What is pickleball?
Pickleball is similar to tennis. It is played by 2 or 4 people with a plastic poly baseball with holes and a wood paddle racquet. It is played on a badminton court with the net lowered to 34 inches at the center. It is sort of a combination of tennis,badminton, and ping pong.
You can find out more details at the USA Pickleball Association website here:
http://www.usapa.org/
Here are a list of places where you can play:
http://www.usapa.org/ptp/index.php
The sport was created by Joel Pritchard, William Bell, Barney McCallum, and Jordan Steranka.
I got this terminology from wikipedia:
Baseline — The line at the back of the pickleball court (22 feet from the net).
Centerline — The line bisecting the service courts that extends from the non-volley zone line to the baseline.
Crosscourt — The opponent’s court diagonally opposite yours.
Dink — A soft, low shot, initiated from within or just behind the non-volley zone, that lands in the opponent’s non-volley zone.
Double Bounce Rule — After a serve, each team must play their first shot off the bounce, after which the ball can be played off the bounce or volleyed.
Fault — An infringement of the rules that ends the rally.
Foot Fault — Failure to keep at least one foot behind the baseline and touching the ground at the moment the paddle contacts the ball during a serve, or stepping on or into the non-volley zone while volleying a ball.
Half-Volley- A type of hit where the player hits the ball immediately after it has bounced in an almost scoop-like fashion.
Let Serve — A serve that touches the top of the net and lands in the proper service court (it is replayed without penalty).
Non-Volley Zone — A seven-foot area adjacent to the net within which you may not volley the ball. The non-volley zone usually includes all lines around it.
Poach — In doubles, to cross over into your partner’s area to play a ball.
Rally — Hitting the ball back and forth between opponents.
Serve (Service) — An underhand lob or drive stroke used to put a ball into play at the beginning of a point.
Server Number — When playing doubles, either “1” or “2,” depending on whether you are the first or second server for your side. This number is appended to the score when it is called.
Sideline — The line at the side of the court.
Volley — To hit the ball before it bounces.
Pickleball is a mini tennis like game that began in the Puget Sound region of the State of Washington USA. Though it has been around for about twenty years, the last five has seen tremendous growth. Inquires about the game come to the USAPA office from around the country and the world! It is played on any hard surface, has the same lines and dimensions as badminton courts only the net is lowered to the ground. The United States of America Pickleball Association (the official promoter and governing body for the game) claims it builds self esteem for youngsters, provides competitive competition for active athletes and is like the fountain of youth for older players. Click on Pickleball News for more diverse descriptions of this passion we call Pickleball. The Game Pickleball is a simple paddle game, playing a special perforated slow-moving ball over a tennis type net, on a badminton-sized court. The ball is served underhand, without bouncing it from the court, and is served diagonally to
Pickleball is an outdoor sport combining different rules of ping-pong, tennis, and badminton, using paddles similar to ping-pong. It is played on a badminton-sized net court with tennis-like rules. Pickleball uses a wood paddle and a perforated plastic baseball ball with holes. This game can be played on any hard surface, and has been for over 40 years. The game is played with a net 36 inches (91 cm) tall on the edges and 34 inches (86 cm) tall at the center. A serve is made from behind either baseline. Serves are made below the waist and with an underhand stroke. The pickleball player on the right serves first, and both players on one team serve before yielding service to the other teams. Games are played up to 11 points, and sides are switched with every point. Points are earned, as in tennis, when the ball is hit out of bounds, or when the other team fails to return a volley. The ball must bounce before returned on the serve, and also must bounce before the second return. There is a
Pickleball is a court sport best described as half way between tennis and ping-pong. The court is 44′ x 20′ and divided in two courts by a 36″ high net. It is played as a singles game with one person/side or as a doubles game with 2 people on each side of the net. Each player has a paddle (total length plus width of the paddle cannot excede 23 3/4″ or 60.3 cm.) The object of the game is to score points by successfully hitting a 3″ diameter plastic ball (that is perforated with holes (commonly known as a whiffle-ball) across the net without it being successfully returned by the opponent(s). Over time the rules of the game have become more sophisticated but when first developed, Pickleball was a simple game designed for all ages and any athletic ability level. In fact it was first played in a backyard where there was a dog that loved to chase and carry away the ball. The first players soon found themselves calling the dog, named Pickles, to bring back the ball. Hence the name: Pickleball
” and, “Why is it called that?” The answers to those questions are somewhat surprising. In the summer of 1965, a couple of families were staying on an island in the Peugeot sound near Seattle when the cry of “We’re bored!” was heard. The fathers decided to develop a new game to help alleviate this boredom, and “pickleball” came to be. The yard of congressman Joel Pritchard already had a concrete badminton court, so they took some ping pong paddles and a wiffle ball, lowered the net, and had a great time playing this new game. Rules were developed after that, and the summer was saved for all. Everyone got involved playing this game, including the family dog “Pickles,” by chasing the ball and hiding in the bushes with it. It became Pickles’ ball, and therefore, “Pickleball.” Here at Robson Ranch we have the opportunity to play Monday-Friday 3-5:00 p.m. Some of our newer players have been seen on the courts with regularity lately. Here are some of their comments: “In July, my wife and I s
