| Court Pace Classification |
The ITF Court Pace Classification Programme has been developed to assist purchasers of tennis surface products to determine the type and speed of surface most suited to their requirements. The ITF classifies surfaces into five categories according to court pace:
Category 1 (slow)
Category 2 (medium-slow)
Category 3 (medium)
Category 4 (medium-fast)
Category 5 (fast)
The ITF Court Pace Rating (CPR) measures the effect of ball-surface interaction. This concept includes: friction, which primarily determines the reduction in the horizontal component of post-impact ball velocity; and vertical restitution, which determines the time between successive bounces.
Further information on the test procedure for measuring court pace is described in the ITF Guide to Test Methods for Tennis Court Surfaces, test method ITF CS 01/02.
A surface product included on the list of ITF Classified Court Surfaces is classified purely on the basis of its court pace rating.
Any manufacturer, contractor or facility owner may apply for classification and inclusion on the ITF list. The ITF reserves the right to refuse an application for classification of a surface that it deems is not suitable for the game of tennis.
All ITF Classified tennis surface products are valid for 3 years, whilst the classifications of individual courts tested on-site are valid for 1 year.
Note: ITF Classification is not a mandatory requirement of the court surface selection process for any ITF tournaments and classification does not constitute any form of ITF Approval.
In January 2008, the Davis Cup by BNP Paribas and Fed Cup by BNP Paribas regulations were amended to require the pace of courts to be used in these competitions, excluding grass and clay surfaces, to have a measured ITF Court Pace Rating between twenty-four (24) and fifty (50) inclusive. The rule applies to World Group and Zonal Group I tournaments only.
 | | Calculation of CPR - Click image to see a larger version |
Note: For further information, download the document below.
ITF Accredited Laboratory
To have a product assessed for inclusion on the ITF list of classified tennis court surfaces, a company shall appoint an ITF Accredited laboratory to undertake Court Pace measurements on the surface, either on-site on a court which is less than 4 months old, or in the laboratory. Contact details for ITF Accredited laboratories can be found here.
When commissioning the Court Pace assessment the company requesting the tests shall provide a detailed specification of the court/surface construction and samples of the surface, including any loose particulate materials, to the ITF Accredited laboratory. The laboratory requires either 3 samples at a minimum size of 0.5 m × 0.5 m square, or 1 sample which is a minimum of 1 m × 1 m square. In addition 1 sample shall be sent to the ITF Technical Centre, which, if necessary, shall be tested by the ITF to confirm the result of the ITF Accredited laboratory. The ITF Accredited laboratory and/or the ITF may refuse to test samples which are damaged or badly prepared.
 |  | | Sestée and ball cannon - equipment used for measuring court pace |
Tests on the surface shall be conducted in accordance with test method ITF CS 01/02 as described in the ITF Guide to Test Methods for Tennis Court Surfaces. Unless the surface is designed to be damp/wet when in its optimum condition, tests shall be made with the surface in a dry condition. For any surfaces that have an inherent directional pattern – such as natural or artificial grass – test shots should be fired in the typical directions of play, i.e. parallel to the length of the court. Where samples are used, the supplier shall indicate the direction the surface would be laid on court.
Upon completion of the test, and receipt of payment of the testing fee, the ITF Accredited laboratory will submit a test report to the customer and the ITF.
ITF Classification Listing
Upon receipt of a test report, the customer may apply to the ITF Technical Centre by email (technical@itftennis.com) for an ITF Classification application form and an invoice for the classification fee. The classification fees are shown below, including discounts available to members of the ITF Foundation.
| Type of classification | Fees per product brand | Discounted fees for ITF Foundation | | General Member | Supporting Member | | Brand of surface | US$ 2500 | US$ 1500 | US$ 1200 | | One court (facility) | US$ 500 | --- | --- |
Further information on membership of the ITF Foundation is available from the ITF Technical Centre.
Upon receipt of payment of the classification fee the surface will become ITF Classified and a certificate will be issued.
The surface will be listed on the ITF website www.itftennis.com/technical and also published in the ITF annual publication entitled “ITF Approved Balls & Classified Court Surfaces” booklet.
ITF Classification of court surface products is valid for 3 years from date of listing. If a company wishes a product to remain on the ITF Classified list, it shall arrange for the product to be reassessed by an ITF Accredited laboratory within 6 months prior to expiry.
For individual courts which have been tested on-site, classification will be valid for 1 year, with the classification only being listed on the ITF website.
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