Pickleball began in the summer of 65 on Bainbridge Island, just outside of Seattle, Washington. The idea of the game at first was family entertainment. When the game was first being played, one family had a pet dog that would retrieve the ball and return it to the family. The dogs name was Pickles; hence the name Pickleball!

Initially, families used simple pickleball equipment which included wood paddles, wiffle balls and a net. They played on hard surfaces in their backyards, driveways, and on residential dead end streets. Since the mid-70’s, the game of Pickleball has grown from a family activity to a net-court sport with formalized rules. It is currently being played in thousands of schools, resorts, recreational centers, and multipurpose courts at family residences.

The basics and rules to the game of Pickleball are simple. The first step is to purchase the pickleball equipment and set up the court. The size of the pickleball court is 20’x 40’ for both singles and doubles. The top of the pickleball net is attached at 36” on both sides and lines using chalk or tape are marked on the court for boundary and non-volley zone lines.

To begin a game, teams flip a coin or draw straws to see who serves first. The server must keep one foot behind the back line. The serve is made underhand with the pickleball paddle, and the wiffle ball cannot be hit on a bounce while serving. The serve is made diagonally across the net just like tennis. The serve must clear the non-volley zone and only one serve is allowed unless the ball hits the net and clears the non-volley zone, then another serve is allowed.

Both members of a team will serve before the serve goes to the opponents. After the ball is served, it must bounce once in the opponents court then hit back over the net. It must bounce once in the server’s court to complete a proper volley. After that the ball can be hit without a bounce until one team wins the point. A ball landing on any line is considered good.

A team can score a point only when serving. The player continues until a fault is made by his team. A fault can occur in four ways: hitting the ball out of bounds, not clearing the net, receiving team steps into the non-volley zone and hits the ball (not servers fault) or returning a serve that has not bounced in receiver’s court. The game is played to 11 points, and a team must win by 2 points to be victorious.

So once you purchase the pickleball equipment, learning the game is simple and the results are hours of family fun. Pickleball can be played by all ages and levels of ablilities. It is also a game that can be taken to family picnics, reunions and holiday gatherings. The basics of the game are easy to learn and we all have to thank a dog named “Pickles” for making it fun.