Tennis Anyone?

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Mini is big these days—but we’re not talking cars, we’re talking tennis. It’s called mini tennis and it’s the latest sport to offer a scaled-down version of the original, making it more fun for the pint-sized set.

Also known as ‘Progressive Tennis’, it started in Europe and is endorsed by tennis great, Roger Federer, so we thought it was worth investigating.

We saw the younger kids ranging from ages five to seven, playing on half-sized courts with short racquets and big, red foam balls. The older ones were playing on a three-quarter-sized court with slightly larger racquets and orange, low-compression balls. Kids were hitting, having fun and actually rallying. They develop skills much more quickly with mini tennis than they did in the old-school tennis days. Gone are the little yellow balls—along with the chore of endlessly chasing them!

They typically start their lessons off with some drills to get the fundamentals under their belt, then they get the thrill of actually whacking the ball over the net.

Another bonus is the underhand serving technique, making it easier for the kids to play a real game. And let’s face it, ‘playing’ is what it’s all about and most kids get excited when there’s a score involved.

Register now for week-long camps that are running all summer starting the week of July 5. Here are the three locations we found in Vancouver: North Vancouver Recreation Centre, West Vancouver Community Centre Courts and UBC’s Indoor Tennis Centre. 

If you want to get out on the courts with the kids yourself, you can find the oversized red and orange balls at tennis centres and specialty tennis stores around town.

So if your child is game to pick up a racquet, you’re all set because we’ve got your match with some mini-tennis camps your kids will love.

Tested by Carolyn W., Vancouver