Did you know that Viking Athletics recently announced the release of a new platform tennis ball? What’s new about this ball? Besides the green Viking logo and green and silver packaging, the new ball will “extend” the season to a year-around sport. Although this new Low Bounce ball has been kept a secret for almost two years, buzz about the “summer” ball has been heard for awhile.
Before any judgements can be made about the Low Bounce “summer” ball, a few questions need to be raised:
- Is their a need for a Low Bounce ball?
- Will the APTA incorporate this new ball to the APTA approved balls?
- When will this Low Bounce be used?
- Will that be based on the temperature?
- Will tournaments that at 8am with 45 degree weather will change the ball in the afternoon when the temperature reaches high 70s or low 80s?
- Is it time to also develop a High Bounce ball for days when the temperature drops to, let’s say, 14 degrees?
- A few years ago in the Nationals played in Cincinnati the temperature reached highs of 79 degrees. Is 79 degrees still considered “paddle weather” or the Low Bounce ball could be used in that case?
Although the ball will not be available to the general public until March 2012, these questions will eventually have to be answered. The good news is that Viking Athletics is interested to continue growing the sport and they clearly demonstrate their commitment to platform tennis with their investment in this new ball.
