A Brief History
The Club was granted a lease on the land in 1895 & records show by the 1930's there were 9 grass courts & 2 shale courts. The wooden pavilion had gas mantles for light, cold running water & "Elsans" for toilets.
1949 Practice Wall erected
1956 saw the first Wimbledon ballot for 1 pair of tickets! W Vizard made a Life Member.
1958 Junior coaching sessions in the school holidays were started, which was a great step forward.
1962 A new pavilion of cedarwood was built which included a small bar & kitchen area. It was opened July 9th. A private mortgage was taken out for £1800 to cover the cost. An LTA "levy" appeared for the first time on Clubs per court.
1967 The Club Tournament was revived.
1968 A change of name from Salisbury Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Gillian Scott (nee White) won the Wiltshire Closed Singles.
The Hampshire and Isle of Wight League was entered with the Men starting in Division 6 (1 up from the bottom) and the Ladies in Division 5. At this time there were 5 teams in a division.
1971 No Club Tournament this year.
1977 Hard court improvements started with 2 all weather courts replacing the shale. (courts 10 & 11). Subsequently colour coated in 1979.
1982 2 of the grass courts (courts 8 & 9) were converted to "Playdek" all weather courts with floodlights.
1988 The top 3 grass courts were changed to hard courts.
1987 Extra land was purchased when the new Vicarage was built (money loaned by Mike Brodie) to make the car park by the Clubhouse, thus "inheriting" the walnut tree that was blown down in 2014.
1989 The Hampshire Veterans League was formed.
1999 Final 4 grass courts replaced by 3 American Clay.
2000 First LTA Sanctioned Junior Tournament.
2002 Mini Tennis courts created. Awarded National Accreditation for our Junior programme
2008 Named Wiltshire LTA Club of the Year.
2009 Floodlights added to Court 10. Mini Red area created. New Clubhouse built open in December.
2013 Named Wiltshire Club of the Year for the second time.
2016 Floodlights added to courts 2 & 3
Team Highlights:
The Ladies won the Hampshire League Division 1 title in 1992, 1997 and 1999.
The Men reached Division 1 for the first time in 1999 and 20 years late won it. The following year they retained the title.
In 1995 we reached the National Finals of the Silk Cut competition (for non-County players), finishing 5th overall from an entry of over 1000 clubs. In 1998 & 2000 we reached the semi finals.
The Ladies were in the top flight of the National Club League (now National League) since its inception in 1992 to 2006, apart from 1 year.
The Men played in Div 1 once in the National Division in 2005.
1949 Practice Wall erected
1956 saw the first Wimbledon ballot for 1 pair of tickets! W Vizard made a Life Member.
1958 Junior coaching sessions in the school holidays were started, which was a great step forward.
1962 A new pavilion of cedarwood was built which included a small bar & kitchen area. It was opened July 9th. A private mortgage was taken out for £1800 to cover the cost. An LTA "levy" appeared for the first time on Clubs per court.
1967 The Club Tournament was revived.
1968 A change of name from Salisbury Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Gillian Scott (nee White) won the Wiltshire Closed Singles.
The Hampshire and Isle of Wight League was entered with the Men starting in Division 6 (1 up from the bottom) and the Ladies in Division 5. At this time there were 5 teams in a division.
1971 No Club Tournament this year.
1977 Hard court improvements started with 2 all weather courts replacing the shale. (courts 10 & 11). Subsequently colour coated in 1979.
1982 2 of the grass courts (courts 8 & 9) were converted to "Playdek" all weather courts with floodlights.
1988 The top 3 grass courts were changed to hard courts.
1987 Extra land was purchased when the new Vicarage was built (money loaned by Mike Brodie) to make the car park by the Clubhouse, thus "inheriting" the walnut tree that was blown down in 2014.
1989 The Hampshire Veterans League was formed.
1999 Final 4 grass courts replaced by 3 American Clay.
2000 First LTA Sanctioned Junior Tournament.
2002 Mini Tennis courts created. Awarded National Accreditation for our Junior programme
2008 Named Wiltshire LTA Club of the Year.
2009 Floodlights added to Court 10. Mini Red area created. New Clubhouse built open in December.
2013 Named Wiltshire Club of the Year for the second time.
2016 Floodlights added to courts 2 & 3
Team Highlights:
The Ladies won the Hampshire League Division 1 title in 1992, 1997 and 1999.
The Men reached Division 1 for the first time in 1999 and 20 years late won it. The following year they retained the title.
In 1995 we reached the National Finals of the Silk Cut competition (for non-County players), finishing 5th overall from an entry of over 1000 clubs. In 1998 & 2000 we reached the semi finals.
The Ladies were in the top flight of the National Club League (now National League) since its inception in 1992 to 2006, apart from 1 year.
The Men played in Div 1 once in the National Division in 2005.
