Our club Big Tennis Weekend - otherwise known as our open day - took place on the weekend of Saturday 20th and Sunday 21st May 2023 and drew a crowd of some 90 newcomers and members.
Tons of weekend tennis fun
Saturday saw more than 20 juniors taking part in a mini-day of tennis play with Matt, ably assisted by Fiona, Jill and others. Then on Sunday the sun was, luckily, still shining and the courts looked great as we set up our stall and welcomed people throughout the day.
BBQ-ing superheroes
Our members made sure this was a very friendly and welcoming event, helped enormously by Fran and Matt's organisation, Kim and Shirley's now legendary and oh-so delicious bbq plus some lovely salads and sides, and Fiona's astounding array of cakes which, as ever, put smiles on many faces.
We kicked off at 9am-ish with the social club tournament, which saw Bill Camplin and Charlotte Crofts emerge victorious, thanks to some excellent matchplay, including Charlotte's rocket-fuelled crosscourt backhands, and Bill's thunderous baseline shots. Well done both, and to all the other players who took part, it really got the day off on a great footing.
Juniors get the runaround
By 11am people were arriving for tennis taster sessions. We started with a brilliantly energetic and very popular juniors' session capably wrangled by Matt and Ewen.
Later on, fitness tennis took place with an adult group - and it was particularly encouraging to welcome some new adult players who were tentatively returning to the game after some years off.
Even better, making the most of the one-day-only 25% off special offer membership fee, six new members signed up on the day. We look forward to seeing you again on court!
Newcomers welcomed
Free play followed for at least two hours, and members who stayed on to make newcomers feel so welcome deserve a special mention; including Nicole, Wendy, Shirley, Bill, Ken, Graham, Steve, Fran and Jill.
The aim was to give visitors a try at a few games, to have a go for free and see if that old love of the sport from bygone days could be rekindled. It was!
Frances Paul, club chairman said: "A big thank you to everyone for a great tennis weekend. I won't name you all but you know who you are."
Bill Camplin, vice chair, said: "Great effort, great pleasure, well worth it. Thanks to all."
Further events coming up this summer include the 'Play your Way to Wimbledon' club tournament on Saturday 3rd June, the Box League finals day in September, and regular Tuesday evening club tournaments throughout the year.
You can find more details about all of these on our events page.
View the gallery of images (with thanks to Matt and Fran 📸 ).
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