Why POP Tennis?
What is POP Tennis?
A social game
POP Tennis is often described as the fun, fast-paced and effortlessly social version of tennis. It's incredibly easy to pick up, making it the perfect sport for all ages. It’s also a great way to introduce kids to racquet sports. POP Tennis is mostly played in a doubles format, although singles play is increasing in popularity.
How to play
The court
The POP Tennis court is significantly smaller than a tennis court.
The serve
- That serve must be an underarm serve.
- The server serves from the baseline, alternating between deuce court and ad court (right and left).
- Only one serve per point.
- Ball lands in the service box? Valid point!
- Ball lands outside the service box or hits the net? Fault.
Scoring
The POP Tennis rules largely mirror traditional tennis rules, including the scoring system.You can play tiebreak sets with advantage scoring within each game – for example, 15, 30, 40, ad-game.
Get the gear
A POP Tennis paddle features holes in its face for improved aerodynamics and the ball has less bounce, which often results in longer rallies.
Players typically wear standard tennis or athletic clothing, which is perfect for staying comfortable while moving around on the court. Considering the numerous quick stops and pivots involved, wearing court shoes is recommended. They provide the necessary protection and help prevent injuries.
Frequently asked questions
Originally known as paddle tennis, the sport was invented in 1898 by Episcopal minister Frank Peter Beal to help children play tennis on a smaller, more accessible scale.
Between 2015 and 2016, the sport was rebranded as POP Tennis to differentiate it from other racquet sports such as padel. The name "POP" was chosen because of the distinctive "pop" sound made when the paddle strikes the ball.
While the game rules are similar to tennis, POP Tennis is played on a smaller court with a paddle and a less bouncy ball. You also need to serve underhand.
Both sports are played on a court much smaller than a tennis court. POP Tennis is more similar to tennis as it doesn’t have a non-volley zone and two-bounce rule.
A padel court is surrounded by glass walls and mesh fences. These walls and fences are an important component of padel, adding an extra layer of strategy.
You can easily modify a standard tennis court for POP Tennis by using its inner lines. A common POP Tennis court size is 15.24m long by 6.096m wide, which fits perfectly within the regular tennis court boundaries.
It's a versatile game that can be played on any surface (on synthetic or real grass, tarmac or hard courts, or in the park with drop-down lines and a pop-up net).
POP Tennis can be played on virtually any surface including synthetic grass, clay, hard court or hard sand.
Court dimesions:
- Length: 15.24m
- Width: 6.096m
- Net height: 78.74cm at middle.
POP Tennis court size v a tennis court
