Platform Tennis is a wonderful game for all seasons. Platform Tennis or Paddle as enthusiast often call it answered the question how do we continue to enjoy racquet sports even when there is snow and ice on the ground. The answer was simple, but shows the dedication these founders had to a sporting life. Raise the game off the ground, place it on a platform and add heaters underneath. The heating system being under the court wasn't to keep the players warm it was to melt the ice common to New York winters and keep the playing surface fit for play.
The playing court (44 feet by 20 feet) is approximately 1/3 the size of a standard court and surrounded by a heavy fence 12 feet (minimum) high. The smaller court size makes it a perfect game for urban settings or anywhere space is limited and the fencing being in play ads to the difficulty and speed of play.
The game its self is played using a paddle with a maximum length of 18 inches. The face of the paddle may have 87 holes of 3/8 of an inch diameter (maximum) in it, this improve the paddles aerodynamics. The ball is similar to a standard tennis ball in construction and size.
Play in Platform Tennis tends to be very quick paced. The rules of play are not very different from regular tennis with two notable exceptions. The fence is in play, as long as the ball rebounding from the fence lands inside the playing area. There is only one serve allowed (except in certain singles play), no first fault second serve. Other than these exceptions anyone familiar with regular tennis would fell right at home playing Platform Tennis.
Not to be confused with Racquetball, Paddle Tennis, or regular tennis, Platform Tennis is a game that combines the best elements of all these into a single exhilarating sport. Platform Tennis is now played across the length and breadth of the United States and has even gone international with courts in Canada allowing play to our friends up north. Find a court and try Platform Tennis today, you will not regret it.