Padel is not just padel - ask in Venice Beach!
While walls are played in Europe and South America, padel tennis has a slightly different look at Venice Beach in Southern California.
by Robin Huiber
last edit: Feb 24, 2022, 06:57 am
Christoph Kröger is a more than passable tennis player who, in his age group in Bavaria, acts on an equal footing with almost every opponent. Born in Cologne, he is always open to new ideas and attempts in tennis-related sports. Like padel tennis, which Kröger indulges in from time to time in Munich. The padel tennis of European character, mind you - because when Kröger hit the world-famous Venice Beach in California two years ago, he had to realize: They understand "padel" quite differently here than we do in Germany or Austria.
First and probably the most striking difference: In California you play without walls. The special element of the connection between squash and tennis is completely missing. Rather, the game at Venice Beach is more like small court tennis, albeit with smaller racquets and pressureless balls.
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Also unusual: While pair skating is always popular in Europe, hot singles battles are also fought in Southern California. Which, by the way, suited the tall Kröger very well: After his first shot, he built himself up at the net, every attempt at a profitable praise was doomed to failure due to the limited size of the court, the only option left was often "through" the man or woman to play at the net.
Why these differences? On the one hand, the sport of squash has a much greater tradition and spread in Europe than in the USA. Indoors, if at all, racquetball is played there.
Free game in USA
Basically, it is also the case in the USA that many schools and communities make their tennis courts available to players free of charge. Yes, of course there are expensive country clubs everywhere, which are only reserved for an elite circle. But if you're traveling in the USA and just want to hit a few balls on a Saturday afternoon in May, look for a public high school you trust - and simply go confidently onto an unplayed court. The risk of being expelled from the field is extreme small amount.
It's the same at Venice Beach. Whether the walls are missing because there is no link to squash or simply because it was too expensive is anyone's guess. Padel was more likely to be played in the current way on the Pacific Ocean when people in Spain or Argentina didn't even know what it was.
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Christoph Kröger enjoyed his time (and also the successes at the tournaments he participated in in Venice) in California. And took his enthusiasm for padel sport with him to Europe. But here Kröger does it in Spanish: He is the driving force behind a project that should finally equip his parent club with padel courts. Because in Bavaria, for example, the offer is far from adequate for the ever-increasing demand: the Bavarian Tennis Association (BTV) currently lists just ten courts in the entire state.