Metro Atlanta's tennis community — believed to be among the largest in the nation — is feeling the sharp backhand of the city's budget troubles.

Starting next week, the city is closing its five tennis centers on Fridays.

Some longtime players are pushing Atlanta leaders to rethink the plan.

"It's a shame because for a lot of students, we have nowhere else to really work out," said James Pressley, 18, who plays regularly at the Washington Park Tennis Center and will be on the Morehouse College tennis team this school year.

Many players say Fridays are among the most popular days for tennis at the city's centers. City officials counter their research showed the least use on Fridays, which is why they chose to close them on that day each week.

"When I heard Fridays, I said this is a bummer," said Sandy Springs resident Maria Dreaden, 22, who played Monday at the Sharon E. Lester Tennis Center in Piedmont Park.

The city's Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs department was ordered last month to cut its budget by about $850,000. It is also cutting back operating hours at its recreation centers and natatoriums. Some recreation centers will be temporarily closed starting next week for renovations.

"I am not unsympathetic to [the concerns], but given the mandated cuts, I don't have the money at this point," said the department's commissioner, Dianne Harnell Cohen. "These are hard decisions for everyone."

After the City Council rejected Mayor Shirley Franklin's budget-balancing plan of raising property taxes, Franklin last month cut city spending by $21.6 million. In addition to the recreation cuts, Franklin closed a fire station in the West End neighborhood and cut funding for 53 vacant police officer positions.

Atlanta tennis supporters say the region has more recreational tennis players than any metropolitan area in the country. The Atlanta Lawn Tennis Association, a nonprofit group that holds tennis tournaments and encourages young people to play the sport, claims about 80,000 members. Additionally, there are other regional tennis groups such as the Atlanta Community Tennis Association.

The city's five centers have 61 courts. Some players say Atlanta could let volunteers run the centers. Harnell Cohen said the city could get sued if a player is injured under the supervision of volunteers. The commissioner noted some cities close their centers one day a week.

Southwest Atlanta resident Ian Burt said there's got to be another solution. Burt, 21, credits the countless hours he's played at the Washington Park center with helping him get a tennis scholarship at Alabama State University, where he is a rising junior.

"It's very important to [keep these centers open regularly] because tennis is very expensive to play," he said Monday. "The city provides a service to folks who can't afford it."

These city tennis centers will be closed on Fridays:

—Bitsy Grant, 2125 Northside Drive NW, 23 courts.

—Chastain Park, 110 W. Weiuca Road NW, 9 courts.

—McGhee Tennis Center, 820 Beecher Ct. NW, 9 courts.

—Piedmont Park, 400 Park Dr. NE, 30309, courts.

—Washington Park, 1125 Lene St. NW, 8 courts.