10 Best Tennis Gifts
When shopping for others, most of the time, people try to find stuff that relates to the interests of others. A thoughtful gift can go a long way, even if there is not a lot of money spent.
For tennis players, there are a lot of different routes in person can go. Some will opt for something pretty practical, while others will try to be a little creative. Here are 10 of the best gifts for tennis players.
1. Official Grand Slam Towel
Official towels are used at every single tournament, and they certainly get a lot of air time on television. Whenever a match is going on, players are constantly toweling off, and the Grand Slams take particular pride in their towels.
The most expensive and cherished towel comes from Wimbledon, but all four majors offer something for people to purchase. The beauty of a towel is that it can be used as a display piece, or actually as something on the courts. There are plenty of uses for a towel, and it shows that a person is willing to go the extra mile to find something unique.
Some of the tournaments even offer the opportunity to customize a towel with a name or phrase. It costs a bit more money, but having a one-of-a-kind piece is impressive.
Just make sure that when purchasing a towel from one of the majors, enough time is available. It can take a while to get a shipment from overseas in some cases. It really just depends on where a person is located, so plan ahead as much as possible.
Here are the links to each Grand Slam towel (Except the French Open)
2. Tennis Gift Cards
Giving the gift of a gift card is frowned upon by some, but if it is tennis-specific, it shows a bit more effort than something very basic. There are many different gift cards available, whether a person wants to go with a major tennis store, a local shop, or even a website like Amazon.
A gift card to use for tennis equipment, clothing, shoes, and more makes the most sense online. It makes it very easy to shop, everything is simple to ship, and the hassle is minimal. Tennis Warehouse, Tennis Express, Midwest Sports, and more are just a few of the well-known tennis websites in the United States.
There is also an opportunity to purchase a gift card at the local tennis club. This gift card works for those wanting to take a lesson and improve their game. In essence, the gift is a free lesson from an instructor. Make sure to do the due diligence on what instructors have the best ratings locally. If this is the first time a person is going to an instructor for some tips, find someone who works well with that skill level.
If a person already takes lessons, giving them a free lesson with a gift card to that same instructor makes a lot of sense. Tennis lessons start to add up as far as price is concerned, so every bit helps.
3. Hat or Visor
Buying a hat or visor for the tennis player is one of the safest gifts a person can give out. Not only are they fairly inexpensive, but everyone needs a hat to rely on at one point or another. Perhaps the trickiest part is deciding which option is best when doing some shopping initially.
The first little bit of information to pay attention to is what brands the tennis player enjoys wearing the most. If they are a Nike or Adidas fan, going with a Nike or Adidas hat makes the most sense. If they don’t have a specific brand that they connect with, it opens up the opportunity for just about any option out there. In that case, a more minimalist design generally works best.
Most tennis players prefer a lightweight hat made of dry-fit material. It gets very hot when playing tennis, and these lightweight hats help protect you while feeling like there is nothing on. All of the major brands make lightweight hats and visors, so it shouldn’t be too much of an issue.
Try to stick with a more neutral color when purchasing a gift, unless they are known for liking brighter options. A hat that is neutral-colored will be much easier to wear with different outfits at all times.
In my opinion, the best-looking one right now is Rafael Nadal’s own Nike hat. Normally, I don’t like wearing hats, but this one looked so good that I couldn’t resist (I got it in 4 different colors lol). If you are interested, you can check it out here on Amazon.
4. Vibration Dampeners
For the perfect stocking stuffer for tennis players, it doesn’t get much better than vibration dampeners. Just about everyone uses a vibration dampener to help make their racquet feel a lot more comfortable on contact. No one likes having the shock go through their arm in contact, and a simple piece of rubber can make a huge difference.
There are many different directions a person can go with a vibration dampener. For example, they can decide to go with one of the highest-rated options on the market. The Gamma Shockbuster II is a very popular option, and the Tourna Sampras Vibration Dampener has been around for a long time as well. Just about every racquet company makes a few different vibration dampeners, and they are inexpensive enough to invest in a few.
For a bit more fun, there are some unique vibration dampeners people can purchase as well. There are dampeners shaped like animals, emojis, flowers, and even obscene gestures. Depending on the personality of the person being shopped for, there are definitely a few to try out. If you are unsure what vibration dampener to choose, take a look at this post where I listed the best ones.
5. Massage Ball
Tennis players know all too well that there are a lot of aches and pains that go with the sport. People who play a lot are constantly looking for ways to help their body recover. A perfect gift for the tennis player who is constantly putting their body through a lot is a massage ball.
There are many different types of massage balls, and they come in different sizes as well. A mini massage ball might make the most sense, as it can help with arm and feet problems for the tennis player. They are small enough to fit in a stocking, which is perfect for the holiday season. Everyone can use a massage ball, and there is no reason to think it would be a bad gift at all.
One of the cool things about a massage bar is that it helps out other athletes as well. Some people have gifted numerous massage balls to people they know, and it’s almost always receiving praise. I’ve used many different massage balls during my career, but this one (check it out here) is by far my favorite.
6. Wearable Tennis Tech
Just a few years ago, buying wearable technology for tennis would be a costly gift, to say the least. The good news is the prices are coming down, making it very affordable to track different types of fitness at all times.
Some people will opt for a more generic type of fitness tracker, and that will provide some good information such as heart rate, steps, calories burned, and more. The beauty of these trackers is that they can be worn throughout the day, and a player does not only have to be on the tennis court to measure things up.
For a more specific tennis gift, something like a tennis sensor on the butt cap of a racquet, or a wearable, is available. Tennis players will appreciate going the extra mile to find something that helps to measure not only fitness on the court, but the different types of shots as well. Finding a tennis sensor takes time and effort, as they certainly aren’t available at the typical store.
One of the most popular options to go on a racquet that is affordable is the Head Tennis Sensor. Powered by Zipp, it monitors performance on the tennis court during practice and matches. It needs to sync up with a smartphone to unlock all the features, and it doesn’t alter the racquet in any way. You can check it out here on Amazon.
7. Tennis Ball Saver
Buying cans and cans of tennis balls is just a part of life for a player. Everyone who plays tennis understands that it is a needed expense, and one that is frustrating, to say the least. One way to save money a bit is to use a tennis ball saver. This is the easiest way to make sure that a can of balls has maximal life to them. If you are unsure which one to choose, this is the tennis ball saver that I use and can strongly recommend.
As soon as a new can of balls is open, they start to lose air pressure. In just a limited amount of time, these balls can become very tough to use at all. They not only lose their bounce, but they start to look a bit too dirty to use as well. It’s frustrating for people to have to deal with something like that, but the good news is that these tennis ball saver cans actually work.
Some people are skeptical, but tennis ball savers preserve the amount of pressure inside each ball. It’s not going to make a can of tennis balls last forever, but it can add another hour or two of life to some tennis balls. That’s the difference between using a new can of balls every single session, or extending it to two. If a person can reduce the price of tennis balls by 50%, that’s a gift that helps save quite a bit.
8. Tennis TV Subscription
For tennis players who love to also watch the game, a subscription to Tennis TV might be the way to go. It can sometimes be very difficult to catch all the matches throughout the year, but Tennis TV delivers in so many ways.
For starters, people have the opportunity to watch not only on a standard television, but they can watch on a mobile device as well. Having the ability to log in everywhere certainly helps, as some people won’t have that many opportunities to watch on a standard television.
A yearly subscription really doesn’t cost that much money, and it is a gift that can be renewed year after year if a person really enjoys it. All of a sudden, there is one person who has their gift set for years to come.
There are alternatives if Tennis TV doesn’t work for a person either. Some people might want an option like ESPN Plus, which allows people to watch tennis as well as some other sports. They won’t show as many tennis-specific events, but it’s another subscription service worth looking into.
9. Tennis Tournament Tickets
There’s nothing quite like watching pros play up close. No matter how many matches a person watches on television, it’s an entirely different sport up close.
The beauty of going to a tennis tournament in the first few rounds is that there are so many different matches a person can watch throughout the day. A person can use their one ticket to go to any of the courts to watch multiple matches. It’s usually the best value for those who have never been to a huge tournament in the past.
Ideally, the ultimate type of present will be tickets to a Grand Slam event. It’s just not feasible for everyone, which is why a smaller tournament might make more sense. There is more access to the players at smaller events, so it might be a fun time just the same. There is usually a smaller event that is considerably easier to get to anywhere in the world. Going to a Grand Slam event puts pressure on a person to figure out how to get there in the first place.
Just make sure that they are not only available during that tournament, but also that they don’t already have tickets to go to the tournament. Otherwise, a person will end up having to look for some other type of gift.
10. Tennis Socks
Everyone has received socks as a gift at some point in their life. While it’s considered a fairly boring gift overall, there are now more tennis socks than ever before. It is one sport that really needs some proper cushioning and supports with the foot for players to function properly.
Just like with a hat or visor, try to match up the brand with what a person enjoys wearing the most. Pay particularly close attention to the shoes they wear.
A performance pair of tennis socks can cost a decent amount of money, but they last a long time as well. Getting a pair or two as a gift is always beneficial. If you are unsure which ones to choose, check out my post on the best tennis socks right now.
Other Options
Finally, some people might opt for a tennis gift that is a bit more on the light side. They aren’t necessarily expensive, and they don’t serve a specific purpose, but they are still pretty enjoyable.
A few options that fit that category include tennis ball bath bombs, tennis drink coasters, food shaped as racquets and balls, racquet-shaped pens, and more. During the holidays, this might be something thrown in a stocking. It’s also a gift that’s inexpensive enough to be given at any time of the year.
Here is the full list of the best tennis gifts
- Official Grand Slam Towel
- Tennis Gift Cards
- Hat or Visor
- Vibration Dampeners
- Massage Ball
- Wearable Tennis Tech
- Tennis Ball Saver
- Tennis TV Subscription
- Tennis Tournament Tickets
- Tennis Socks
