A Cool Court Surface

The tennis courts at Texas Christian University are constructed in banks of four. Each four pack is surrounded on all sides by berms lined with Oak trees. Consequently, the courts require no wind screens and the viewing sight lines are excellent on every court. It is a beautiful facility.

North Central Texas is notoriously windy. In the winter months the temperatures are pretty chilly. The combination of the berms and trees cuts the wind dramatically. That makes TCU one of the best outdoor venues for tennis in the DFW area during the winter months.

Summer is an entirely different matter. It gets so damn hot in Texas, that most players prefer some semblance of a breeze. You don’t get much of that at TCU. Additionally, the heat from the searing Texas sun gets trapped immediately above the court surface with no where to go. It’s hot.

TCU in the summer is like playing tennis in a wok.

TCU Junior Development Program on a Cool October Day

TCU was the first facility that I thought about after reading about a new product in Racquet Sports Industry Magazine last week. California Sports Surfaces has announced a new “CoolTop® Cool Pigment Technology” court surface. It integrates infrared reflective pigments to reduce court surface temperature via solar reflectance. The CoolTop technology retains less heat, reducing court temperature and providing better playing conditions.

In other words, the court surface is cooler which should result in increased player comfort. Even better, California Court Surfaces is the manufacturer of DecoTurf. That was the official surface of the US Open from 1978 to 2019. That means that it is clearly available for tennis courts.

Rumor has it that TCU is planning on rebuilding their tennis courts in the immediate future. Based on my mixed doubles practice match on Court #15 last week, its about time. TCU is the perfect venue to demonstrate the benefits of this new technology.