Ledbury Tennis Club – June Newsletter

We trust that you enjoyed the recent Queen’s Platinum Jubilee bank-holiday celebrations and also the amazing achievement of Rafael Nadal becoming the oldest French Open men’s champion in history, with his record-breaking 14th trophy at Roland Garros.

With the start of the Wimbledon 2022 Championships a little over three weeks away, there’s a lot to enjoy here at Ledbury Tennis Club too.

Club Open Morning - Saturday 18th June
This is our opportunity to invite the public along for a glimpse behind the wall, to experience our fantastic facilities and experience all that our friendly club has to offer.

Many hands make light work, so if you can help out, even for just an hour, to talk with visitors, make them a cup of coffee, or hit a few balls on court, then please let David Murdoch know at ledburytcvicechair@gmail.com or pop your name on the volunteer list in the clubhouse.

Given our small car park, the morning will run in three sections:

• 10 to 11 am - Juniors & Under 16’s  (family welcome to join in!)
• 11.15 to 12.15 Adults (all abilities welcome!)
• 12.30 to 1.30 p.m. Walking Tennis (the slower-paced game that anyone can play!)

Walking Tennis - What’s that about and why are we doing it?
Walking Tennis is part of a growing trend for traditional sports to offer a less intensive option, which still provides exercise and social interaction for those who, for a variety of reasons, are not able to run and might therefore otherwise not engage in any sporting activity at all.

We anticipate that Walking Tennis will appeal to a whole new audience, rather than to most of our existing members.  Making more use of our courts at off-peak times will bring in additional income, which helps us to continue to keep our membership fees as low as possible.

Our club has received a small grant towards developing Walking Tennis, which also provides us with dedicated equipment, including lightweight rackets and slower balls.

Hereford and Worcester LTA are supporting us with this initiative and Neil Bates, who has successfully introduced Walking Tennis to five Worcestershire venues, will be running our free Open Day session on Saturday 18th June between 12.30 and 1.30 p.m. 

To encourage interest and uptake from the wider public, we will then run regular Thursday afternoon Walking Tennis sessions from 2.30 to 4 p.m. commencing on Thursday 23rd June. These sessions will be offered on a “pay as you play” basis at £3 per visit, and of course they will be free of charge to any existing members who would like to give Walking Tennis a try!

You can read more about Walking Tennis on page 36 of the latest issue of “All about West of the Hills” magazine and page 21 of the June “Ledbury Focus”.

Here’s a link to an informative short video on the topic.  Click for YouTube Video

Final Reminder - African Barbecue - Sunday afternoon 3rd July 12 to 5p.m.
We have very nearly sold out.  We have only two adult tickets remaining for this exciting social event!

For further information and to book please; click the link, see ‘Hot News’ on the club website (search for Ledbury Tennis Club), or use the sign-up sheet in the club house.

If you have any questions please contact ledburytcsocial@gmail.com, or Kathy Malia on 0797 3791385

Many thanks to the enterprising and enthusiastic team who are putting so much effort into organising this exciting event.

Box League
The club is starting a singles box league later in June.  We hope this will be a great way for members to meet and play against others of similar ability.

What's a box league?  It is where members compete against each other in a singles ladder.  Players are organised into leagues where they are matched against opponents of similar ability.  Over the course of two to three months everyone in the league plays each other in up to eight singles matches.  Each match consists of 15 games, with each game counting as a point, so a close match could finish 8:7 with 8 points going to the winning player and 7 points to the other player.

There will be promotions and relegations at the end of each round to ensure players of similar ability are matched in the same box league regardless of age or sex.  Our intention is to run several leagues so we can accommodate players of all abilities.  So, if you want to join, there will be a league which is right for you!

For more details or to join up, please contact the organiser, Nigel Long, at nigellongdesign@gmail.com.  Alternatively, add your name to the sheet in the clubhouse.

American Tennis Tournament - Report from 21st May
The club hosted a successful afternoon's tennis on Saturday 21st May.  The sun shone, tasty food and drinks were enjoyed and some competitive but fun tennis was played.

The winners were Mark Parker and Julie Chandler, who jointly hold the Helen Kitching cup!

Many thanks to Lucy Potter for organising the event.

Ledbury Community Day
A big thank you to Rob Stewart, David Wright, Shirley Lewis, Pat Symonds, Barbara Onions and Ann Hume for running our stall at Ledbury Community day and encouraging the public to attend our Club Open Morning on Saturday 18th June.

Presentation of our LTA “Highly Commended” Award
We are very proud that our club recently won a “Highly Commended” award in the 2022 Hereford and Worcester LTA Club of the Year competition.

The LTA Tennis Awards celebrate the achievements made by outstanding individuals and venues in tennis throughout the past year, from grassroots tennis to elite performance.  The awards give us a great opportunity to say “thank you” to those who generously give their time to our sport and open up tennis.  Click for further details

It was most fitting therefore, that local LTA Chair, Ed Bradford, came and presented Liz Lewin and Ann Hume with our club’s award in a brief ceremony held at Underdown on Saturday 28th May, which was also attended by several club members. Our award is now proudly displayed in the clubhouse, just above the sofa!

Congratulations to Liz for writing our successful nomination and to both Ann and Liz for their dedication and long service to our club.

You can see photos of the presentation on our Website: Click for Club Photos

Last Call for Youth Start!  -  Commencing this Friday 10th June
A great value introduction to tennis for children aged five to eight (extended from seven). 

£35 gives you six top-class training sessions and goodies including a tennis racket, balls and a t-shirt.  Open to non-members, this is a great opportunity to get your young ones playing this summer.  Don't be disappointed:  Click here to book

For up to date ‘Hot News’ about your club and all of our latest initiatives please see the club website: Click to see our Website or search for Ledbury Tennis Club.

Best wishes

Rob, David, John, Claire and Del