Tennis Court Lighting and LED Light Selection: All You Need to Know About Illuminance, Glare Control, and Installation

The quality of a tennis court's nighttime lighting directly determines the playing experience. However, during our on-site project inspections, UHS has found that over 60% of courts suffer from issues like "uneven brightness, harsh glare, and heavy shadows." Many owners only care about "whether the lights turn on," but overlook some of the more technical specifications.

In this article, we'll talk about what really matters when choosing tennis court lighting, covering the core points you need to know, based on ITF (International Tennis Federation) standards and China's national "Lighting Design and Testing Standard for Sports Venues" (JGJ 153-2016).

UHS Project Case: Fujian Xiamen Municipal Party School (Yunnan Sports Vocational and Technical College)

1. Understand the Lighting Standards First: Requirements for Casual Play vs. Professional Training Are Worlds Apart

Courts for different uses have vastly different lighting requirements. Choosing the wrong standard can either waste your money or ruin the playing experience.

Here's a key point: Amateur players can indeed play under 200 lux. But if you want to "clearly see the ball's trajectory and reduce eye strain," the Level II standard (300-500 lux) offers the best value for money.

What's So Special About Court Lights? Why Can't We Use Regular Streetlights?

• They Need to Be Instant-On: A tennis serve can reach 200 km/h, so the lights must be flicker-free and turn on immediately.

• The Coverage Area Needs to Be Large Enough: The court itself is 23.77m long and 10.97m wide. The light needs to cover this entire area evenly, including the 3.66m behind the baseline.

• Vertical Illuminance Matters Too: There must be sufficient light (at least 100 lux) at the net cord height (0.914m) so you can see high balls clearly.

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2. LED Court Lights vs. Old-Style Metal Halide Lights: It's 2024, Which One Should You Choose?

Although LED is now mainstream, some owners still consider metal halide lamps because they seem cheaper upfront. Let's compare them across 5 aspects:

The conclusion is: Unless the court is for very short-term use, we at UHS strongly recommend going straight for LED. By 2024, LED light prices have dropped significantly, and they usually come with a 3-5 year warranty.

3. What Parameters Matter When Choosing Lights? Wattage, Beam Angle, and Light Distribution

3.1 What LED Wattage to Choose? Brighter Isn't Always Better.

• Recreational Grade: For a single court, use 4-6 x 100W lights (mounted on one side) or 8 x 100W lights (on both sides).

• Training Grade: For a single court, use 8-12 x 150W lights (on both sides) or 6 x 200W lights (on four corners).

• Professional Grade: For a single court, use 12-16 x 150W lights, or use high-mast lights (6-8m poles with 4 sets of 400W lights).

⚠️ Here's a Common Pitfall: Some lights on the market labeled "200W" might only have an actual power draw of 150W (due to under-specified drivers). We at UHS suggest you don't just look at the wattage (W), but also ask for the luminous flux (measured in lumens, lm):

• A 100W LED court light should have at least 12,000 lumens.

• A 150W LED court light should have at least 18,000 lumens.

3.2 Beam Angle and Light Distribution: This Determines How Even the Light Is.

• Narrow Angle (15°-30°): Suitable for very high poles, projects light far, requires professional design.

• Medium Angle (60°-90°): Suitable for 6-8m high poles, this is the most appropriate for amateur courts.

• Wide Angle (120°): Suitable for shorter poles (4-5m), but special attention must be paid to glare control.

A method we at UHS commonly use is: Asymmetric light distribution. Simply put, it directs most of the light towards the interior of the court and minimizes spillage outside. This ensures the court is bright enough while reducing light pollution for nearby residents.

3.3 Flicker and Glare: The Most Overlooked but Critical Factors

• The Flicker Problem: If you point your phone camera at the light and see stripes flashing on the screen, it means the light has severe flicker, which can tire your eyes during long play.

• How to Choose: Ask the manufacturer for the Flicker Percent data; this number should be less than 5%.

• The UHS Solution: We use constant-current drivers and high refresh rate chips to ensure completely flicker-free light.

• Glare Control: Do players get blinded when looking up to catch a high ball?

• Where Does Glare Come From?: Direct view of exposed LED chips, lights installed too low, overly reflective ground surface.

• How to Solve It:

• A UHS Design Feature: We use a 45° shielding angle combined with a honeycomb anti-glare mesh, which can control the Glare Rating (GR) below 45.

1. Choose fixtures with anti-glare louvers or frosted lenses.

2. The pole height should ideally be no less than 6 meters (6-8m is recommended for amateur courts).

3. Don't place poles too close to the sideline; keep them at least 2 meters away to prevent players from looking directly at the light source.

4. How to Install Tennis Court Lights? 4 Common Layouts

Layout 1: Lights on Both Sides (Most Common, Most Reliable)

• How it's Done: Erect 2 to 4 light poles on each side of the court, with 2-3 lights on each pole.

• Benefits: Most uniform illuminance, best glare control, suitable for most venues.

• Best For: Courts aiming for Level II training standards.

• A Real UHS Case: A tennis club in Shenzhen with 4 courts used 8m poles on both sides, with 2 x 200W lights on each pole. Our measurements showed an average illuminance of 420 lux and a uniformity of 0.65, with excellent results.

Layout 2: Lights on Four Corners (More Budget-Friendly)

• How it's Done: Erect 4 light poles at the four corners of the court, aiming the lights towards the center.

• Benefits: Fewer poles are used, lowering the cost.

• Drawbacks: The brightness in the center of the court and at the baseline positions can differ significantly (requires very precise calculation of the mounting angles).

• Best For: Level I recreational courts, or when the budget is genuinely tight.

Layout 3: High-Mast Perimeter Lighting (Professional Grade, Best Results)

• How it's Done: Erect 4-6 very tall poles (10-12m) around the court perimeter, with 4-6 lights on each pole.

• Benefits: No poles inside the court to interfere with play, and the illuminance is extremely high and uniform.

• Drawbacks: The highest cost, and requires higher standards for pole foundations and construction.

• Best For: Level III and above professional training facilities, or competition courts with spectator stands.

Layout 4: Ceiling-Mounted Lights (For Indoor Courts Only)

• Special Note: For indoor tennis halls, consider the reflectivity of the ceiling and walls. Avoid making the ceiling so bright that it creates a "veiling glare," making it hard to see the ball in the air.

• Advice from UHS: Indoor halls are best served by a combination of indirect lighting (light directed at the ceiling or walls first, then reflected down) and direct lighting, which minimizes glare to the greatest extent.

5. How High Should the Poles Be? Minor Installation Details

A Simple Formula for Pole Height

• Amateur Court: Pole Height ≈ Court Width (10.97m) × 0.6～0.8 ≈ 6.5 meters - 8.8 meters

• Professional Court: Pole Height should not be less than 8 meters, recommended to be 8-10 meters.

• The UHS Recommended Standard: For a standard single tennis court, we generally recommend a pole height of 8 meters. This height ensures even light distribution and minimal glare, while still allowing for relatively convenient maintenance.

Don't Overlook Details Like Cabling and Wiring

• Use Thick Enough Wires: If the total power exceeds 3000W, the main cable must be 6 square millimeter copper core wire; otherwise, lights at the end of the line may dim due to insufficient voltage.

• Lightning Protection Grounding is a Must: Metal light poles must have proper lightning protection grounding, with a ground resistance of less than 10 ohms.

• The UHS Construction Standard: All cables must be protected inside PVC conduits. Waterproof connectors must be used for internal pole connections to prevent rainwater from flowing into the lights along the wires.

A Few Final Words

Good court lighting should make you "forget it's even there" – no glare, no heavy shadows, no eye fatigue. We at UHS want to remind everyone: We really don't recommend cutting the budget for lighting too tightly. It directly determines whether your court can be used at night and how enjoyable it is to use, impacting both player experience and court revenue.

The Tennis Court Lighting Services UHS Can Provide for You: Our lighting engineers use professional software like Dialux to create lighting simulations for you first. This allows you to see a brightness distribution map before any construction begins, completely avoiding the frustration of "finding out it's not bright enough after everything is installed."

Our services include: Lighting Scheme Design | Luminaire Supply | Pole Foundation Construction | Intelligent Control System Installation.