Troon, 19 Crosbie Road, Real Tennis Court Adjoining Nursing Home

Rectangular-plan real tennis court adjoining asymmetrical, 2-storey house (Fryers & Penman, circa 1905) converted for use as nursing home. Whitewashed harl; timber strapping at upper level; glazed pitched roof. Commissioned by a Mr J O M Clark (a thread manufacturer from Paisley), the Sun Court Nursing Home was originally a private residence called Lindisfarne. The real tennis court (a near contemporary with the house) was commissioned by the same Mr Clark during a period of revived interest in the game.

It was built by Joseph Bickley, who also designed courts at Moreton Morrell and Canford Hayling Island. Despite its present state of disrepair, and the fact that much of what can be seen today actually dates from its restoration during the 1960s, this particular court remains one of only two in Scotland - the other being at Falkland Palace, dating from the time of James V and said to be the oldest surviving court in Britain. Furthermore, there are said to be only 38 such courts surviving in the world - others situated in Australia, France, USA and England.

The Sun Court tennis court was in use until 1928. Subsequent uses included that of a gunnery instruction school when both it and the adjoining house were requisitioned during the war. Numerous functions followed until the 1960s when the court was restored and used as it was originally intended until the early 1990s. Today, it acts as a store for the adjoining nursing home - its condition deteriorating (1997). (Historic Scotland)