The Bandeja Magazine Issue 2

What lies
beneath
Up close: Tiger Turf’s Padel 11 is a
monofilament fibre surface.
In the last issue of The Bandeja we looked at how different lighting
can affect your play. In this issue, with help from Tiger Turf, we
apply the same thinking to court turf, which varies in length, type,
colour, sandiness and speed of play.
Artificial grass surfaces for padel
are traditionally manufactured using
two different shapes of yarn fibre
- fibrillated or monofilament. Both
offer ball bounce consistency but
have different playing characteristics
which can make each suited to
different player abilities.
• Monofilament is a single strand
yarn heated to become texturised.
After heating the straight yarn
becomes curly and shorter.
Monofilament surfaces are usually
lower in pile height and offer a
slightly slower speed of play, so
perhaps better for beginners.
• Fibrillated yarn is straight with a
single end. It stands up straight and
returns to its shape after contact
with a ball or foot. These surfaces
can have a higher pile height and
a slightly faster pace of play. They
offer good durability, with fibres
recovering to their original straight
position after contact with a player’s
foot or the ball. This surface would
be suitable for intermediate to elite
players who have experience and
enjoy a fast-paced game.
On to the turf goes sand - a silica
sand infill used to improve stability
and durability. The texturised fibres
help keep the sand in place during
play. Artificial grass manufacturers
creating padel systems have their
own guidelines on sand application
depending on the height of the
surface, speed of play required and
shape of yarn. Usually, the more sand
added, the slower play will be.
A surface may be selected by clubs
due to the types of players they have,
budget, style and speed of play or just
personal preference. Padel surfaces
come in a range of colours, from rust
and green to blue, pink and purple.
LTA guidelines state a court should be
single tone, unlike traditional tennis
courts which can have different
colour inner and outer playing areas.
The LTA also recommends that
padel surfaces are manufactured
in accordance with the UNE 41958 IN
standard, which regulates surfaces
for sports areas. A recommended
product specification for an artificial
grass surface for padel might look
like this:
• Pile height : 10-15mm
• Dtex: 9,000-10,000
• Yarn type: monofilament/fibrillated
• Infill: silica sand
• Primary backing: polypropylene
• Secondary backing: latex
• Stitch rate: 40,000 – 60,000
The testing for a padel court is similar
to a tennis court as it can be given
a Court Pace Rating (CPR) via the ITF
(International Tennis Federation). A
CPR rating specifies the speed of play
for the particular surface. Testing for
synthetic surfaces is carried out inhouse
at the ITF.
Dtex (decitex): the unit of
measurement for artificial grass
fibres, measuring the mass per gram
of 10,000m of grass yarn. Dtex is
important because the higher the dtex
of a single filament, the thicker the
filament will be which means it is more
durable and longer lasting.
Infill: material that is added to the
grass after installation to offer
ballast, stability and to help the
surface last longer.
Primary backing: the material the
yarn is tufted into. This backing is
coated with the secondary backing,
latex. If you look in between the grass
fibres you may be able to see the
primary backing. If you turn the grass
over, you can see and feel the latex
and how it has coated the stitches.
The latex backing keeps all the fibres in
place and allows for easy installation.
Stitch rate: the number of stitches per
10cm (turn your grass over and you
can see and measure the stitches).
The higher the number of stitches, the
denser the grass will be.
Both the LTA and SAPCA offer guidance
on the construction of padel courts
that covers planning, building,
surfacing guidance and aftercare.
They can be found here:
https://www.lta.org.uk/4ad2a4/
siteassets/play/padel/file/lta-padelcourt-guidance.pdf
https://sapca.org.uk/wp-content/
uploads/2021/03/CoP_for_padel_
courts_v3_040321.pdf
76 thebandeja.com