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Alice Marble Tennis Court
Category: Active Life Tennis Tennis [Edit]
Greenwich & Hyde StSan Francisco, CA 94109
Neighborhoods: Nob Hill, Russian Hill
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
27 reviews for Alice Marble Tennis Court
27 reviews in English
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Review from Zain D.
3/23/2012
This is, without a doubt, one of the most amazing places in San Francisco.
I've been to just about every corner of San Francisco but nothing compares to Alice Marble, where you can stand in one spot and see the Bay bridge, the Golden Gate bridge, Nob Hill and FiDi.
I can't vouch for the tennis courts but the basketball courts are fine. They're old but sturdy and the panoramic view more than makes up for it. The pick-up games usually start after 5pm but you'd went to get there early because just making it up to Alice Marble is a workout in itself.
Even if you don't play basketball or tennis, every one should see this place. -
Review from Peter L.
San Francisco, CA
5/5/2012
"Dogs on Leash" = comedy
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Review from Erika C.
8/16/2011 2 photos
Fantastic view and courts. If you don't know how nice the courts feel through your tennis shoes, just kneel down and tie your shoe, you'll feel it when your knee touches down.
It can get pretty windy here, though. -
Review from Jana S.
5/7/2011
Swankiest public courts I've ever had the pleasure of delighting myself with today....
Perfect manicured lawns and landscaping surrounding, super ridiculous millionaire views and vistas to distract you from your fight for the fuzzies...
and a wall that one can use for practicing those one-handed backhands... what unbelievable tennis courts. Never before seen such nice ones without forking over tennis club fees.
PS the minus: los vientos de San Francisco!!! -
Review from Audrey V.
San Francisco, CA
9/3/2011 7 Check-ins Here
Beautiful court! Makes me feel very spoiled to live where I do. I always spend a little time before & after my lesson's up there to just take it all in and feel grateful to live in our beautiful city. Makes my lesson and time up there feel just a little more special. I hope I keep up my lessons so I can actually get good enough to go up there to really play not just hit the balls all over the court with no real aim or skill de-beautifying the experience for the rest of the guests up there. I usually go up in the evening so it gets kinda windy, wish I could blame my messy hits on the wind, but at this point in my game it's still my fault. If you've been up during my lesson fellow alice marble goers - sorry! :)
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Review from i. o.
San Francisco, CA
1/4/2007
Alice Marble, to whom these courts (and park) is dedicated, was a tennis champion from San Francisco, who won boatloads of tournaments and National Championships in the 1930s.
These beautiful courts are perched at the peak of Hyde and Lombard and offer stunning views of the Bay, Coit Tower & the Bay Bridge on one side and Golden Gate Bridge & the Marina/Wharf on the other, with Alcatraz in the near distance.
Over the surprisingly sunny-y-gorgeous New Years weekend, I was up here a couple of times and truly felt (like someone mentioned) that these are easily some of the best public courts in the country!!
5 Stars!! for everything except all the folks playing next to me that thought that and repeatedly asked if I was James Blake! -
Review from Dan T.
San Francisco, CA
12/19/2006
This courts are sweet. You have 4 courts, two single lined courts surrounded by two double courts. It's clean and it's nice to have a court overlook part of the city.
Just beware the surface is not concrete. It's some type of plexi and hollow underneath. This mean a very low bouncing ball. You'll need some time to adjust to the court and the rallies should be short and fast when compared to some of the other courts in the city.
I play during the weekday afternoons when parking is decent. It can get dicey at night and the weekend it's right next to Lombard St so all the tourist congregate nearby. But if you get the chance you should try playing here.Listed in: Tennis Courts!
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Review from Betina C.
Los Angeles, CA
3/21/2007
Okay don't call me LAME.. but you know those tennis courts in Princess Diaries.. the ones where the main character always hangs out after school. I think in one scene she actually falls off one of the bleachers. Anyways I've always marveled at the views from the tennis court, and I've always wondered where these tennis courts were located, only to find out that they were a mere 9 blocks from my apt.
Cheers to exploring the city on your feet.. and cheers to movies that get filmed in San Francisco, even though they take up all available street parking. -
Review from Catherine B.
San Francisco, CA
3/19/2008
To have an eye on Alcatraz while returning a serve - AMAZING!
This is my favorite spot to play tennis, ever!
The buildings surrounding the courts block most of the wind that you would expect up there.
You will see a HUGE smile across my face, after crushing my opponent, walking home from these courts. -
Review from Jack F.
Locust Grove, VA
10/6/2011
Not a huge fan of plexipave tennis courts but two unique things made these courts awesome - the amazing view and being able to play on a court with just singles lines.
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Review from Stephanie Y.
San Francisco, CA
9/7/2011 1 Check-in Here
I didn't even know these existed. It's located on top of a little hill. 3.5 courts ... half because one of the courts does not have alleys. The view is pretty awesome, but there is a constant crosswind and a horn blowing every so often. These aren't truly hard courts. It's got some cushion mixed in, which makes the ball bounce much lower than expected. The courts are nicely kept and clean, which is nice too.
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Review from Nate E.
San Francisco, CA
4/27/2009
Hmmm, this is one of those places that I don't want more people to find out about. I love these courts for basketball and tennis. I'll say the same things, AMAZING views, sometimes parking which is unheard of.
Only drawback, some fix the net on the furthest western court - it's a total piece of shit, and also, it can get a bit windy at times, i mean really windy. Still can't beat the views and it's never too crowded. Love it! -
Review from Alice L.
5/2/2011
This is the most gorgeous court that I've seen in the city so far. Made me feel like I'm playing tennis on top of the world. We got there around 9AM on Saturday and there was one court available. I just wish there was more separation between the courts so we wouldn't keep interrupting the game one court over with errant balls. They also have a practice wall. The boy and I need to avail ourselves of that next time so we don't stink up the place.
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Review from Zoe H.
San Francisco, CA
6/24/2007
Three courts up on Russian Hill. (Also a basketball court.)
Pros:
Amazing view. Clean and new-feeling courts. Excellent backboard -- best I've ever seen. Really nice patrons, and an easy-to-follow system with bench seating for waiting for a court to empty.
Cons:
Ungodly parking (at least in late afternoon when I've been there), partly because it's right at the entrance to the top of the Lombard crooked-street entrance. Unusual ground surface... it's not a typical hard court (although it looks like one). It's softer somehow and muffles the speed of the ball a bit. It's disconcerting at first, but I got used to it. Also, the hill is steep on three of the surrounding sides, so if you hit a ball over the fence, it's probably gone for good.
Bottom Line:
This is a little gem, hidden high atop a hill in the city. If I lived close to it, I'd probably be there all the time. -
Review from chris o.
San Francisco, CA
4/28/2007
Warning!!! If you realize how beautiful the surrounding scenery is you might be taking your eye off the ball.
The surface is some kind of sport court, not concrete, and the bounce is a little funky. This really turned me off at first, but now I'm ok with it.
While you stand, poised to serve, try not to let the fact that it can get windy as hell up there phase you. You can do this. Just be rhythmic and don't let the pressure get to you. That being said, it can get windy as hell up there.
There is a nice wall to practice on and it is rarely being used.
If you bring your camera you can take some great photos of alcatraz and the gorgeous cityscapes. -
Review from Theresa W.
San Francisco, CA
7/8/2009
Don't let the two starts fool you. I'm not taking the breathtaking view into account. The 360 degree views from these courts are incredible.
But what sucks is the floor of the courts. The ground surface is really, really soft. It was sooo hard to play tennis without feeling weird about how the balls weren't bouncing off the ground very well.
The hitting wall is nice and hard but having such a soft, bounce-absorbing floor totally takes away the enjoyment of working the ball. I'd always taken the hardness of the ground for granted until I played here.
And while the tennis wall is solid and of high quality, it really does suck how balls that miss the wall are basically complete GONERS because these courts are on their own little mini-mountain and any projectile off the side is doomed to disappear into the distant depth of the valley below.
Such a bummer about these courts. They're so beautiful and clean! And the views are drop dead gorgeous. I do admit, It's kinda cool to play in so high and scenic a vantage point in SF. -
Review from Jon L.
9/16/2010 7 Check-ins Here
Absolutely, postively, the best tennis courts in the city with a priceless view. The Alice Marble tennis courts are a hidden gem and SO worth the hike up Russian Hill to play on.
The court feels somewhat like a rebound ace hardcourt and it's not hard to feel the bounce once you get your rythm after a little warm up. The only thing is the wind but that is part and parcel of the game and good training anyway.
Plus, you could be serving break point down in an evening game but it really doesn't matter when you put it into perspective... take a moment and soak in some glorious views of the sunset over the bay, and then hit that killer serve. -
Review from Spidermonkey J.
San Francisco, CA
9/28/2009
Who's brilliant idea was it to put tennis courts on the top of a hill in a really windy city? Probably the same person who chose the strange squishy material to use as a surface on the courts.
The wind is brutal up there but it doesn't really matter because the balls don't bounce off of the spongy surface anyhow. Great views though. Just not a good place to play tennis. -
Review from Karena L.
San Francisco, CA
1/20/2009
I don't play tennis and I don't play basketball and being woken up at 9:30 am on a sat morning can make a grouchy start of a day... this place all but made up for it. This place was like playing on a flying saucer that hovered over SF. On the courts, I could see the ocean and the way they built it I felt like I was on top of the world, plus it was SUNNY!
For those that play basketball, my friend said that pick up games are pretty easy to join and for those that play tennis, the courts got pretty full arnd 11. -
Review from Brent A.
San Francisco, CA
6/25/2011
I was looking for a hoop alternative as the Moscone Park Basketball Courts are accumulating tumbleweeds. I highly recommend Alice Marble to get a solid Saturday morning run. The quality of play is good and you are literally playing on the top of our beautiful city.
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Review from claudia y.
South San Francisco, CA
8/18/2009
i dont play tennis or basketball but this place is on top of sf. parking is a pain since it a right near the crooked part of lombard. the views are magnificent. down the stairs and to the right is a small area where the neighborhood dogs play. though there are signs everywhere that say keep dogs on leash, the dogs play leash free. there is no grass though just concrete.
the neighbors come here and talk. one guy was picking up the foxtails so they dont get in the dogs feet.Listed in: doggy favorites
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Review from H.A. ..
San Francisco, CA
9/9/2005
** edited **
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Review from Doug C.
San Francisco, CA
9/12/2006
As of now, the courts are in great shape. Also a great view. Parking not bad in the weekend mornings, not sure about evenings (probably bad during the week).
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Review from Chris W.
Reston, VA
6/9/2007
One of the best places to hit around or play a recreational match. The stunning view is the capstone of an altogether well-kept environment. The court plays like indoor - I played once with a fresh can of Extra Duty Felt tennis balls, and it just didn't work. Use Regular Duty or used Extra Duty for better results. If you play a moonball-heavy game you will be sorry as the ball is fairly unretrievable should it bounce over the fence.
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Review from heynow g.
Fairfax, VA
1/23/2008
the trek to the tennis court allows you glimpses of the golden gate bridge. once you get there, you marvel at the quasi-180 degree view of the bay (except for a few tall apartment buildings).
there's a backboard for all you soloists! but beware:
hitting against the concrete backboard is like playing the lottery. you know you might lose your balls, but you play anyway. as the guy said, who watched me lose my first ball within a minute of starting, "you're not getting it back". so it's a very zen experience. -
Review from Todd S.
San Rafael, CA
2/14/2006
On a warm, clear day Alice Marble Park is the most beautiful setting to play tennis or basketball in the entire country! At the top of Lombard Street, it was recently renovated.
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Review from Donald C.
San Francisco, CA
3/25/2010
Aside from the fact that these courts are often crowded with recreational users, they are well maintained and generally a nice place to hit. As a bonus, they possess one of the best views in all of San Francisco!
