The tennis court at the White House, the official residence of the president of the United States in Washington, D.C., is located on the South Lawn. Lines have been drawn, and baskets have since been added to the court for use as a basketball court.
- Venue
- White House tennis court
- Town
- Washington, D.C., US
The tennis court at the White House, the official residence of the president of the United States in Washington, D.C., is located on the South Lawn. Lines have been drawn, and baskets have since been added to the court for use as a basketball court. Basketball Court Lines were removed in 2020 with the construction of the new tennis pavilion. The first tennis court at the White House was built on the south side of the West Wing during the presidency of Theodore Roosevelt, the present location of the West Wing's south terrace. Roosevelt often played here with his son. The court became renowned as the haunt of Roosevelt's 'Tennis cabinet', an informal regular gathering of his closet associates. On 1 March 1909 Roosevelt gave a lunch and speech to say farewell to his 'Tennis cabinet'. United Press described the gathering as a "famous coterie of afternoon sportsmen that has been the power "behind the white house" for over seven years". Attendees included people as diverse as the French ambassador Jean Jules Jusserand, the Supreme Court Justice William Henry Moody, soldier Luther "Yellowstone" Kelly, the Oklahoman wolf hunter John Abernathy and Pudge Heffelfinger, the football player. In 1910, a court was built on the site of the present outdoor swimming pool. Bill Tilden and his protégée Sandy Wiener played on the court in 1923. The son of Grace and Calvin Coolidge, Calvin Jr., died of blood poisoning at age 16 after getting a blister as he played without socks on the court in June 1924. The first women's tennis exhibition at the White House was hosted by Florence Harding at the court. The court was relocated south to its present location. During Jimmy Carter's presidency, it was reported that the President personally oversaw the court's playing schedule. The Los Angeles Times wrote that this "came to be a popular symbol of what many felt was the fatal flaw of his presidency: the unwillingness to delegate authority on small matters". However, according to his domestic po