a safety net which prevents this? NO

 

Will there be a “Padel only” membership?

Is there a safety net which prevents this? NO

 

Why would we introduce any sport that is competing for the resources in our club?

Noise of Padel

Involvement of our Neighbours?

  • Have we informed our neighbours of the potential for noise and disturbance throughout the day and evening?

  • Have we asked their opinions or sought their feedback?

  • As well as being an issue for Neighbours it will also be an issue when there are League matches on nearby courts: 5, 6, 7 and 11.

Lessons from Mature Padel Markets

According to Padel Magazine UK: "it is estimated that the noise produced during a game of Padel, is about 20dB higher than that of a tennis match: the impact of the ball with glass walls, court meshes and carbon fiber rackets and the fact that it is a sport with much more prolonged exchanges than tennis"

See: Holland introduces regulations to address noise pollution from padel 

An increase of 20db equates to a four-times increase in perceived loudness. 

The information provided by the Padel Sub-committee states "Acoustic studies show that Padel Tennis generates slightly more noise than traditional tennis, typically 10-12dB higher."

No reference is provided but in any case, even an increase of just 10db constitutes a two-fold increase in loudness (not 'slightly').

 

To take an example from a mature Padel market, the Netherlands, the lessons learned by the Dutch Tennis and Padel association are "that new padel courts must be built no closer to homes than 100 metres, and in some case up to 160 metres away".

There are more than 35 houses within the lowest part of this range (100m).

The image shows 100m range (yellow) and 160m range (orange).

How much do we want to risk our good relationship with our many neighbours?

Protect the Future of Tennis in CLTC

  • We have been providing the community with a superb tradition and facility for playing tennis for 140 years.

  • The future of our club is secure due to the hard work of hundreds of volunteers and committee members stretching back decades.

  • We finally have the tennis facility we want, and our community deserves.

  • Everybody at the club has worked hard to make it the best tennis club in the country.

  • Introducing a second sport, competing for the same land as tennis, creates a division within the club (a division already emerging) ...in a club that is the envy of many in terms of its camaraderie.

Why would you introduce a different sport into the club at the expense of the tennis playing facility after all the work over many years?

Save Court 10