Paddle Tennis
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POP Tennis (formally known as Paddle Tennis or Paddle ball) is a
racquet sport Racket sports (or racquet sports) are games in which players use a Racket (sports equipment), racket or paddle to hit a ball or other object. A racket has a handled frame with an open hoop that supports a network of tightly stretched strings. A pa ...
adapted from
tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...
and played for over a century. Compared to tennis, the court is smaller, has no doubles lanes, and the net is lower. POP tennis is played with a solid perforated paddle, as opposed to a strung
racquet A racket or racquet is an item of sporting equipment used to strike a ball or shuttlecock in a variety of sports. A racket consists of three major components: a widened distal end known as the ''head'', an elongated handle known as the ''grip'' ...
, and a lower compression tennis ball. The same court is used for both singles and doubles, with doubles being the dominant and more popular form of play. The smaller court size adds a strong emphasis and advantage to net play and allows for a fast and reaction-based game.


History

During year 1898, the sport then called paddle tennis was invented by Episcopal minister Frank Peter Beal in
Albion, Michigan Albion is a city in Calhoun County in the south central region of the Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 7,700 at the 2020 census. Albion is part of the Battle Creek Metropolitan Statistical Area. The earliest ...
. Afterwards, the sport spread in
lower Manhattan Lower Manhattan, also known as Downtown Manhattan or Downtown New York City, is the southernmost part of the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The neighborhood is History of New York City, the historical birthplace o ...
where Beal wanted to create recreational activities for neighbourhood children. In 1915, Beal got the Manhattan parks and recreation department to lay courts in Washington Square Park in
Greenwich Village Greenwich Village, or simply the Village, is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street (Manhattan), 14th Street to the north, Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the s ...
. The first tournament was held in 1922, and the United States Paddle Tennis Association (USPTA) was formed the following year. (The United States Paddle Tennis Association is not to be confused with the United States Professional Tennis Association founded in 1970.) By 1941, paddle tennis was being played in almost 500 American cities. Although Frank Peer Beal is known as the game's inventor, Murray Geller, a player in the 1940s and 1950s, was instrumental in creating the modern game. Elected chairman of the USPTA rules committee, he wanted to make a game that was more appealing to adults, and instituted features including an enlarged court and an underhanded serve. Scott Freedman won the World's Men's Singles Paddle Tennis Championships 19 times, the World Men's Doubles Championships 16 times, and the World Mixed Doubles 14 times. He wrote a book titled ''Paddle Tennis and Tennis: Anyone Can Play''. In 2015 and 2016, the USPTA rebranded the sport as "POP Tennis" and changed its name to the International POP Tennis Association (IPTA) to enhance its marketability and distinguish it from similar paddle-based sports, such as Padel and Platform Tennis, which are also frequently referred to as 'Paddle' or 'Paddle Tennis'. https://www.poptennis.com/ The name was chosen in reference to the "pop" sound made when the paddle hits the ball.


Rules

Paddle tennis courts are constructed of the same materials as tennis courts, or can also be placed on hard beach sand. The court measures 50 feet (15.24m) baseline-to-baseline and 20 feet (6.09 m) across, with the service line 3 feet (0.91 m) in from the baseline. This creates a service box of 10 × 22 feet (3.04 × 6.70 m). The net is placed at a height of 31 inches (0.78 m). POP Tennis follows a simplified set of rules that distinguish it from traditional tennis. Players are permitted only one underarm serve per point, with serves alternating between the deuce and ad courts from behind the baseline. The serve must land in the diagonally opposite service box. Scoring mirrors traditional tennis, with sets played using tiebreak formats and advantage scoring within each game (e.g., 15, 30, 40, Advantage, Game).


Summary

* Players: Four, played in a doubles format. * Serves: Serves must be underhand. A second serve is allowed only in the event of a net ball that lands in bounds, as in tennis. * Score: Scoring method is the same as in tennis. Matches are best of five sets. * Ball: Tennis ball with reduced pressure. * Paddle: Solid with no strings. May be perforated. * Court: There are two styles of courts. East and West coast styles. * Walls: Walls or fences play the same role as in tennis, once the ball comes in contact with either the point is over.


Similar sports

Padel is a similar sport typically played in doubles on an enclosed court about half the size of a tennis court. It is popular in
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
and
Hispanic America Hispanic America ( or ), historically known as Spanish America () or Castile (historical region), Castilian America (), is the Spanish-speaking countries and territories of the Americas. In all of these countries, Spanish language, Spanish is th ...
.
Pickleball Pickleball is a racket or paddle sport in which two or four players use a smooth-faced paddle to hit a perforated, hollow plastic ball over a net until one side is unable to return the ball or commits a rule infraction. Pickleball is played i ...
is a similar sport invented in 1965 on
Bainbridge Island, Washington Bainbridge Island is a city and island in Kitsap County, Washington, United States. It is located in Puget Sound. The population was 24,825 at the 2020 census, making Bainbridge Island the second largest city in Kitsap County. The island is s ...
. It is played on a similar court and with a similar paddle but uses a plastic wiffle ball. Platform tennis is a similar sport invented in 1928 in
Scarsdale, New York Scarsdale is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The Town of Scarsdale is coterminous municipality, coextensive with the Village of Scarsdale, but the community has opted to operate ...
by James Cogswell and Fessenden Blanchard. The primary difference from POP tennis is that the platform tennis court is 6 feet shorter, fenced by taut chicken wire off which the ball can be played. Platform tennis uses a solid sponge rubber ball and overhead serving is permitted. Platform tennis is popular in the Northeastern and Midwestern U.S, since the raised court (the platform) can be heated for winter play.


See also

* Beach tennis, played on sand without allowing the ball to hit the ground *
Pickleball Pickleball is a racket or paddle sport in which two or four players use a smooth-faced paddle to hit a perforated, hollow plastic ball over a net until one side is unable to return the ball or commits a rule infraction. Pickleball is played i ...
* Padel *
Lacrosse Lacrosse is a contact team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game w ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Paddle Tennis Racket sports Forms of tennis