UQ Social Tennis is Back

All Social Tennis Programs are Back.

The UQ Tennis Club’s Sunday Afternoon Social Tennis program (2 to 6 p.m.) resumed on 19 July.

The Thursday Night Social Tennis program (7 to 10 p.m.) resumed on 6 August.

Initially, only the two Social Tennis programs will be running.

Social Tennis for the afternoon/night costs $10 for members or $15 for non-members.  No pre-booking is required.  Check-in is upstairs on the clubhouse verandah.

Because of the COVID-19 restrictions, Social Tennis will be a little different for some time.  However, it is still ‘social’ tennis so you still can talk to each other when playing and, even if the chairs on the verandah have to be separated a bit, you aren’t in a ‘cone-of-silence’ and can easily chat to other people and rubbish the players on Court A.  The Smash Bar re-opened on 27 August.  However, there won’t be any BBQs for awhile.

Please read the information below so everything runs smoothly this Sunday.

You should stay away if you:
(a) have any flu-like symptoms (or have tested positive for COVID-19);
(b) have been in direct contact with a known case of COVID-19 in the past 14 days;
(c) have travelled internationally or interstate and have not met public health quarantine guidelines; or
(d) are at high risk from a health perspective, including the elderly and those with pre-existing medical health conditions.

Comply with the COVID-19 Safety notices on display and follow any directions from organizers.

Do not ascend the entry stairs to the verandah until there is nobody coming down and do not descend the stairs if anybody is coming up (to ensure physical distancing).

Clean your hands frequently, particularly after playing.  There will be hand sanitizer dispensers at the bottom and top of the stairs and liquid hand wash in the toilet blocks.

Ensure you stand 1.5 m apart when lining up to check in at the Social Tennis Desk.

Checking-in might take a little longer than usual as only the Social Tennis organizers will be looking for and handling the player name tags.

All payments must be by EFTPOS.

No loan or hire racquets will be available.

Free Sunday Social Tennis visits on Club Membership Cards can be used.  First Semester Tennis Cards can also be used (but no free racquet hire).

Players will be restricted to the clubhouse verandah (i.e. no entry inside the clubhouse and no tea / coffee / biscuits).

The licensed bar is currently closed (re-opening of the bar not yet approved).

Because of the 1 person per 4 sqm physical distancing rule, the maximum number of people upstairs at any one time is restricted to 25 and the 1.5 m distancing rule still applies.  If numbers reach 25, some players will be asked to wait downstairs.  Because of this limitation on numbers, please don’t bring any non-players with you.

Bring your own clearly-labelled & filled water bottles.  The cold-water fountain on the verandah is shut off for the time being.  There are bottle re-fill stations near the mini-courts & court 7, water taps in the toilet blocks; and bottled water & sports drinks are on sale at the Pro Shop.

The toilet blocks will be open but there will be no changing room or shower facilities.

On court, maintain physical distancing by touching racquets instead of shaking hands and change ends on opposite sides of the court.  Don’t share any personal equipment or water bottles or towels.  Minimize handling balls (e.g. return balls to the server along the ground or pick up & hit balls with your racquet).  Bring your own hand sanitizer if you want to disinfect your hands during play.

Wipe the ball can with the disinfectant wipes supplied when returning the balls to the Social Tennis desk.

When finished playing for the day, please leave to reduce congestion on the verandah.

For the moment, Tennis at UQ is on the principle of 'Get in, play, get out'.

Please notify the Club via admin@uqtc.org.au if, within 14 days of playing Social Tennis at UQ, you develop any flu-like symptoms & require testing for COVID-19 or if you test positive for COVID-19.

Remember: With COVID-19, things can change very quickly.  Don’t be complacent.  This crisis is not over.  As shown by the current situation in Melbourne, just a few cases escaping from quarantine can rapidly explode into a second wave. 

If there is even a whiff of something similar happening in Queensland, COVID-19 restrictions will be tightened again and sport could be back in lockdown.

So make sure you do your bit to help prevent this from happening – stay at home if you feel unwell, practise physical distancing & good personal hygiene using hand sanitizer and download the COVID-Safe App.