The Fangirl’s Guide to Tennis Bargains

Now that Federer is fresh off his Wimbledon win, I’m newly inspired to head out in the sweltering heat, brush the dust off my tennis racquet, and work on a killer serve — all while wearing a cute tennis skirt of course. Want to avoid double-faulting on tennis deals? Check out these tips on how to save money on your game:

Tennis Equipment

Wilson tennis racquet

Mid-summer is a great time to purchase your tennis shoes, racquets, and accessories as stores unload their closeout models. For example, Sports Authority is offering a closeout model of this Wilson tennis racquet for $50, and Dick’s Sporting Goods has this Prince tennis racquet for $52.

If you’re like me, you also go through tennis balls in a hurry. They lose their bounce or I lose them over a fence! Many tennis experts say that the average player can’t tell the difference between the cheap  tennis balls and the high-end ones ones. However, if you go with ultra-inexpensive “3-for-$0.99″ type balls, you’ll be stuck buying new ones after 1-2 uses. The best route are the middle-of the-road tennis balls that average around $2-$3 per can, like these Wilson Championship balls.

Tennis Lessons

Work on your Federer-like forehand with online tennis lessons.

Ditch the country club and forget about private lessons and give online tennis lessons a try! While it’s very different from live tennis instruction, online lessons give you a chance to work on your strokes and pick up tips and tricks from pros.

Here are some of the popular ones we found:

• Top In Sports
• Fuzzy Yellow Balls
• Virtual Tennis Academy (this one is subscription-based)
• Essential Tennis

Watching  Your Favorite Players

With the US Open coming up, there’s no better chance to see your favorite players in your own backyard. Several sites are offering discounted tickets, so you can see Serena’s power serve right before your eyes! Check out RazorGator, which is offering certain sections at lower prices, and my own favorite, ScoreBig, which lets you bid on US Open tickets at up to 25% off!

Have any more tips on how to get the best tennis bargains? Let us know in the comments below!

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Photo Credit: Mark Howard Photography

About the Author: Marisa Lang

Marisa is an editor and blogger at BradsDeals. She loves cheap home decor, hunting down hard-to-find sales, and figuring out how to travel anywhere on a budget.