Slow bouncing balls help beginners learn tennis ... and fast
Young baseball players start with t-ball, basketball players start with lower hoops and smaller basketballs, but new tennis players usually get thrown right into their sport with regulation rackets, courts and tennis balls.
Not with the Tennis in No Time program.
This method of tennis instruction, offered at Midtown Athletic Clubs in Palatine and Bannockburn, uses different types of balls to let beginners adjust to the sport gradually and play successfully right away, said Todd Johnson, head tennis professional at Midtown's Palatine location.
"The best thing about the different types of balls is that people are able to rally almost immediately - in other words, keep the ball in play - rather than historically go out and play tennis and hit a ball and go chase the ball," Johnson said. "So it becomes more fun because they can actually play the game of tennis almost within 10 minutes of the first lesson."
Beginners signing up for tennis lessons now are learning a game that is the fastest-growing traditional sport in the U.S., according to the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association. A study by the association found tennis participation has grown 43 percent since 2000, including 6 million people who tried the sport for the first time in 2008.
Tennis in No Time participants say they enjoy the pace of the lessons because they learn a lot without feeling overwhelmed.
"It's a pretty quick pace. He doesn't bore us," said Kim Parsons, 42, of Lake Zurich, about instructor Matt McClure.
Parsons said the first ball used for Tennis in No Time - a foam sphere about twice the size of a regulation tennis ball - is also just right because it bounces slowly, giving extra time to react.
"You just need a couple extra seconds until it becomes second nature," Parsons said.
The decompressed regulation-size ball used as the second step in the program bounces a little faster, but still not as fast as a regulation tennis ball. Johnson said that helps beginners, who often struggle with positioning.
"You can get position on the foam ball much easier than you can get position on a pressurized ball," he said.
Tennis in No Time lessons are open to the public without a membership to the club and are offered mornings, afternoons, evenings and weekends. Participants pay $115 for six sessions, each an hour and a half long.
Some people, such as Timi Dalton, 43, of Barrington, take the lessons more than once.
"It's a fun, quick startup if you don't know how to play at all," said Dalton, who signed up for the second time with friends from her neighborhood.
The program also highlights the social aspects of the sport, with wrap-up conversation sessions after each lesson and with two parties during the program, said Robyn Kove, Midtown's director of marketing and member connections.
Allison Michel, 15, of Deer Park, said once she completes the lessons, she looks forward to playing tennis with some of her friends who already know the sport.
Parsons said she hopes the lessons will give her the skills to play tennis with her friends and her husband, who are also enrolled in Tennis in No Time.
"I want to be able to say 'Let's go play tennis' instead of 'Let's go get lunch,'" Parsons said.
Social benefits are part of the reason why tennis is remaining popular during the recession, said Jolyn de Boer, executive director of the Tennis Industry Association.
"Despite the economy, people are still playing; If anything, we might be seeing an increase in play," de Boer said. "It's fun, it's social in all elements around it. It's healthy and you have good role models."
Similar to the sport as a whole, Johnson said Tennis in No Time lessons can be a good workout regardless of previous experience or fitness level.
"It's a great workout in a short amount of time," he said. "I don't think I've met anyone that could not play tennis."