Enniskillen Lawn Tennis Club

General information

We are a small club located in Enniskillen, Co. Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. Our membership enjoys the use of 4 floodlit artificial grass courts and a modern clubhouse. The Consitution of our club details the object of the club as follows :-

The enjoyment of playing lawn tennis
The furtherance of lawn tennis
The furtherance of Enniskillen Lawn Tennis Club and its members
The community, family and friends
To these ends the club organises a series of fun events and competitions throughout the year with opportunities for social and competitive tennis for all ages.

History of the Club
The following is largely based on a detailed history of the club compiled by the late Mervyn Winslow. Enniskillen Lawn Tennis Club is one of the oldest sporting clubs in Ireland. Records reveal that it was in existence prior to 1882. The annual subscription was increased around this time to £1 to raise funds for a new cinder court. The first pavilion was built behind Alexander Terrace in 1909, at a cost of £11-0s-10d.

The post war years were particularly healthy and the Open Tournament attracted players from as far away as Waterford, Galway and Dublin. In 1955 two high ranking Australians travelled to enter the tournament and not surprisingly contested the final. The winner , Arthur Marshall, later had the distinction of appearing in the Guinness Book of Records for his marathon 21 - 19 set victory over Abe Legal of South Africa, an event which contributed to the introduction of the "tie-break".

The late 1970's and 80's saw a decline in membership, as golf increased in popularity. However, a few stalwarts still remained, but it was not until 1990 that the club's fortunes changed for the better once again. In 1994, grants from the lottery and the Foundation for Sport's and the Art's enabled floodlighting to be installed and four courts to be resurfaced using artificial grass. The new clubhouse was opened in April 2000 by one of Enniskillen's best known and most sucessful members, the late Nora Taylor, who carried all before her from the 1930's to the 1960's. Her name is etched on many a Northern Ireland Trophy.