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Pickleball is a sport similar to badminton and tennis, with some elements of ping-pong. It involves playing on a court with the same dimensions as a badminton court with a hard paddle and a wiffle ball.
[edit] History
Pickle-Ball was created in 1965 on Bainbridge Island-short ferry boat ride from Seattle, Washington. The original purpose was to provide a sport for the entire family. Initially Pickle-Ball was played in backyards on a hard surface, driveways, residential streets. Since the mid-seventies Pickle-Ball has expanded from a family activity to a formalized activity complete with specific rules for game play. Pickle-ball is a sport where shot placement, steadiness, patience, and tactics have a far greater importance than brute power and strength.
[edit] The Court
The Pickle-Ball court is identical to a doubles badminton court. Actual size of the court is 20×44 feet for both doubles and singles. The net is hung at 36 inches on the ends, and 34 inches in the middle
[edit] Terminology
- 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, the receiver must let the ball bounce, and then the server must let the return shot bounce also, after which the ball can be played off the bounce or volleyed.
- Fault — An event that ends with the server giving up his serve to the other side.
- 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
- 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. As in, the score is now 4 - 2 - second server.
- Sideline — The line at the side of the court.
- Volley — To hit the ball before it bounces.
[edit] Basic Rules of Pickleball
- The Lines: The baseline is the back of the court. Any balls bouncing past this line are considered out. When serving, you must stand behind this line. Sidelines and the baseline should be painted so that the court dimension falls at the outside of the line. A ball is good if the center of the ball falls on the line. On the serve, a ball hitting the non-volley zone line is considered a fault. Your ball must bounce inbounds on the other side of the court for it to count.
- The Non-Volley Zone: A line seven feet from the net delineates the non- volley zone. You are not allowed to hit the ball without letting it bounce first if your foot is on or between this line and the net, or if you stumble into this zone after hitting the ball. You may not serve the ball into the non-volley zone.
- Scoring and Winning: A team gets a point when they win a rally that they served. When a point is won, the players of the scoring team switch sides of the court , so the serves comes from the other court. The first team to score 11 points wins (must win by two points).
- The Serve: The player on the right always serves first. The ball must contact the paddle below the waist using an underhand motion and must land in the diagonally opposite court, beyond the non-volley line. The server must hit the ball without bouncing it first. Both players on a team will serve before the service passes to the other team. To keep the first service of a game fair, only the first player serves during the first service of the game.
- Keeping Track of Scoring: Because players switch sides with each point, a simple scoring system was devised to keep track of who is serving. Before each serve, the server calls out his team’s score, the other team’s score, and then whether he is the first or second server for his team. For example, if his team has 5 points, the other team has 3, and his partner has already served and lost the point, he would call out, “5, 3, Server 2.”
- The Return: The receiving team must let the ball bounce before returning the serve. Also, the serving team must let the returned ball bounce once more before hitting it back. This means that there will be two bounces during the first two hits of the rally (known as the double-bounce rule).
- Singles Play With Balls: The server serves from the right side of the court when his or her score is even and from the left side when the his or her score is odd.[1]
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