About Sportfolio

Sportfolio Limited (est. 1985) represents the end result of a long love affair with the game of tennis and the desire to find a commercial niche market in which I could indulge my passion for the game.

Such an opportunity presented itself in the early 1980’s when necessity became the mother of invention.

I was participating in a local club match when rain interrupted play and the game had to be transferred to another location. With no means available to measure the regulation height of the net on the new court, my game went to pieces and I consequently lost the match. I went home contemplating a simple solution to net measurement.

Inspiration came in the middle of the night when I visualised a picture hook, a length of string and a steel washer acting as a weight – altogether making up 36 inches! The following day I tested the theory by simply hanging the hook on the centre of the net and adjusting the net until the weight just touched the court. Using a tape measure, I could confirm that the net was now at the regulation height and what’s more, it took just one person to achieve it.

The prototype then underwent design modifications to make it marketable. The picture hook evolved into a small tennis racket that can be customised with an own logo, the string was replaced with a length of chain and the weight turned into a crafted solid tennis ball. The finished prototype was chrome plated, customised with the Wimbledon crossed rackets logo, placed in a green velour drawstring pouch and presented to The All England Club in Wimbledon, London for comment.

We returned with our first order for 100 Tennis Netchecks!

In addition to Wimbledon, Prince Manufacturing Inc., USA also recognised the need for such an accessory and commented…

“…we agree that a need exists to accurately measure net height, given the change in racket sizes and shapes. Your product certainly answers that need. In addition we would like to compliment you on the quality of the Tennis Netcheck – we have seen several net measuring devices but none measure up to the quality and convenience of yours. It also has promotional and resale possibilities”.

- Prince Manufacturing Inc. USA

Today, with sales exceeding 100,000 units our customers include tennis players, retail outlets, tennis clubs, tennis associations and corporate sponsors.

Noteworthy clients include The International Tennis Federation (ITF) for the Olympic Games; Wimbledon; The LTA’s of England, Atlanta USA; Austria; Germany; Scotland; South Africa; Sweden. Also the Council of Lawn Tennis Clubs; Campo de Tennis Spain; Intersport; The Queen’s Club; Dunlop; Slazenger; JPMorgan Partners; Phillips and many more companies, clubs and players.

The product is proven and the Original Tennis Netcheck is now firmly established as an essential and practical tennis accessory around the world. Like all good ideas however, imitations have appeared on the market. Be warned, many of these have been found to be inaccurate and therefore not fit for purpose. Be sure to buy the Original Tennis Netcheck from this site. We guarantee accuracy to a tolerance of ± 1mm.

In addition to the Tennis Netcheck we also offer a small selection of other unique and interesting tennis gift items. We will be adding more items so please come back soon.

Thanks for calling by. If you like what you have seen, please tell others.

We pride ourselves in the guaranteed quality and service that we offer.

Wiet

Wiet Stokhuyzen

Sportfolio Limited