Tennis

History

The Club's tennis program was introduced in 1976 on a pair of red clay courts built and owned by former BHYC Commodore George Whitten just across the street from the main Club house. Since 1993, the courts (and the neighboring building, which houses the West Boothbay Harbor Post Office) have been part of the Club's West Harbor campus.

Tennis at BHYC

The latest schedule and sign up sheet is always posted at the Tennis Building adjacent to the Courts.

Reservations may be arranged THREE DAYS in advance following these procedures. Sign-ups must be in person or by telephone to the tennis office between 10:00 AM and 3:00 PM on Monday, Tuesday or Thursday and between 10:00 AM and 12:00 PM on Wednesday. The reservation sheet will be at the tennis office during those hours. Please do not make back-to-back reservations. Play may continue if the court is open during the next period. Players who have not played before have preference over those who have.

Tournaments and Junior Program events will be announced as early as possible and will take precedence over recreational play.

Walk-ons must relinquish the court at the next scheduled time slot. If others are waiting to walk-on, the court must be relinquished at the beginning of the next time slot.

If the players do not appear for their reservation fifteen minutes after the scheduled time, walk-ons may take the court, but must sign the schedule sheet and guest log prior to playing.

BHYC Tennis Court Rules

Clay courts are generally quite soft after a rain. Before attempting to play, please perform the following tests just inside the court door:

• Press your thumb firmly into the court surface.
• Press the heel of your tennis shoe (toe raised) firmly into the court surface.
• If a noticeable indentation is observed by either test described above, please DO NOT enter the courts for any reason.

Tennis shoes, smooth sole appropriate for clay courts must be worn. Running shoes, hiking shoes, boots or bare feet may cause serious damage to the courts.

When play is finished, you are expected to perform the following procedures:

• Please sweep the court(s) using the large broom (walk ahead of the broom and pull it behind you).
• Please sweep the lines using the small single rotating brush (push brush ahead of you along the white line).
• The broom and line sweeper must be hung on the fence. Leaving them on the ground distorts them.
• Be sure to roll the combination lock tumblers immediately after opening the locked gate. This insures combination security and is necessary to re-lock the court gate. Also secure the lock on the tennis center door.

Courts will be closed each day for maintenance between 12:00 PM and 1:00 PM.