Good question! I Love Tennis was designed to foster an active tennis community in Toronto. It is an online meeting place for everyone who loves to play tennis. Whether you’re on your way to the Roger’s Cup or are learning to swing -- all skill levels are welcome!

Once you sign up for I Love Tennis, you can create a personal profile page which lists your NTRP (tennis skill level), your Tennisology (a short description of what you’re looking to get from the game), your playing time preferences, and which type of match you would prefer. Search for other Toronto players and add them to your Tennis Buddies, exchange messages to set up a game, or use Post & Play to call out for a match to everyone on I Love Tennis. Choose up to 5 Favourite Courts to find other players near you, or discover courts in neighbourhoods convenient to you by using the Tennis Courts list. You can also search for tennis stores, events, coaches, clubs, and camps, and reach out to tennis enthusiasts in your community. Join the game, make a (friendly) match!

I Love Tennis is a non-profit project run by a group of committed volunteers (that’s us!). We believe that the city’s parks, clubs, and community centres offer a terrific space to have fun, meet new friends, and stay active. We designed the site for tennis players of every level, including those looking to get into the game for the first time.

Absolutely! I Love Tennis is a free site. There is no charge to use it, and we will never require that you pay to continue using the site. However, if you use I Love Tennis from your mobile device, you will be responsible for any fees associated with internet usage and/or text messaging as determined by your mobile service plan.

If you haven’t yet created an account, you will still able to browse our tennis resources, including a complete listing of Toronto’s tennis stores, events, courts, and clubs.

However, you must create an I Love Tennis account to use all the features of the site:

• - Create a personalized player profile
• - Find tennis partners and coaches in Toronto
• - Add players and coaches to your Tennis Buddies
• - Set up matches through player-to-player messaging
• - Use the Post & Play feature to post a quick game request and get a direct message reply
• - Be matched up with Toronto players that best suit your playing preferences and skill level

Start your account by clicking on the Sign Up button (which you can find on every page above the main navigation bar). It’s free and easy to sign up!

In the Resources section of I Love Tennis, you can search a list of all off-the-court tennis resources. This includes tennis stores to help you shop for gear, up-to-date events in the community, and links to a variety of tennis associations. Have something to contribute? Click on Add to This Listing!

So you love tennis, and now you want to know how to play! Luckily, I Love Tennis provides everything you need to know about Toronto’s wide variety of resources to help you get in the game or improve your swing. Simply go to the Learn to Play section of the site where you'll find a list of coaches, summer camps for kids, and adult practice clinics. Also, you can add coaches to your Tennis Buddies! (See: How do I find and add coaches?)

You can sign up for a free I Love Tennis account in a few easy steps. Click Log In which you can find on any page on top of the main navigation bar to create an account. You need to have a valid email address. A username is permanent, so pick one you like! After that, just pick a password and click Next.

We will then lead you through a few questions (see below) to set up your profile. Once you have completed the questions, we’ll send an email to the address you provided. Click on the confirmation link in the email to activate your account (don't forget to check your "Spam" folder if you can't find the email!). If you’re unable to activate your account, Let Us Know !

[i] Pick your Skill Level
Are you on your way to Roger’s Cup or just learning to serve? The National Tennis Rating Program (NTRP) is a useful guide for tennis players to determine their skill level. Don’t be put off by the big fancy word, it’s easy to use! Simply read through the descriptions and choose which number best describes your current ability. Your NTRP number will appear on your player profile to help other players quickly spot you as a great potential Tennis Buddy.

*Remember, your skill level can improve over time, but to get started and play fair friendly matches, be sure to choose a number that accurately reflects your ability!

You can read more about the NTRP here.

[ii] Choose 5 tennis courts
Pick the top 5 courts in the city where you like to play tennis. These might be courts near your home or in your neighbourhood, close to your work, or even courts you’d be willing to travel for (have love, will travel!).
Not sure which courts to choose? Browse through the tennis courts pages here.

The list you choose appears on your profile under Favorite Courts and will help us set you up with players who play where you play. Partners who play in your courts will appear most frequently in search results. We also suggest players and courts that are nearby, giving you the freedom to explore new options!

[iii] Pick your Playtime
Pick your preferred time of day/week to play tennis: weekends, weekdays, or "flexible". Like Favorite Courts, this list will appear on your profile under Playtime and improve search results when you’re looking for partners.

[iv]Pick your Type of Match
Are you a solo player who prefers to play singles (one against one), or do you enjoy doubles (two against two)? Maybe you like both! Choose your type of match (Singles, Doubles, or Singles and Doubles) to let other players know what type of match you’re looking for.

If you already have an ILT account, you can log into your account from the home page. Simply hit the “Log In” button located at the top of the page, enter your username and password, and click Log In.

Once you’ve completed your I Love Tennis profile, there are two ways to start a game.

Start A Game through Private Messaging

You can start a game by browsing the Find Players search page where you can sort players by preferences similar to yours.

When you’ve found your match-made-in-tennis-heaven, click   on a player profile card to message that player privately and set up a game:

Hi! I see you like to play tennis at X court and at Y times. Me too! Interested in playing a match this Tuesday?

Start A Game through Post & Play

Do you want to hit the courts fast? Then the Post & Play feature is for you. (See: What is Post & Play?) Post & Play allows you to call out for a game by posting a public message on the I Love Tennis homepage. You can post a message by typing directly into the Post & Play box on the homepage, or the Post & Play box located on your profile page (which you can get to by clicking on your username above the main navigation menu).

Your Post & Play message asks for an immediate partner for a quick game:

Hi! If anyone wants to play at Trinity Bellwoods Park tomorrow night, between 6 - 8pm, send me a message!

or

Hi! I'd love to play a game tomorrow morning, and I'm more or less flexible as to the location, send me a message!

You can also reply to a Post & Play call out by sending that player a direct message.

Finding players is the most important part of this site, because finding more players means playing more tennis.

[i] Find players on the ... Find Players page
Go to Find Players in the main navigation bar, and you will have access to the complete list of I Love Tennis users on all courts, starting with most recent members. Continue hitting Load More button to go through all profiles. Or, you can narrow down your search if you sort by: court location, playtime, type of match, or NTRP skill level. You will be offered a list of the best possible matches for your playing preferences.

Note: If you leave the Courts field empty while modifying other fields, the search will include all I Love Tennis members.

[ii] Find most recent members on the homepage
In the main search field you can start typing in the name of your city, neighbourhood, or club. Make your selection from the drop-down and hit GO. This allows you to see I Love Tennis members that play in your favorite area or club.

Also, the homepage offers a list of 12 newest members in the I Love Tennis community. Go here to browse for players that you know are new and looking to set up games or find Tennis Buddies.

[iii] Find Players on A Court Page
On each club or court page, you can see a list of players who like to play tennis on these courts. You have the option to narrow down your search by playing time, type of match, or NTRP skill level. On court pages you can also find a list of More Players Nearby—that way you have as many smart options as possible! You can find all court pages by going to Resources > Tennis Courts.

[iv] Find players on another player’s Buddy list
When you are on the profile page of another Player or Coach, you have access to their complete Tennis Buddy list, which includes their Coaches. If you like the look of one of their Buddies, you can nab ‘em! We promise, there will be no hard feelings. Click on the Add As a Tennis Buddy icon if you think you’ll make great partners.

Your Tennis Buddies list is your list of favourite or regular tennis partners—the people on I Love Tennis you like playing with the most!

After you’ve found a player who peaks your interest, you can click the Add As a Tennis Buddy icon on their player profile card. Once this player accepts your request, he or she will show up on your Tennis Buddies list on your profile page (which you can get to by clicking on your username above the main navigation menu). You will also show up on theirs. Or you can point to the Buddies icon next to your username and select All Buddies from the drop down menu. Now you don’t have to search for that player every time you want to play a game, and you can message them more quickly to set up a match by heading straight to your Tennis Buddies list.

Finding a court in a convenient neighbourhood for you and your partner is essential to playing more games! There are 2 ways to find the best places for you to play:

[i] Find a Court on the Homepage
On the homepage, you can tell us where you want to play tennis by starting to type in a specific court, club, or neighbourhood in the main search field, and choosing your selection from the dropdown. After you have entered your search, you will be taken to the Neighbourhood page (e.g. Toronto), or to the specific court page (e.g. Trinity-Bellwoods Park). On the Neighbourhood page, you can see a complete list of the courts in that neighbourhood, as well as the list of only those courts where I Love Tennis members play. To view more than 5 players per court, click either on View All Players button or on the number of players in the court.


[ii] Find a Court on the Tennis Courts Page
The second way to search for courts is to go to Resources in the navigation menu. Browse through the Tennis Courts (sorted by city or neighbourhood) and you will see a full list of the courts in each neighbourhood.

Each court page contains the court address and a series of icons to specify the court features. For a detailed legend of these icons, see So what do all the terms and icons mean? (See : I Love Tennis Symbology and Lingo).

Want to set up a game fast? Of course you do! Post & Play is designed so you can quickly call out with a game request to all players on I Love Tennis. You need to be logged in to your account to post a message on the homepage or from your profile page (which you can get to by clicking on your username above the main navigation menu). If another player is interested, he or she will respond to you with a direct message (See: How do I send, receive, and delete messages?). Likewise, if you see a post on the homepage and want to respond to that player, message them directly to get started. Note: If you wish to be notified by email when someone responds to your post, point to the Settings icon , choose Notifications from the drop down menu, and modify the "A member replies to a post & play message you've posted” option.

• To send and receive messages, you must be logged in to I Love Tennis.
• You can exchange messages with any player on I Love Tennis, even if you are not Buddies.
• If you wish to be notified by email when someone sends you a message, point to the Settings icon , choose Notifications from the drop down menu, and modify the " A member sends you a new message” option.

[i] Read messages
1. Point to the Messages icon , located above the main navigation menu.
2. Choose Inbox from the drop-down menu. To read a message, click on the message subject (in blue). Brilliant violet colour indicates "Unread" messages, and grey colour indicates "Read" messages. Messages in the Sent folder automatically have the status of "Read".

[ii]Send messages

Using the player's profile
1. On the player profile card, click on the Message icon . Alternatively, while on the player's profile page, hit the blue Message [username] button. You can get to this page by clicking on the player’s username on the profile card.
2.Type in the subject, your message, and click Send.

Using the Compose functionality
1. Point to the Messages icon , located above the main navigation menu.
2. Choose Compose from the drop-down menu.
3. Type in the username of the player whom you want to contact, the subject, the message, and click Send.

Replying to a message

While in your Inbox, click on the message subject (in blue) to expand it, type in your message in the reply field, and hit the Reply button.

[iii]Delete messages

Deleting a single message

While in your Inbox, click on the red x symbol next to the check box of the message you wish to delete. The check box doesn't need to be selected. Alternatively, you can expand a message by clicking on the subject line (in blue) and hit the Delete button on top of the conversation.

Deleting multiple messages at once

Use the Select functionality and the Delete Selectedbutton, both of which you'll find at the bottom of the message list.

• To delete all messages, select All and hit Delete Selected.
• To delete read messages, select Read and hit Delete Selected.
• To delete unread messages, select Unread and hit Delete Selected.

Or, you can always just mark unwanted messages manually (by checking the check boxes) and hit Delete Selected.

A Notice is an alert in a red-bordered box that appears on the homepage. This is a way for us, the I Love Tennis team, to let you know about site related business. For instance, if we need to take the site down for maintenance or upgrades, that's where you'll see the heads up. You need to be logged in to I Love Tennis in order to see a notice, and you can close it at any time. Only one notice can be active.

Looking for some personalized tennis TLC? You can find a network of Toronto coaches on I Love Tennis that are also I Love Tennis users—this means they have profiles and a Buddy list just like yours. Simply go to the Learn to Play page on the navigation bar and click on Coaches. You can browse the complete list of coaches by neighbourhood. Check out each coach’s Tennisology for a better idea of their coaching style.

You can send a coach a direct message if you want to set up a session or are looking for more details. You can also click the Add as a Buddy icon to invite them to be your Tennis Buddy. Now you’re on your way to improving your game!

There are two ways to change your password. If you remember it but wish to change it, then log in and perform the following steps:

1. Point to the Settings icon .

2. In the drop-down menu, select Account.

3. Enter your new password in the Change Password section.

4. Confirm the new password. All passwords must be 4-20 characters in length.

5. Be sure to hit Save Changes at the bottom of the page!

If you don't remember your password, then click on Log In above the main navigation bar and then click on Forgot your Password?. You will be asked for your username or the email address associated with the username, and a password change link will be sent to this email address. Open the email and follow the instructions.

To change your email, you must be logged in to I Love Tennis.

1. Point to the Settings icon .

2. In the drop-down menu, select Account.

3. Enter your new email in the Change Email section.

4. Be sure to hit Save Changes at the bottom of the page!

To change your profile picture, you must be logged in to I Love Tennis.

1. Point to the Settings icon .

2. In the drop-down menu, select Picture.

3. Hit Choose File (or Browse, depending on your browser) to select a new photo from your computer.

4. Click on Upload Picture.

5. Crop your picture according to your preferences and hit Crop Image.

6. Be sure to hit Save Changes at the bottom of the page!

To change your NTRP Level, you must be logged in to I Love Tennis.

1. Point to the Settings icon .

2. In the drop-down menu, select Profile.

3. Read through the National Tennis Rating Program guide and select the level that best describes your new ability.

4. Be sure to hit Save Changes at the bottom of the page!

To change your Favorite Courts, you must be logged in to I Love Tennis.

1. Point to the Settings icon .

2. In the drop-down menu, select Profile.

3. Modify some or all of your convenient court locations. (Not sure which court is closest to you? Check out the Tennis Courts page by going to Resources -> Tennis Courts).

4. Be sure to hit Save Changes at the bottom of the page!

To change your Playtimes, you must be logged in to I Love Tennis.

1. Point to the Settings icon .

2. In the drop-down menu, select Profile.

3. Pick a new playtime.

4. Be sure to hit Save Changes at the bottom of the page!

To change your Type of Match, you must be logged in to I Love Tennis.

1. Point to the Settings icon .

2. In the drop-down menu, select Profile.

3. Choose your new preferred Type of Match.

4. Be sure to hit Save Changes at the bottom of the page!

To change your Tennisology, you must be logged in to I Love Tennis.

1. Point to the Settings icon .

2. In the drop-down menu, select Tennisology.

3. In the Tennisology box, tell other players what you’re looking for from the game. Get specific! You can write up to 675 characters.

4. Be sure to Save Changes at the bottom of the page!

Discover Players. It’s best to begin your I Love Tennis journey by building connections with other players. Search for great player matches through the Find Players and Resources > Tennis Courts pages. Add players you like to play with to your All Buddies list. Once your buddy request is accepted, you can find your favourite or frequent partners by pointing to the Buddies icon next to your username above the main navigation menu and choosing All Buddies. Or you can go to your profile page by clicking on your username above the main navigation bar.

Tip: One excellent way to receive more game or Tennis Buddy requests is to enhance your own Tennisology description. (See: How do I change my Tennisology?)

Check Us Often. Log in to I Love Tennis often to stay updated and set up regular matches. Messages from other players will show up on the top menu bar of your logged in homepage. Once you’ve added a few new Tennis Buddies, you’ll have a great roster of players to message for games. Search the Tennis Courts page (under Resources) to see new I Love Tennis players on those courts. Or, check out Most Recent Members on the homepage or Find Players page.

Take Us With You. I Love Tennis is completely mobile-friendly. You can connect to our site through your smartphone browser and carry it everywhere -- on the way to a game, to work, or while running errands. Now you can set up a match anytime, anywhere, and catch up with your Tennis Buddies.

Here at I Love Tennis, we’ve made use of some common tennis terms, and invented our own new Tennis Lingo specific to the site. Check out our complete Lingo and Symbol legend below to get to know the icons, symbols and terminology that make their happy home on our website.


TERMS

Tennisology - Your “Tennisology” is a description of your playing style, tennis history, and what you’re looking to get out of the game.

Tennis Buddy - A "Tennis Buddy" is an I Love Tennis user that has been added to your Buddy list. This is someone with whom you play regular matches or want to stay in touch.

Playtime - Your Playtime is the top 3 playing times that you choose when setting up your I Love Tennis profile. These are the times that work for you to play tennis. You can choose from Mornings, Afternoons, Evenings, Late Nights, Weekends, Weekdays, or Anytime.

Favorite Courts. Favorite Courts is your selection of up to 5 preferred club/public court locations in the city that you choose when setting up your I Love Tennis profile. These are the courts that are convenient for you.

GENERAL ICONS

  Player avatar

  Settings

Message

  Add Buddy

  Open Widget - open or maximize this window

  Close Widget - minimize this window


COURT ICONS
These icons appear beside each court listing and on every court page. They describe the space/setting and features of the courts at this location.

  Indoor Court

  Outdoor Court

  Lights

  Community Centre

  Public Court

  Private Club

  Carpet Court

  Asphalt Court

  Hard Court

  Wood Court

  Clay Court

  Grass Court

  Winter

Once you have successfully set up your profile and activated your account (See: How do I set up my profile?), you will be redirected to the homepage and asked to upload your picture and describe your Tennisology. You'll also see a list of potential buddies based on your preferences. Not sure if you want to do it now? Not a problem, just click on Skip This Step. (See: Managing Your I Love Tennis Account) for information on how to upload your picture and describe your Tennisology.

[i]Upload a profile picture
Your profile picture is the main photo that represents you to the I Love Tennis community. Choose a profile picture that looks like you (no, really), so other players can easily identify you on the court. Your profile picture appears as a thumbnail on your player profile.

Click on the Choose File button (or Browse, depending on your browser) and select a file from your computer to upload. Please make sure it’s a JPG, GIF, or PNG format photo.

Once the file is selected, click on the Upload Image button. Looking good!

[ii]Describe your Tennisology
Your Tennisology is a description of your playing style and what you’re looking to get out of the game.

Are you a competitive player? Prefer to rally? A quick lunchtime workout? A longer match? Need breaks or prefer to play nonstop? Tell other players what kind of game you like to play.

Getting more specific means getting more clicks on your profile from compatible players, which increases the likelihood of a good match! Your Tennisology appears on your profile and helps set you apart in search results.

Sample Tennisology for John Doe
I’ve been playing tennis on and off for three years, but am looking to play more regularly this summer. I’m recovering from a small knee injury, so my ideal type of game is a leisurely 1 to 2 hour match with a break in the middle. I like to keep score and definitely enjoy playing some (friendly) competition.

[iii]Add a few new players to start
The last step of your profile setup is Add a Few Players. Before we take you to your completed profile page, you’ll see a list of I Love Tennis players that could be perfect matches for you based on your playing preferences.

Click on to add them as your Tennis Buddy.

Now you’re ready to message players to set up a game, browse for courts, and discover Toronto’s tennis community.

Get Playing!

Should you ever wish to have your account deleted, please take the following steps:

1. Log in.

2. Open the Contact Us page.

3. Fill out the form (under Subject please choose the Delete My Account option).

You will receive an email notification once your account has been deleted.