Padel, explained
Padel vs tennis: what actually changes
Same scoring, different game. Why tennis players lose their first match and what to unlearn.
Padel borrows tennis scoring and almost nothing else. If you play tennis, the first thing that happens on a padel court is that your best shots stop working.
What is the same
Scoring. 15, 30, 40, game, sets to six. The court has a net. You hit a ball with a racket. That is roughly the end of the list.
What is different
- The court is enclosed. Glass and mesh surround it, and the walls are in play.
- The serve is underarm. No ace, no second-serve anxiety, no power advantage.
- The racket has no strings. It is solid and perforated, shorter, with no frame to swing through.
- It is always doubles. The court is small enough that four people fill it.
- The ball comes back. A passing shot that would win a tennis point simply returns off the glass.
Why tennis players lose their first match
Power is a liability. A hard flat drive hits the back glass and comes straight back to a waiting opponent, so the harder you hit, the better the ball your opponent receives. Padel rewards placement, patience and the lob, which is a defensive shot in tennis and an attacking one here.
The other habit to unlearn is rushing. In tennis you take the ball early. In padel you often let it pass you, bounce, hit the glass, and come back into a comfortable position. Waiting feels wrong for about twenty minutes, then it feels obvious.
Which is easier to start
Padel, by a distance. The underarm serve removes the hardest skill in tennis, the walls keep rallies alive, and doubles means half the court to cover. Most people have a genuine rally in their first session, which is almost never true of tennis.
Where to play on the Gold Coast
Parkwood Padel Club has premium indoor courts in the Sports Precinct at Parkwood Village, 76-104 Napper Road, Parkwood QLD 4214, open 07:00 to 22:00 every day. Indoor means the weather never cancels a game. The club is opening soon and the opening date, court hire prices and the number of courts are still to be confirmed.
Book a court on MATCHi