Shop For Tennis Equipment & Apparel In Montreal
Buying tennis gear in Montreal means overpriced goods with poor customer service.
As great as Montreal is for a tennis player, it is rough for a tennis customer. But there are a few ways the local recreational tennis enthusiast can make life easier on themselves.
Below, you will find links to online tennis products. That is the most cost-effective way of buying tennis racquets, bags, string, shirts, shorts, and more.
What about the local shops, shouldn’t you support them? The better question to ask is “are they supporting you?”.
The best use of the local shops is to go and see, feel, and test tennis equipment and clothes. Then order it online from a cheaper retailer like Amazon.
Except around holidays: Montreal tennis shops usually have great sales after Christmas, and other major holidays.
The main Montreal tennis shops will be listed here, but compare their prices to the online links below before you buy.
Or you can support this website by using our affiliate link to buy from Amazon (it doesn’t cost you anything extra):
Racquets
Beginners will want racquets over 100 square inches (“midplus”). Intermediate and higher may look to 97-99″ for more control or a stiffer feel (“standard”).
Generally speaking — Babolat for defenders, Head for counterpunchers, Wilson/Prince for attackers and net-rushers.
Steps:
- Go to Tennis Warehouse and read about racquets/rackets (grip size, head size, brand): http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/RacquetHelp.html
- Go to a local store to hold the racquets you think might be best (Pro Tip: Canadian Tire and Walmart will not have serious tennis racquets — you can tell if the racquet is passable if it has specs written on the inside of the throat).
- Go online to order (usually cheaper): Racquets
Tennis Balls
For balls, you want to ask yourself “will I play on clay or hard courts?”.
For clay, you need Dunlop or Penn (regular duty). For hard court, Wilson or Penn (extra duty).
The cheapest single packs of balls can be found at:
But if you buy bulk, you can save money. And generally, you only want to play 2-3 times with the same balls.
You can get a Costco membership and buy balls there. Or you can go to Amazon:
Tennis Apparel (shirts, shorts, wristbands, headbands)
You need at least one pair of shorts, two shirts, and two pairs of socks. A pair of wristbands and headbands would be a good idea, too.
The best value sportsocks can be had at Costco or Walmart.
For other tennis apparel:
Gear: Tennis Bags, Headbands, Wristbands, Dampeners, Grip
These are things that are definitely worth checking out in a store first, and then saving money by buying online.
A good bag will last at least a couple years before it starts to break down.
Obviously it helps to have a few pairs of sweatbands, and it’s always a good idea to keep extra racquet handle grip in your bag.
The dampeners (little rubber things that stick between the bottom of your strings, that absorb some of the impact when you hit the ball) seem to always fall out. For that reason, it’s best to have a few of those as well. You can save money on them by not buying a name brand.
Tennis Shoes
Having the proper shoes is obviously great for ankle support and helps to avoid injuries and fatigue.
But even more important is that some tennis clubs and courts (especially clay courts) will ban you if you don’t have the proper footwear. The grips on non-tennis sport shoes can really destroy the surface.
A tip for buying tennis shoes: usually the pairs from the last year go on sale after Christmas, so that is the most cost-effective time to buy.