Do you think tennis is a ' posh ' sport?

[sinklineandhook]

When you hear someone saying they play tennis, do you assume they're a bit well off / posh ? Whatever you want to call it.

When I was a child there was a free tennis court in the local park. A very working class area in the North East. We knocked a threadbare tennis ball about with a couple of old second hand rackets that my DF got for us. We were not playing tennis though. We didn’t know the rules or get any coaching. The late great Paul O’Grady was once asked about the difference between the working classes and the middle classes. He said being working class just meant not experiencing at a meaningful level the things that the middle classes take for granted for example swimming, tennis, rugby, etc etc. He included music lessons and things such as skiing in that view I think. This then leads to a lack of ability in these areas for the working classes. I agree with him the possible exception being football.

Only when it’s played at home.

Also to add the amenities in London are not representative of those available to people in the rest of the country.

It's one of those strange things that's cheap and accessible but somehow is seen as posh/aspirational/not something that poorer people are able to do.

Most council parks have outdoor tennis courts. The condition might not be great, but they're fine to knock a ball about on. In my city at least, all these parks are in areas that, if listed, would look like a MN top 10 of places to avoid when looking for somewhere to live.

Like Park Run. There was a long thread a while ago about how inaccessible Park Run was to the working classes, with the usual MN whataboutery about how we couldn't possibly go for a run around a park that was on our doorstep.

@Bjorkdidit most parks do not have outdoor tennis courts. I have never seen any outside London.

No. But I live somewhere where tennis is very popular. There are public tennis courts that can be rented at no charge, and you don't need to spend a lot of money on a racket or balls.

Just googled. Nearest is over 20 miles away in a posh village. I live in a City. They do not run at all there.

Judging by the number of dogs I see with tennis balls in the mouths, I would say not.

(Unless the manufacturers of said balls have organised a racket as some sort of promotional aid - could happen 🤔)

I live in another large city in England and most of the public parks have tennis courts.

It depends on the level. My daughters do tennis once a week and it’s not mega expensive. The group classes are pretty accessible and the entry level racquets are much cheaper than all the ballet stuff we’ve had to buy.

But… once you get into the realms of competing with private lessons, travel to tournaments etc it’s a different level of expense. It seems like the kids who are really good at 8/9 have spent an absolute fortune to get to the point of even county selection.

most parks do not have outdoor tennis courts. I have never seen any outside London.l

please do not say you are representing the entire country outside of London? That’s a completely ridiculous comment. I grew up in a village in Lincolnshire that had 3 tennis courts. There are plenty of very affordable clubs that offer cheap play and kids classes that are no more expensive than dancing classes or other hobby classes. What holds people back is the notion that you have to have lots of money to play ( which you don’t) or “ it’s not for the likes of us”.

Kind of. I mean, not in and of itself, a public court at the park is free or cheap and a racquet and balls cost little. It's also possible to play (not saying amazingly well) with zero prior knowledge or coaching. It's funny that something so simple has developed all.sorts of status and accoutrements that cost a fortune and belie its very simplicity- expensive lessons, a spiffing white uniform, shoes that cost a bomb.

But… once you get into the realms of competing with private lessons, travel to tournaments etc it’s a different level of expense. It seems like the kids who are really good at 8/9 have spent an absolute fortune to get to the point of even county selection

Well that's the case for any type of sport or activity, even non posh ones like football. But people don't have to be 'good' or compete for the sport/activity to be worthwhile. It can simply be done for fun, social aspect or being active etc.

Comparing with France, I think it is. It was cheap and easy to play there, clubs are very accessible and you have access to all levels adult lessons on evenings and weekends.
In England I found it very hard to keep playing. "Clubs" are sparse, exclusive and expensive. Classes are often weekdays during working hours, so clearly aimed at (rich) housewives or retired people. The only places I have managed to play were sport clubs like "Better" or council run sport centers, but unfortunately very few have racquet sports.

I've got a theory that we're so relentlessly crap at sport because of the class system.

Relentlessly crap at sport? GB has the 3rd highest medal count of any country in the modern summer Olympics, and its population is not all that high. If you look at any list of top sporting nations, it is always in the top 5 or 10. The breadth is incredible.

And I'm not British so I have no skin in this game!

I consider myself lower middle class and a lot of our friends and our kids friends play slsnd yes I would consider it a fairly posh sport.

As a pass time it used to be accessible. You could grab a cheap racket and knock a ball about on a public court. But to play seriously it can be expensive.....not sure how much more expensive it is than dance or swimming lessons though.

The loss of public courts doesn't help - so if you want to play you have to join a club.

My children both play and I wouldn’t say we are posh. We just happen to live near a tennis club.

However lessons cost me around £80 a month for 2 children so it’s definitely not a cheap sport.

Like many sports it depends on the level you're talking about, knocking a tennis ball around the free local park courts, yes cheap and accessible. Playing to any standard, definitely not accessible to anyone on a tight budget. My DH played at a decent level for out local club, tennis rackets need restringing every few weeks (if you use topspin) which was around £25 and that was about 10 years ago. Factor in tennis shoes, indoor facilities to practice in winter - definitely a bit of a 'posh' sport. My DH isn't 'posh' but could afford these things as an adult, as a child his family definitely wouldn't have been able to support them.

No, I just think of it as a really boring (to watch) sport and don't get me started on the tedium that is Wimbledon 😂

I don't mind tennis but I probably would be too impatient to watch a full 5 set match.
Cricket and golf are way more tedious imo, or a 0-0 draw in football!

not really, unless they had their on tennis court, then id consider it more posh, usually i think polo is posh or horse racing

Hard hat on…

I think middle class areas are more active generally as you see more people out running and cycling.

For me, it’s become one of those indicators like how many prep schools there are and whether there’s a Waitrose/country outfitter/Sweaty Betty/Space NK on the high street.

My tennis club costs around £200 pa, and that includes the provision of balls so I think it's a good deal. We have lots of good quality park courts in South Yorkshire that can be hired by anyone

However the kids that are excelling are the kids who have had individual coaching from an early age and that's at least £100 a month. If your child is selected for a performance squad you'll be facing high cost of travel, indoor court hire and coaching, so I think at the higher level it's still elitist

Oh yeah golf is not a spectator sport. It goes so quiet because even the commentator can’t find anything to say.

I swear I once heard a televised golfer fart.

Exactly the same where I live. People just go to a court and play, anyone can do it, and yes I have used school courts in out of school hours when I was young. I also played at school, and for the local club. I find it really weird that it is seen as something only posh people do in the UK.