Splitting a weekly padel or tennis court

Every Tuesday, the same friend books the padel court on their card. The players change from week to week, someone sends a substitute, someone else cancels three hours before. Paying back after every game means a dozen small transfers a month, and some get forgotten. It works better to record each session with its players, then settle once a month.

One session, one expense, its players

A court is priced per slot, not per person. Split it among the people who actually played that day, or who were signed up if your group’s cancellation rule says so. Record each session as its own expense, with who paid and who played. A substitute takes the absent player’s place and share: the substitute owes the share, not the person who stayed home.

Shared gear, such as a can of balls used all month, is a separate expense. The group can split it among everyone who played that month, or among those present when it was opened. Pick one rule once and keep it.

Late cancellations: decide before, not after

Clubs set their own deadlines. At Wrexham Tennis Centre in the UK, courts cancelled within 24 hours are charged in full. The City of Paris’s Paris Tennis service lets players cancel up to 24 hours before the slot; after that, the booking is final. Other venues are stricter or more flexible, so read the terms on your booking.

clubspark.lta.org.uk

Once the deadline has passed, the court costs the same whether everyone shows up or not, so the group needs to know who pays for the empty spot. A simple rule: whoever cancels after the deadline pays their share unless a substitute takes it. Some groups prefer to share the cost when something serious comes up. Both work; write the rule in the group chat before the first session.

A month of padel, with numbers

This example is fictional. Five friends share a weekly four-player padel slot: Nadia, Tom, Léa, Sam and Inès. The court costs $40 per session, or $10 per player. Nadia books and pays for all four sessions, $160 in total. Tom buys a $12 can of balls that all five use during the month.

• Week 1: Nadia, Tom, Léa and Sam.
• Week 2: Sam is away and Inès replaces him. Nadia, Tom, Léa and Inès.
• Week 3: Nadia, Tom, Sam and Inès.
• Week 4: Nadia, Léa, Sam and Inès are signed up. Inès cancels two hours before and nobody replaces her. Under the group’s rule, she pays her share.

Nadia has four sessions and the others three each: sixteen spots at $10. With $2.40 of balls per person, Nadia’s share is $42.40 and Tom, Léa, Sam and Inès owe $32.40 each. The total is $172, exactly the $160 of court time plus the $12 of balls.

Nadia paid $160 against a $42.40 share, so she is owed $117.60. Tom paid $12 against $32.40, so he owes $20.40. Léa, Sam and Inès owe $32.40 each. Four transfers to Nadia settle the month, instead of twelve small repayments after each game plus one more for the balls.

Settle on a fixed date so one card does not carry everything

Grouping repayments keeps the accounts simple, but the person booking fronts the money all month. Set a settle-up date, such as the last game of the month, and stick to it. If the amount gets too heavy for them, rotate the booking or settle every two weeks. That imbalance, where the same friend always pays first, is covered in why the same friend always pays first.

The same participant logic applies to any outing where the group changes, as shown in splitting costs when not everyone joins every activity.

Spliz lets a group add each session as an expense, choose who shares it and see everyone’s balance, for free. Friends install the app to join the group as guests, without creating an account. Spliz does not move money: friends repay by bank transfer, in cash or with another app, then record it in the group.

Spliz

Sources

• Wrexham Tennis Centre, court bookings, courts cancelled within 24 hours charged in full.
• City of Paris, Paris Tennis service (in French), cancellation allowed up to 24 hours before the slot.