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Choosing the Right Tennis Balls
For a number of people, tennis balls are little more than toys for kids and pets. Others use them in science projects, as massagers, or on the bottom of chairs. However, to tennis players, these fuzzy yellow balls are much more than just toys or science projects and choosing the right tennis ball can make all the difference.
Types of tennis balls
Manufacturers generally produce tennis balls in three different grades: practice, championship, and premium.
If you're looking to fill a hopper practice balls are the way to go. Often, practice balls have minor cosmetic defects that exclude them from use in tournament play but really don't have a negative impact on the playability of the ball. Practice balls are an inexpensive alternative to championship or premium balls and are great for filling a hopper or hitting the practice court.
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When you need tennis balls for match play, select either championship or premium tennis balls. Premium balls are produced to higher quality standards than championship balls, but either is commonly acceptable for match play.
Types of felt
Most premium and championship tennis balls are produced with two different varieties of felt: heavy-duty felt and regular duty felt. While this might seem like a very minute distinction to some people, it can make a big difference in the performance of the ball.
Heavy-duty felt is designed for play on very abrasive surfaces, namely outdoor hard courts. Using a heavy-duty ball on a clay court isn't the end of the world, but the rugged construction of the felt will cause the ball to pick up more clay. The result is that the ball will become heavier and move more slowly.
Regular duty felt is designed for use on less harsh court surfaces like indoor hard courts, clay or Har-tru courts, and carpet. Regular duty felt balls can be used on grass courts as well. Using a regular duty ball on outdoor hard courts won't hurt, but the less durable felt will puff up after some play on the abrasive hard courts and the ball will move slightly slower through the air.
Beginners, ball machines, and high altitudes.
While practice, championship and premium balls are the most common types of tennis balls, there are some other, more specialized types as well. Beginning tennis players, people using ball machines, and people playing at very high altitudes can all benefit from the use of specialized tennis balls.
In the past few years there have been a number of different balls released for beginning or junior tennis players. The most common types of balls for beginners are "low-compression" or foam balls. Low-compression balls are essentially the same as regular tennis balls, but aren't inflated with as much pressure. This causes them to bounce lower and move slower than regular tennis balls. Foam balls are made entirely from foam and move very slowly through the air. Foam balls are easy for even the most novice player to hit successfully.
For ball machines, pressureless balls are best. Instead of being filled with pressurized air like conventional balls, pressureless balls get their bounce from their rubber structure and won't lose their bounce over time like normal tennis balls. These are great for ball machines because they provide a very consistent feed and won't go flat. Pressureless balls commonly feel much heavier than regular tennis balls and are generally not recommended for match play or for people who experience arm pain.
High altitude balls are very specialized and are used for play at altitudes of over 3,500 feet. These balls are pressurized differently than normal tennis balls so that they will play the same as a normal ball would at lower altitudes.
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