What is pickleball? It is a racket sport played with a solid paddle and a light plastic ball full of holes, on a court with the same footprint as badminton doubles, over a net a little lower than a tennis net. You serve underhand, the ball moves slowly, and rallies come quickly. In Dewsbury you can try it on the indoor court at Ignite, in Ravensthorpe, for £20 an hour, day or night.

That is the short answer. The rest of this guide covers where the game came from, what the court and kit look like, how a point is played and scored, and how to get on court without knowing anyone who already plays.

So what is pickleball, exactly?

Pickleball England describes it as a sport that "combines elements of badminton, tennis, and table tennis". That is a fair way to picture it. The court is badminton-sized. The net is close to tennis height, and the serve goes across the diagonal like a tennis serve. The paddle and the short, quick exchanges at the net feel like table tennis played standing up.

It is played as singles, one against one, or doubles, two against two. Doubles is an easy way to start, because there is less ground to cover and someone beside you to laugh with when it goes wrong.

What makes it different from all three of those sports is how forgiving it is. The ball is light and slow through the air. The paddle has no strings to mistime. The court is small enough that you are never sprinting far. USA Pickleball, the sport's governing body in the US, calls it easy to learn but challenging to master, and open to all ages and abilities.

Where did pickleball come from?

It started in 1965 on Bainbridge Island, in Washington state in the USA. USA Pickleball, the sport's governing body there, credits three fathers, Joel Pritchard, Bill Bell and Barney McCallum, who made up a game for their bored children with table tennis bats, a perforated plastic ball and a badminton net let down lower.

A backyard game for families is still the best way to think about it. It was built so that people of very different ages and abilities could play together, and that is why it suits a club like ours: you do not need years of lessons before a game is fun.

What does a pickleball court look like?

The court is 20 feet wide and 44 feet long, the same size for singles and doubles, and the same footprint as a badminton doubles court. The net is 36 inches high at the posts and dips to 34 inches in the middle.

The lines that matter most to a beginner:

  • The non-volley zone, or kitchen. A strip seven feet deep on each side of the net. More on why it matters below.
  • The centre line. It splits the back of each half into a left and a right service court.
  • The baseline. The back line you serve from.

Ours is indoors and kept for pickleball, laid with a grey acrylic surface that grips well underfoot, so rain in Ravensthorpe never cancels a game. Being indoors also means no wind pushing a light ball around, which makes a first game a lot less frustrating.

What do you play pickleball with?

Two things: a paddle and a ball.

The paddle is solid and rigid, often wood or a composite, and shorter than a tennis racket. There are no strings to mistime. The ball is a perforated polymer ball, a bit like a wiffle ball. Under the official rules it has between 26 and 40 round holes, which is what keeps it slow through the air.

You do not need to buy either to start. We keep paddles and balls in a box next to the court, so you can turn up, play, and only think about buying a paddle once you are hooked.

How does a game of pickleball work?

There are four rules worth knowing before your first point. Learn these and you can play; everything else you will pick up as you go.

1. The serve is underhand and goes across the diagonal

You serve from behind the baseline, hitting the ball below your waist with an underarm swing, into the service court diagonally opposite. One serve, not two as in tennis. Because it is underhand, the serve is not a weapon the way it is in tennis, so rallies usually get started.

2. The ball must bounce once on each side first

This is the two-bounce rule. The receiver lets the serve bounce before hitting it back, and the serving side then lets that return bounce too. Only after those two bounces can anyone hit the ball out of the air. It stops the serving side rushing the net straight away and gives every rally a fair start.

3. No volleys from the kitchen

You cannot hit the ball out of the air while you are standing in the non-volley zone, the seven-foot strip by the net. You can stand in the kitchen whenever you like. You just cannot volley while you are in it, or let your momentum carry you into it after a volley. This one rule is what gives pickleball its character: instead of smashing everything from close range, players trade soft shots that drop into the kitchen, called dinks, waiting for someone to pop one up.

4. Only the serving side scores

You win a point only when you are serving. Lose a rally on your serve and the serve passes over. A game usually goes to 11 points, and the winner needs a margin of two.

In doubles both players on a side get a turn to serve before it passes across, so the score is called as three numbers: your score, their score, and which of the two servers is up, first or second. A game starts at "zero, zero, two", because the first side to serve only gets one server. It sounds odd until you have said it a few times, and then it is second nature.

What ends a rally?

A rally ends on a fault. The ones to watch for in a first game: the ball lands outside the lines; it fails to clear the net; someone volleys before both bounces have happened; someone volleys from inside the kitchen; or the server's feet are not behind the baseline when the serve is hit.

In doubles, when you win a point on your serve, you and your partner swap sides and you serve again from the other half of the court. Lose a rally on your serve and your partner takes over, or, if they have already served, the serve passes to the other side. That is why the doubles score includes the server number: it tells everyone whose turn it is.

Why is pickleball easy to pick up?

Several things work in a beginner's favour at once:

  • The ball is slow. Those holes slow it down, so you have time to get to it and time to think.
  • The court is small. A few steps covers most balls, so you spend your hour hitting rather than chasing.
  • The paddle is solid and short. Easier to control than a strung racket, and closer to your hand.
  • The serve is gentle. Rallies usually get going, rather than ending on the serve.

That is also why it works so well for mixed groups: a parent and a grown-up son or daughter, a group of friends where one person used to play tennis and the others never have, workmates who want something more active than the pub.

If you would rather be shown than work it out with friends, we run an adult pickleball coaching hour for £15 with a coach. See the pickleball page for details.

How much does it cost to play pickleball in Dewsbury?

At Ignite the pickleball court is £20 an hour. You pay for the court rather than for each player. Saturday afternoon or Tuesday in the small hours, it costs the same.

Want longer? Book back-to-back hours, as many as you fancy.

How do you book and get in?

We are a 24/7 self-access hall at 50 Netherfield Road, Ravensthorpe, WF13 3JX. Book the court, and your confirmation email brings the code for the door and the steps for the lights.

Nobody gets through the door without a booking's code, and the hall is on CCTV day and night. Our 24/7 access page explains the door and the hours in more detail, and find us has the map.

One thing to know when you plan your hour: the hall is closed to bookings on Wednesdays from 18:00 to 19:15 and on Fridays from 19:00 to 21:00.

Ready for a first game?

Round up a friend or three and pick an hour. The court, the paddles and the balls will be waiting.

Book the pickleball court, or call us on 07553 180825 if you have a question first.