Six months of Hard Court and what's next
Reflecting on a whirlwind few months, thanks to all of your support. Plus, a gift for paid subscribers.
Six months ago I launched Hard Court and learned in the process that life can still surprise you in non-terrible ways. More importantly, I learned that you can still surprise yourself, no matter how entrenched you think your personality, interests, or “path in life” might be.
If you had told me a decade ago that I’d be writing about tennis and getting recognition for that writing, I would be extremely confused. It was never on my proverbial vision board, not even a speck of an idea that I had for myself (and I had many, with varying degrees of pragmatism).
But, like many things in life, it’s a surprise that makes a lot of sense in hindsight. When something shakes out a certain way—good or bad—it becomes easier to dive back into the vault of your life and note the signs along the way, turning random moments into a cohesive story that we can make sense of.
I’ve spent a lot of time over the last few years doing that from a place of panic, rather than joy, as chronic pain started to consume my life and shape-shift everything I thought I knew about myself and what my life was going to be like. For five years, I’d been repeatedly punched in the gut by reality every time I tried to come up for air.
It wasn’t until I started Hard Court that I started to feel like myself again—in all its seeming randomness it brought with it the comfort of familiarity. This newsletter isn’t about me, but it’s allowed me to recall and tap into my best qualities—obsessive curiosity, creativity, sensitivity, a strong point of view—that felt dulled down by being in so much physical pain and really, really depressed as a result. The hard stuff hasn’t magically evaporated (I hear that happens when you reach 50k subs!) but the color of life has returned. I’m excited about something on a daily basis, I’ve made new friends who have quickly become some of my faves, and I have a community of people (online and off) who share the same wild glint in their eye (insanity?) about tennis.
So when I say I’m grateful to all of you for supporting it, it feels like the most trite way of conveying how much joy and lightness you’ve actually brought me in doing so. But, with apologies for being so earnest (we should really bring back being earnest), it’s true. Whether you’ve subscribed, shared, or cited Hard Court in your own work, your support has meant more than you probably realize.
In the past six months, I sent out 32 issues and more Substack Notes, tweets, and Instagram posts than I can count. Hard Court was mentioned in The Athletic, Sports Illustrated, The Tennis Podcast, The Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast, Bounces, Racquet, and Puck’s Fashion People, and I geeked out each time.
These were some of the most popular stories:
Looking ahead to 2026
There are a lot of words to choose from on the internet these days and I’m determined to continue making Hard Court’s worth your while in 2026. As I mentioned recently, I will be paywalling more content next year and wanted to update you on what to expect.
For starters, there will be at least two issues a week—with more during especially news-heavy periods like Slams.
Paid subscribers will get full access to all breaking news and exclusive stories. I already have some big stories planned for the New Year and will be attending many tournaments with a press credential, so I will be in the room and on site with the top players, coaches, and executives in tennis. My goal is to share as much as I possibly can about the inner workings of this sport and the big business surrounding it. Anyone who pays for a subscription will also get regular discounts to my favorite tennis brands (starting today) and access to a private chat where we can discuss the hottest stories in tennis and you can ask me whatever you’d like.
Founding members will also get the opportunity to schedule video chats (or phone calls, if you’re feeling analog) with me to discuss and get feedback on anything from a nascent tennis apparel brand concept to how to create tennis content that actually aligns with what fans want. You will also have opportunities to attend invite-only tennis events surrounding the tournaments as a guest of Hard Court.
As I said before, I’m extremely grateful to all of you for coming along for the ride so far and am really excited about this next chapter. Thank you so much for your support!
A little treat for paid subscribers
Many of you signed up for paid subscriptions from the jump to support my work in its earliest stages and for that, you deserve a little gift in return. I’ll be sending out discount codes for a few of my favorite tennis brands in our private chat later today for anyone who’s still feeling shoppy in the holiday haze. You can expect more like this, from a wide variety of brands, next year.
I want to give a special shoutout to my friend Claudia who took all my inspiration and absolutely nailed the Hard Court logo (you can see a glimpse of our back-and-forth in the video above). It would look pretty good on merch, huh?
Have a wonderful holiday! If you have tennis news or tips to share, email jessica@hard-court.com. For regular updates, follow Hard Court on Instagram.
The new year is looking bright 🙌🏾
Love this and the logo video!