Where To Find A Tennis Court In Columbus
It's starting to get warm out there and you know what that means! OK, if you're on campus, that means that students are breaking out their warm-weather clothes even if they are not yet seasonally appropriate. Mesh shorts, tank tops and flip flops are not great gear to wear to class when it is still only 60* outside and raining. But I appreciate everyone's enthusiasm.
What warm weather means for me is that the nets are back up on the tennis courts around the city. I can get my racket restrung and soon I will be able to enjoy that satisfying pop and the rush of vacuum packed chemical air that comes with breaking open a new canister of tennis balls. I can't think of a better full-body workout to relieve some stress than tennis. You're running, you're competing against your opponent and yourself and using every part of your body. You can pretend that every shot that comes at you from across the court is a bad grade or a particularly lengthy and frustrating reading assignment and just knock it back with all your might and angst. The feel of hitting the ball right on the racket's sweet spot or making your opponent work for the return is very satisfying. And if you're playing with a group project member that burned you, you can aim for the head. (Just kidding. Don't. Or at least play it off like you didn't mean to.)
So here are a couple of my favorite places to play:
Goodale Park in the Short North area has a few courts and is a great place to play. You will see some amazing talent out there that will inspire you and maybe teach you a few things. However, it is often very busy and on nice days, you may need to wait for a court.
Schiller Park in German Village is actually my favorite place to play. There are four or five courts available, one of them set off to the side from the main ones. The courts are well-maintained and it is usually easy to get one. The caveat of playing at Schiller is that the courts are not very far-removed from the main park and occasionally a dog may run onto your court and steal your ball. I recommend playing in the separate court if possible, because there is a mixed variety of talent on the courts and that may interfere with your game too. Still, easy access and there are restaurants and Pistacia Vera within walking distance of the park, where you can reward yourself for winning that match or if you lost, you can eat your sorrows.
The ones I've listed are in my immediate area. But if you want to find one closer to you, check out this site: tennismaps.com. They list all the courts in the US and there's even an iPhone app!
Pictured below is Novak Djokovic, my favorite player of all time, in a very cool shot. That is one awesome backhand!
Happy playing and I will see you out there!