Pickleball courts Now Open at Bellaire Fitness Center!

Click the Link below to view the Court Reserve portal. You will be asked to create an account, and once it is approved you may sign in and begin playing Pickleball!

*Fitness Center Membership Required to play. Call the Fitness Center at 318-746-8715 for more details.

With even a basic understanding of the game, anyone can jump in and play competitively even without lessons. One of the best aspects of the game is the social atmosphere of camaraderie. Teammates and opponents are closer together on a smaller court, which makes for great interaction.

Anyone can play Pickleball! It first began to grow rapidly in senior communities. Schools now implement Pickleball in physical education classes and after school programs. Pickleball levels the playing field between age groups and athletic backgrounds. Grandparents and their grandchildren can play together competitively! What other sports let multiple generations play together?

Pickleball has grown in leaps and bounds in recent years. The sport is not about power or speed exclusively. It is a sport of strategy and patience. The majority of the game is played close to the net, which means less time running around and longer rallies! The court is smaller than tennis, so many people are gravitating to Pickleball because of the lower physical strain. It is a competitive, yet fun way to stay healthy.

Pickleball is a paddleball sport (similar to a racket sport) that combines elements of badminton, table tennis, and tennis. Two or four players use solid paddles made of wood or composite materials to hit a perforated polymer ball, much like a wiffle ball, with 26–40 round holes, over a net. The sport shares features of other racket sports: the dimensions and layout of a badminton court, and a net and rules somewhat similar to tennis, with several modifications.

Pickleball was invented in the mid-1960s as a children's backyard game. The spread of the sport is attributed to its popularity within community centers, physical education classes, public parks, private health clubs, YMCA facilities and retirement communities. There are thousands of pickleball tournaments nationwide with two of the largest at the annual – U.S. Pickleball National Championships and U.S. Open Pickleball Championship – as well as numerous international championships.

With the new courts now open, now is the best time to learn how to play. Watch this video from playpickleball.com on how to play.