“It’s cheaper than the hotels,” Quinteros said, “and it gives you a genuine feel for the city.”

But alternative travel has occasional pitfalls. A year ago, Urrutia said, he used a ride-sharing app to get to a tournament in Brno in the south of the Czech Republic. The driver picked him up in Berlin at 7 a.m. on the day of his opening-round doubles match, which was listed as “not before 2:30 p.m.” on the schedule. The drive should have taken four or five hours. But they encountered heavy traffic around Prague, and the driver had arranged to pick up more riders, so the trip stretched to more than eight agonizing hours.

Urrutia eventually had to jump out of the car in downtown Brno and hail a taxi for the final leg of the journey. Upon his arrival at the club, he ran directly to the court with his suitcase and equipment still in tow.

The tournament supervisor told him he had two minutes to get ready for the match or forfeit, which would have cost him a $1,000 fine.

“I was wearing jeans and had my big suitcase,” Urrutia said. “I had to change right there on the court. I had to get naked. No surprise, we lost the first set, 6-1. My partner was mad, but I settled down and we won in three sets. We earned €70.”

In Prague, Urrutia played doubles with Szymon Walkow of Poland as his partner. Like many players on the Futures Tour, Walkow, 21, was recruited to play college tennis in the United States. Despite the risks, he opted to seek his fortune playing professionally, and he receives some financial assistance from his parents and the Polish tennis federation, he said.

He was also happy to get a roof overhead in Prague from Urrutia and Quinteros, who invited Walkow to share their apartment, significantly cutting costs. The tour can quickly siphon off a player’s finances and energy, but at his age, Walkow has stamina and a plan.