2nd SPRING NEWSLETTER 2024
Another update for you all as we move (hopefully) into early summer with long evenings, warm weather and lots of tennis. Here are a few thank you and notices to help you get the most of your tennis this summer. Firstly:
SSLTC Grade 3 Open
Thank you to all your patience the past week as we ran our club’s LTA Grade 3 tournament. It was a huge show case for the club and the feedback from the hundreds of visitors has been really appreciated, including one LTA official ranking us as “stand out” and in the top 2 clubs in the county. The tournament was over-subscribed with 299 entrants and Gal-on Broner, our LTA referee for the week, had to scale back some of the events. Nevertheless, we attracted 5-7 UK Top 100 players to each of the events and there was some fabulous tennis to watch.
Thank you to all the volunteers who helped with the kitchen and the bar. We couldn’t have done it without your help: Alicia Butler, Amanda Burn, Gail Fulcher, Clair West, Lucy Cooper, Clare Latham, Jan Taylor, Pat Hamilton, Phil Cooper, Ian Jones, Melvyn Jones, Andy Parker, George Djuric, Paul Griffiths and Will Taylor. We can do so much more with volunteer help! For future years if we run the event again, we will have some work to do planning a kitchen service. Most competitors seem to be self sufficient when competing, so the cakes, chocolate and drinks proved a tough sale. The upside is that there is plenty of stock left in the bar and we have reduced the prices right down for club members now that the tournament has finished. There are also tins of excellent match used balls available to buy. Four balls tins for £2 and three green ball tins for £1.50.
SSLTC Club Championships
Entries for this annual knockout event is now open. It is open to all full and weekday members so please sign up on the club noticeboards (after 12th April). There are the following events:
Ladies and Men’s Open, O45 and O60 Singles
Ladies and Men’s Open and O60s Doubles
Mixed Open and O60s Doubles
Men’s consolation plate (for those losing their first Open Singles match)
Closing dates for all entries other than O60s: Friday 4th May
Closing dates for O60s: Friday 31st May
Club Finals will be held on Sunday 8th September, with all spectators welcome, BBQ and Bar.
The Junior events are being a bit differently this year with all the rounds up to the finals being held the weekend of 22nd and 23rd June. Finals for all events will be on Sunday 8th September. For more details and to enter, visit the club website calendar.
Club Captains
We still do not have volunteers from existing team players to take up the mantle of Ladies Captain or to support Mark Meagrow as Men’s captain. Vacancies are still open but we will start being more proactive in looking for candidates.
Roll up tennis
A reminder that there is plenty of roll-up tennis throughout the week, not to mention Box Leagues (contact Philip Gee) and team matches (Contact [email protected] ).
Regular tennis for all members include:
Monday13:00 to 15:00Ladies Roll up
Wednesday09:00 to 12:00Club Morning
and in addition, for Full Members:
Sunday10:00 to 12:00Club Morning
Wednesday18:00 to 22:00Club Night
Thursday19:00 to 21:00Men’s Team Practice
Dome
The date for the dome coming down has moved around a little as we try to secure the professional help needed to dismantle, repair and store away. Currently we intend to remove it on Sunday 14th April, and bookings will remain free for all members through to the weekend.
We hope you enjoy your tennis this spring and if you need any help with finding the right tennis (or team) for you, please in the first instance send a message to Suzanne at [email protected] or talk to one of the coaches (when they are off court).
Best wishes,
SSLTC Committee
SSLTC Grade 3 Open
Thank you to all your patience the past week as we ran our club’s LTA Grade 3 tournament. It was a huge show case for the club and the feedback from the hundreds of visitors has been really appreciated, including one LTA official ranking us as “stand out” and in the top 2 clubs in the county. The tournament was over-subscribed with 299 entrants and Gal-on Broner, our LTA referee for the week, had to scale back some of the events. Nevertheless, we attracted 5-7 UK Top 100 players to each of the events and there was some fabulous tennis to watch.
Thank you to all the volunteers who helped with the kitchen and the bar. We couldn’t have done it without your help: Alicia Butler, Amanda Burn, Gail Fulcher, Clair West, Lucy Cooper, Clare Latham, Jan Taylor, Pat Hamilton, Phil Cooper, Ian Jones, Melvyn Jones, Andy Parker, George Djuric, Paul Griffiths and Will Taylor. We can do so much more with volunteer help! For future years if we run the event again, we will have some work to do planning a kitchen service. Most competitors seem to be self sufficient when competing, so the cakes, chocolate and drinks proved a tough sale. The upside is that there is plenty of stock left in the bar and we have reduced the prices right down for club members now that the tournament has finished. There are also tins of excellent match used balls available to buy. Four balls tins for £2 and three green ball tins for £1.50.
SSLTC Club Championships
Entries for this annual knockout event is now open. It is open to all full and weekday members so please sign up on the club noticeboards (after 12th April). There are the following events:
Ladies and Men’s Open, O45 and O60 Singles
Ladies and Men’s Open and O60s Doubles
Mixed Open and O60s Doubles
Men’s consolation plate (for those losing their first Open Singles match)
Closing dates for all entries other than O60s: Friday 4th May
Closing dates for O60s: Friday 31st May
Club Finals will be held on Sunday 8th September, with all spectators welcome, BBQ and Bar.
The Junior events are being a bit differently this year with all the rounds up to the finals being held the weekend of 22nd and 23rd June. Finals for all events will be on Sunday 8th September. For more details and to enter, visit the club website calendar.
Club Captains
We still do not have volunteers from existing team players to take up the mantle of Ladies Captain or to support Mark Meagrow as Men’s captain. Vacancies are still open but we will start being more proactive in looking for candidates.
Roll up tennis
A reminder that there is plenty of roll-up tennis throughout the week, not to mention Box Leagues (contact Philip Gee) and team matches (Contact [email protected] ).
Regular tennis for all members include:
Monday13:00 to 15:00Ladies Roll up
Wednesday09:00 to 12:00Club Morning
and in addition, for Full Members:
Sunday10:00 to 12:00Club Morning
Wednesday18:00 to 22:00Club Night
Thursday19:00 to 21:00Men’s Team Practice
Dome
The date for the dome coming down has moved around a little as we try to secure the professional help needed to dismantle, repair and store away. Currently we intend to remove it on Sunday 14th April, and bookings will remain free for all members through to the weekend.
We hope you enjoy your tennis this spring and if you need any help with finding the right tennis (or team) for you, please in the first instance send a message to Suzanne at [email protected] or talk to one of the coaches (when they are off court).
Best wishes,
SSLTC Committee
SPRING NEWSLETTER 2024
Maybe a bit long in the tooth to be wishing you Happy New Year, but we hope you have been able to get out on court already this month and have been able to enjoy the Dome during the recurrent storms.
Please remember that there are four sessions where the Dome is available free of charge (court hire and floodlights) to members attending the roll ups. Wednesday mornings from 09:00 to 12:00, Wednesday Club Night from 18:30 to 21:00, Sunday Club Morning 10:00 to 12:00 and Junior Club night on Thursdays from 16:30 to 18:30. All other Dome courts can be booked by members for the requisite fee, and the Dome should be up this spring until mid April.
We have a busy schedule planned for our 101st year. There will be the annual club tournaments run through the summer. Look out for entry sheets on the club noticeboard from late March. Club matches are progressing well through the winter season. Beginning in April we switch to the summer season with adult teams in the Bucks Shield and local Milton Keynes leagues. The club is always looking out for new players to sign up for matches. Both our club captains, Margaret Gurney and Mark Meagrow have expressed a wish to retire from their club roles this spring. Both have done a fabulous job over the past five years leading the club teams, fixtures and recruiting. The committee and club are very grateful for all your hard work. We are of course on the look out for replacements in plenty of time for the new season.
There are details of this year's SSLTC Open (and court closures) and a new Ball Machine for the club below.
We hope you enjoy your tennis this spring and if you need any help with finding the right tennis (or team) for you, please in the first instance send a message to Suzanne at [email protected] or talk to one of the coaches (when they are off court).
Best wishes,
SSLTC Committee
SSLTC Grade 3 Open
This Easter we have the annual LTA SSLTC tournament at the club that has been running now for 12 years. The big news is that this year we have been upgraded from a Grade 4 (county) to a Grade 3 (regional), something we targeted to achieve back in our 2008 business plan. This is huge kudos for SSLTC and recognition of our status as a major club. Running a G3 doesn’t come without some sacrifices (as did the G4), and will require a lot of volunteering help and courts being off limits to members for much of the week. The tournament will run from Sunday 31st March to Saturday 6th April. As we get closer to the event, and know how large the entry list is going to be, we can work out what remaining courts are available for members to book. Courts we be made available via the booking system, but it likely to be prior to 09:00 and after 19:00, with other courts being released depending on weather and progress. As an Open we hope to attract the best players from the region and some national players, but is also open to SSLTC members of a ranking that would normally play in G3s. The entry categories include both Adult Open and Junior age groups. Please look out for more information on how you can volunteer to help the club in this big event in the near future.
Ball Machine
Philip Gee (Committee) is happy to announce that he has purchased a ball machine and a membership scheme has now been launched for the benefit of club members.
The SpinFire Pro 2 will be stored at the club, with 150 pressure less balls that you need and other equipment to help you with your training. This is a serious bit of kit capable of firing balls at you with topspin, slice and will keep even the very best players on their toes. But it also can be calibrated to suit your level of play and help anyone improve.
To get the most out of the machine, you need to:
For applications received before the end of 03/03/2024, the membership fee is £40 for 12-months. The fee must be paid to the account on the application form, for your application to be completed and processed. If you haven't booked/used the machine and decide it is not right for you, your fee can be returned. Membership is open to all members over 14 and limited to 40 players. Players under 14 will be considered by a separate application process.
Introduction Sessions
You will need to have an Introduction Session after which you will be given the code for the padlocks to the shed and battery. This is to cover safety, the rules and to help you get the most from the equipment. You will then be able to book the ball machine as often as you like. It will not be available to book at times the courts are known to be busy (e.g. Wednesday evening club night). You will also be added to a WhatsApp group for the Ball Machine Club (BMC).
Introduction Sessions can be booked using this link. https://appt.link/ssltc-genius-tennis/ball-machine-introduction. Phil will need to confirm the date and time selected and make sure we have a court or do the session indoors, without firing balls. I will try and do these sessions in groups if I can, so I may ask you to do a different date/time.
Please remember that there are four sessions where the Dome is available free of charge (court hire and floodlights) to members attending the roll ups. Wednesday mornings from 09:00 to 12:00, Wednesday Club Night from 18:30 to 21:00, Sunday Club Morning 10:00 to 12:00 and Junior Club night on Thursdays from 16:30 to 18:30. All other Dome courts can be booked by members for the requisite fee, and the Dome should be up this spring until mid April.
We have a busy schedule planned for our 101st year. There will be the annual club tournaments run through the summer. Look out for entry sheets on the club noticeboard from late March. Club matches are progressing well through the winter season. Beginning in April we switch to the summer season with adult teams in the Bucks Shield and local Milton Keynes leagues. The club is always looking out for new players to sign up for matches. Both our club captains, Margaret Gurney and Mark Meagrow have expressed a wish to retire from their club roles this spring. Both have done a fabulous job over the past five years leading the club teams, fixtures and recruiting. The committee and club are very grateful for all your hard work. We are of course on the look out for replacements in plenty of time for the new season.
There are details of this year's SSLTC Open (and court closures) and a new Ball Machine for the club below.
We hope you enjoy your tennis this spring and if you need any help with finding the right tennis (or team) for you, please in the first instance send a message to Suzanne at [email protected] or talk to one of the coaches (when they are off court).
Best wishes,
SSLTC Committee
SSLTC Grade 3 Open
This Easter we have the annual LTA SSLTC tournament at the club that has been running now for 12 years. The big news is that this year we have been upgraded from a Grade 4 (county) to a Grade 3 (regional), something we targeted to achieve back in our 2008 business plan. This is huge kudos for SSLTC and recognition of our status as a major club. Running a G3 doesn’t come without some sacrifices (as did the G4), and will require a lot of volunteering help and courts being off limits to members for much of the week. The tournament will run from Sunday 31st March to Saturday 6th April. As we get closer to the event, and know how large the entry list is going to be, we can work out what remaining courts are available for members to book. Courts we be made available via the booking system, but it likely to be prior to 09:00 and after 19:00, with other courts being released depending on weather and progress. As an Open we hope to attract the best players from the region and some national players, but is also open to SSLTC members of a ranking that would normally play in G3s. The entry categories include both Adult Open and Junior age groups. Please look out for more information on how you can volunteer to help the club in this big event in the near future.
Ball Machine
Philip Gee (Committee) is happy to announce that he has purchased a ball machine and a membership scheme has now been launched for the benefit of club members.
The SpinFire Pro 2 will be stored at the club, with 150 pressure less balls that you need and other equipment to help you with your training. This is a serious bit of kit capable of firing balls at you with topspin, slice and will keep even the very best players on their toes. But it also can be calibrated to suit your level of play and help anyone improve.
To get the most out of the machine, you need to:
- be able to use it at off-peak times when the courts are not busy (weekends, other than early on Saturday are quite good, as are many times during the day).
- have a purpose to your practice
- know what you need to practice - work with one of the coaches or get your ideas from on-line coaching, then use the machine to repeat
For applications received before the end of 03/03/2024, the membership fee is £40 for 12-months. The fee must be paid to the account on the application form, for your application to be completed and processed. If you haven't booked/used the machine and decide it is not right for you, your fee can be returned. Membership is open to all members over 14 and limited to 40 players. Players under 14 will be considered by a separate application process.
Introduction Sessions
You will need to have an Introduction Session after which you will be given the code for the padlocks to the shed and battery. This is to cover safety, the rules and to help you get the most from the equipment. You will then be able to book the ball machine as often as you like. It will not be available to book at times the courts are known to be busy (e.g. Wednesday evening club night). You will also be added to a WhatsApp group for the Ball Machine Club (BMC).
Introduction Sessions can be booked using this link. https://appt.link/ssltc-genius-tennis/ball-machine-introduction. Phil will need to confirm the date and time selected and make sure we have a court or do the session indoors, without firing balls. I will try and do these sessions in groups if I can, so I may ask you to do a different date/time.
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