Top tennis courts in Newark
West Side Park
4.2(1079 reviews)
South 13th Street and 18th Avenue, Newark, NJ 07103, USA
Tennis Courts in Newark, NJ
Newark offers a growing public court network maintained by the city's parks department, with courts at Branch Brook Park — famous for its cherry blossoms — and at Weequahic Park on the city's South Side, drawing players from the Ironbound and Forest Hill communities.
20 (lighted hard)
Branch Brook / Althea Gibson Courts
2018
GNTE Founded
800+
GNTE Youth Served
Tennis in Newark
A local guide to the Newark tennis scene.
Notable Facilities
Branch Brook Park — Althea Gibson Tennis Facility
20 well-maintained lighted hard courts at 173-235 Heller Pkwy, named for Althea Gibson, the first Black player to win a Grand Slam title (1956 French). Operated by Essex County Parks.
Greater Newark Tennis & Education (GNTE)
Nonprofit founded 2018 providing free tennis and educational programs to Newark youth; has served 800+ kids through after-school and summer programming.
Tennis History
1956
Althea Gibson wins the French Championships — first Black player to win a Grand Slam singles title
2018
Greater Newark Tennis & Education launches, expanding free tennis programs at Branch Brook
Did You Know?
- The Branch Brook Park courts are named for Althea Gibson, who broke the color barrier at the US National Championships (1950) and the French Championships (1956) and grew up in nearby Harlem
- Branch Brook Park is also home to the largest collection of cherry blossom trees in the US — over 5,000, more than Washington DC
- GNTE's after-school tennis-and-academics model is part of the National Junior Tennis & Learning (NJTL) network co-founded by Arthur Ashe
Best Time to Play
Outdoor April–October; cold winters push competitive play indoors to Essex County and northern New Jersey clubs.
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From the Blog
How to Find Public Tennis Courts Near You
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A complete breakdown of how clay, hard, and grass courts play differently, and why the surface under your feet changes everything about the game.
Tennis Court Etiquette Guide
From net-touch violations to the post-match handshake, the written and unwritten rules that separate tennis players from people who happen to play tennis.
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