What is pickleball?
Pickleball is a racquet sport that combines elements from badminton, tennis and table tennis. The great advantage of pickleball is that it is accessible to everyone. This is because the court is about 1/3 the size of a tennis court, the speed of the ball is slower than that of a tennis ball and the racket has no strings, which makes it easier to play the ball. These factors ensure that you can play a racket sport without any background knowledge. In short: A game for everyone!
The history of pickleball
Pickleball was first played in the summer of 1965 in Washington. Since the first pickleball game, the sport has gained popularity especially in Canada and the USA. The pickleball association in the US estimates the number of pickleball players in that country to be 5 million. In neighbouring Canada, the popularity is also growing.
Pickleball Netherlands
A new sport in the Netherlands: Pickleball. Following padel, the next racket sport has reached our country. Just like padel, pickleball is expected to quickly gain popularity in the Netherlands.
The first pickleball match on Dutch soil was played in Amsterdam on March 1, 2013. Since then, several initiatives have been started and pickleball is being played in Amsterdam, The Hague and Utrecht, among other places. In the Netherlands, the NK pickleball is organised every year.
Pickleball court
W&H Sports supplies various modular floors that can be used as pickleball courts. The indoor season for pickleball runs from mid-September through May. View our indoor sports floors here.
The outdoor season runs from June through mid-September. Click here to view our outdoor sports floors.
The dimensions of a pickleball court are 13.4 x 6.1 metres (44 by 20 ft) for both doubles and singles. The net height is 91.4 cm (36 inches) at the ends, and 86.4 cm (34 inches) in the middle.
Pickleball game rules
The rules of pickleball explained in brief: In pickleball, only the party serving can score points. Both the service and the service return must bounce first. The ball is served on the right side of the court and is played diagonally. The ball is then allowed to bounce a maximum of 1 time, from the third ball onwards volleying is allowed. The ball may be returned by one player of the team.
A game is won when 11 points are scored with a minimum of two points.
