Beach Tennis Club (SG)

First Two Years of Singapore Beach Tennis Club (SG)

Here’s how the Beach Tennis Club (SG) started and what shaped the direction in the early days. A quick note before we start: these events are extracted from an export of chat text, and authors memory to the best effort possible.

The club in numbers

The group created in November 2024, created by Beth with a small founding crew. For the first few months it grew slowly, a few new faces at a time. Then summer hit and a meltdown happened (outside this group but still in the beach tennis community). That causes the group to grow rapidly. June 2025 brought 22 newcomers, July 16, and August 21, and by late July a member was already noting that "we have over 50 members already."

Date Members (approx.)
End of March 2025 13+
End of June 2025 ~38
End of September 2025 ~80
End of December 2025 ~99
End of March 2026 ~130
End of June 2026 ~149
End of October 2026 ~190, and about 200 by the club's own count

Two milestones shaped that curve:

The group also changed its name along the way, and the new names mark the club's growing up:

Date New group name
25 January 2025 “Picnic/Play”
13 June 2025 “SG Beach Tennis!”, right around the formal start
20 February 2026 “Beach Tennis Club (SG)”, after the club went official
16 October 2026 “Beach Tennis Club (SG) - old”, as everyone moved to the new community

The chart below also marks the moments that kept people coming back: The club website going live in August 2025, the Boracay tournament trip in April 2025, the Thailand Senior Open, the coach clinics (Thiago in 2025, and Alex and Perch in September 2026), our sponsors (Jeffo's @ Katong in March 2026, then Kebab Station - Turkish café, in May), the one-year anniversary, and October 2026's move to a WhatsApp community with separate groups for games, tournaments and social activities.

The blue dots are the King & Queen tournaments, which became a club staple:

Line chart of approximate club membership from November 2024 to October 2026, rising from about 5 to about 190, with markers for the formal start, club registration, the website launch, the Boracay trip, four King & Queen tournaments, two sponsors, the anniversary and the move to a community
Membership over time, with the club’s key milestones marked.

Growth cooled over the 2025 holiday season, then picked up again in 2026: 17 newcomers in July and 21 in August, around the anniversary and National Day picnic. October saw more leavers (9) than usual, as people moved away or drifted off. In total, about 233 different people have appeared in the group, and roughly 40 have since left.

These figures come from the chat export, counting everyone who posted or was added and subtracting those who left. Founders and members who never posted leave no trace, so the earliest numbers are a lower bound, and the real early headcount was higher.

2025: Lo Hei, long rallies, and potluck

The year opened with a Chinese New Year Lo Hei picnic at East Coast Park. In March, the club celebrated the March birthdays, with a picnic team working behind the scenes to get everyone fed and together.

Then came a bigger trip on the calendar: members coordinated travel to Boracay around a beach-tennis tournament, with some of the group’s travel dates running from April 25 to May 4.

The calendar stayed busy through the second half of the year. Members marked Singapore’s National Day with a red-and-white potluck picnic, celebrated Paulaner’s reopening on August 1, and later met up for Oktoberfest on October 17.

Some players travelled to the Thailand International Senior Beach Tennis Open in September. Where Elly and Richard won the silver medal in the 30+ mixed category. Back in Singapore, a three-day clinic with coach Thiago from Australia gave players a chance to work on their game.

Players practicing beach tennis at East Coast Park
A training-day rally at ECP.

October also brought a farewell picnic for Omar and Anastasia. In November, it was back to a familiar winning formula: beach tennis, a potluck, and a Saturday afternoon together.

Beach tennis players sharing food after a Sunday game
A sunny Sunday of games, food, and good company.
A dish being prepared for the club's November potluck picnic
Potluck preparations are part of the match-day routine.

2026: Kings, queens, and more reasons to meet up

The new year started with a King & Queen of ECP tournament on January 10. Andre was crowned King and Elly Queen. The organizers had another win to celebrate soon after: Jeffo’s @ Katong became the club’s first sponsor for King & Queen and international tournaments. A second sponsor followed on May 11: Kebab Station (the Turkish Café) at Parkland Green.

Chinese New Year brought another potluck at ECP. The club also started planning a Bali fun tournament, comparing accommodation options and figuring out how to make the trip work for everyone.

The social calendar kept pace with the scoreboards: a one-year anniversary gathering in July, followed by another National Day picnic on August 8.

Club members gathered after the anniversary barbecue
One year of the club, celebrated around the barbecue.
The group gathered for its Singapore National Day picnic
Red, white, and ready for one more game.

The coaching visits continued, with two coaches from Thailand leading a three-day training weekend in September. King & Queen tournaments returned in May and September.

Players on court during the September beach tennis training weekend
Training with the visiting coaches from Thailand.
Beach tennis players sharing a meal after a tournament
A tournament day is better when the team can celebrate together afterward.

The part that doesn’t fit on a scoreboard

From a handful of friends in November 2024 to a registered club of roughly 200 people by October 2026, the story is mostly one of growth by invitation: a name change here, a sponsor there, a King & Queen crown or two, and a lot of potluck dishes. By October 2026 the group had grown big enough to need a proper home, so the chat moved into a WhatsApp community and the original group took the honorable title "old".

The best thread running through all of it isn’t a particular trophy or trip. It’s that people kept showing up: to play, to coach, to organize, to bring food, to lend a net locker, and to cheer for one another. The group chat may be where the plans were made, but the memories were made on the sand.

Here’s to the next season in the new community — may the rallies be long, the weather behave, and the picnic table remain structurally sound.