Clay Court Services

ad always complained about the bad bounces and condition of the playing surface. Visiting teams now compliment us on the playing surface and are envious of the fact that their own club only have hard or synthetic grass where rallies are short and the surface is harder on their joints. A number of players from other clubs have requested to come over and practice on our courts so they can learn to improve their shot making and strategy. Local coaches have also requested court time in order to teach their youngsters how to play on the clay. During my long search to improve the shale courts, I was lucky enough to discover two things, one being a 36” metal hand lute and more importantly, Terre Davis a small family run company in Italy, who are manufacturers of world leading clays for tennis court construction. The lute is used universally on European red clay courts for maintenance and preparation and I found this tool to be priceless. Next came a consignment of clay from Italy from which I learnt how to merge the new clay with the old surface, thus converting the old shale court into a more consistent playing surface, allowing longer rallies resulting in players being able to improve better shot production. These were the first steps of my desire to improve the typical English shale court. The benefits are many and far outweigh any disadvantages, but one statistic is undeniable, around 75% of the World’s top 100 both men and women, learnt to play on clay. I wonder how many young, up and coming British players will have the opportunity of learning to play on good local clay surfaces in the UK. I went out to Italy to visit the Terre Davis company, a small family business started by Umberto Garavelli in 1975, to see for myself the processes involved and how the clay was manufactured and any additional technical data that would help me. With the help of his two daughters Anna and Rita who help run the company, Terre Davis left me in no doubt that they were passionate and proud of the quality of their clay. The next time you watch the Monte Carlo or Rome Masters, remember it is Terre Davis who supplied the clay. My hope is that one day a British player will win the French Open as a result of having the opportunity of learning to play their tennis on a UK Terre Davis clay court. Peter Sutton. Clay Court Services.