Castlebar tennis club is a vibrant tennis club, located in Co. Mayo, Ireland. The club, one of the largest tennis clubs in Connaught was founded in 1937 and moved to its new state of the art facilities in September 2009 on the banks of Lough Lannagh, approximately 1 km from the centre.

The emphasis in the club is on enjoying good tennis while at the same time, creating a friendly, inclusive atmosphere for members and non members. The club has a deserved reputation as a fun family oriented club, with the emphasis on participation and enjoyment as well as competition and challenge. At Castlebar Tennis Club, we cater for all standards of tennis player. The all-weather playing surfaces, excellent changing facilities and a brand new purpose built club house make it an ideal club for all ages. The clubhouse and courts are accessible for wheelchair users. There is ample car parking.

For the beginner, there is the opportunity to avail of coaching with others who are just starting out, while for the more seasoned or competitive player, there is league tennis, club and inter club competitions. Regardless of your standard or ambition, there is a place for you in Castlebar Tennis Club.

It all started in the Imperial Hotel on 26th April, 1937. In a hotel steeped in history, where Michael Davitt formed the Land League, the Castlebar Lawn Tennis Club entered the world.

Present at that first committee meeting were: Mr A.V.G. Thornton, Mr. T.P. McDonagh, Dr M. Moran, Mr. T.P. Greene, Capt. T. J. Kelly and Mr Dermot Walsh. Appointed as courts tournament sub-committee at the meeting were: Supt. R.Hayden, Mr D.G. Dixon, Sean de Burca, Mr Jack Cahill and Mr T.P. Greene.

During the mid-1940’s the club made a rather dramatic change in the space of twelve months – from relative stagnancy to revitalisation. At the annual general meeting in May, 1944, the secretary, Mrs J. O’Malley, reported on a very disappointing year.

You can read more of these extracts taken from a newspaper article by Michael Heverin in 1978 here

When we initially planned our move from Pavilion Road, little did we think that the whole process would take about 10 years and that we would travel a rather circuitous route on the way. However we had a dream and it was a proud day for us all to see that dream finally realised.

After years of toil, planning and Trojan work on the part of many club members, we arrived at the historic juncture of the Club being relocated in the Spring of 2009 to its picturesque new home by the lakeshore of Lough Lannagh. The transition to this impressive new complex has been very successful.

The original Pavilion was built in 1952 for the princely sum of £2,921.3s 4d and for those of you who can still remember that far back, it was also the year the first hydrogen bomb was detonated, the contraceptive pill was introduced, the transistor radio was launched and “Don’t Let The Stars Get In Your Eyes” by Perry Como was at number one in the music charts. That just gives you a flavour of the times!

When the actual move to Lough Lannagh finally happened, a few of us started to reminisce about how much we enjoyed the old club on Pavilion Road and the memories and stories started to flow. Each one had a different tale to tell and someone quipped: “If those walls could only speak” with the sharp riposte from another member: “Oh no, thank God they can’t, we’d never live it down!”

For those who never got the opportunity to bask in the glory of Pavilion Road, perhaps a quick glance at the pages of the booklet “From there to here… Castlebar Tennis Club Treasured Memories”, will let you have an idea of what it was all about and what it meant to generations of tennis players in Castlebar. Thanks to Cashin Print for kindly sponsoring this book.

To coincided with the official opening of Castlebar Tennis Club and the Connaught Regional Tennis Centre, a “Festival of Tennis” was organised by the Club. The “Festival of Tennis” compromised a full programme of events for all the family, leading up to the official opening.

A large number of firms, comprising both local and regional companies, along with other places of employment competed against each other for the title, the final was played on the weekend of the official opening.

The children also had the opportunity to participate in a design of a t-shirt competition entitled “Tennis is Fun”. A panel of judges decided on the winner and the t-shirt was printed and the ball boys and girls wear it on the day of the official opening. The Club coaches also visited local Primary schools and introduce “Mini Tennis “ to the pupils of 2nd-3rd class. There was also a tree planting ceremony by the club’s most senior member and youngest member, in honour of all past clubmen and women and an exhibition match between the club’s professional players, both past and present.

As part of the celebrations and one of the highlights of this memorable afternoon was the ‘political’ contests. Our local politicians battled it out on the courts and the community of Castlebar and surrounding areas came along to see real politics in action. It was interesting to see Enda Kenny, Thérèse Ruan, Harry Barrett and Caitríona Ruan battled out on court number one.

The Connaught Regional Tennis Centre at Castlebar Tennis Club was officially opened on Sunday, June 27th 2010 by Mr. John Treacy, CEO of the Irish Sports Council. This was a great recognition for the achievements of our juniors at provincial and national level and a tribute to the ongoing dedication of all our coaches in recent years.

Festival of Tennis Invitation
Official Opening Pictures