Photo: Donny Young, top-ranked beach tennis champ.

hermosabeachopen.net

Combining the fantastic setting of beach volleyball with the action of tennis, beach tennis has California beaches written all over it!

Donny Young, co-founder of West Coast Beach Tennis describes "a certain magic" captured in the experience of playing a fast game easier than tennis or volleyball that everyone can play. "It's exciting to watch it start to spread across the nation," says the tanned Southern California beach boy who you'll often see around or on the courts.

"We have worked tirelessly to get the infrastructure in place to play Beach Tennis in Southern California and have been making great strides introducing the sport on the west coast." Adding to the fun, the atmosphere includes great background music, breaking into full dance mode as participants and the audience join in a dance party that breaks out on the court when games are completed.

Beach Tennis, an internationally-recognized professional sport governed by the International Tennis Federation, is similar to regular tennis except it is played on beach courts. The sport involves players using beach tennis paddles and a special tennis ball. The ball is volleyed back and forth without hitting the ground and each team or player can only hit the ball once to get it over net.

Beach Tennis USA tour launched in 2005. The first courts in California were granted in Hermosa Beach through community support and West Coast Beach Tennis. There are now courts popping up in Arizona, Maryland, Florida, New York, Vermont, Illinois, Virginia, New Jersey, Texas and South Carolina.

History: Beach Tennis started in Italy in the early 1980s (approx.) and is now played in over 70 countries. Dozens of countries have hosted professional beach tennis events. The popularity in newer markets (like the U.S., South America, Russia and Bulgaria) is fuelling momentum for inclusion in the 2020 Olympic Games.

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