Can You Play Pickleball On Tennis Court? Practical Guide (2024)

Pickleball has now become the most trendy and cool game of the decade because it is fun to play mostly, and people join or switch to pickleball because they are tired of the old games and want to try out something better and something about everyone is talking today.

Do you want to play pickleball, but you don’t know of any courts near you or you think is pickleball played on a tennis court? Nothing to worry about. We’ve got a solution for you to play pickleball on tennis courts.

Pickleball courts can be set up on any kind of existing court, like a tennis court, badminton court, basketball court, or volleyball court, with much more ease than building pickleball courts from scratch.

The most common existing court used to build a pickleball court is a tennis court.

There is a high demand for building a new pickleball court on tennis court because of the increasing popularity of the game day by day. There existed many sports before pickleball, and there was also a shortage of land, so it will be a wise decision to build new pickleball courts on existing courts so that you can enjoy both games within a small piece of land.

Playing pickleball on a tennis court or converting it into four pickleball courts requires you to know the dimensions, layout, net height, and structure of tennis and pickleball courts with the necessary guidelines and instructions so that you can make calculated adjustments of pickleball lines on tennis courts accordingly and know how to play pickleball on a tennis court.

Pickleball on Tennis Court

Pickleball Court Dimensions

Here are the basic dimensions of a standard pickleball court:

• Court size: 20 feet wide by 44 feet long.

• Service area: 10 feet wide by 20 feet long (divided into two equal rectangles by the centerline).

• Non-volley zone (or kitchen): 7 feet from the net on either side (marked by a line perpendicular to the net).

• Net height: 36 inches at the sidelines and 34 inches at the center.

• Baseline: The line is 20 feet wide at the back of the court.

It’s worth noting that these are the standard dimensions for outdoor pickleball courts.

Tennis Court Dimensions

An average tennis court measures the following dimensions:

• Court size: 78 feet long by 27 feet wide for singles match and 78 feet long by 36 feet wide for doubles matches.

• Service area: 21 feet long by 13.5 feet wide on each side of the net, divided into two equal rectangles by the centerline.

• Net height: 3 feet 6 inches high at the center and 3 feet high at the ends.
  

How many Pickleball Courts Fit on a Tennis Court?

You can fit up to 4 pickleball courts on a tennis court by dividing the court into four equal sections. Here’s a breakdown of how this works:

A tennis court typically measures 78 feet long by 36 feet wide for doubles play.

To fit four pickleball courts onto a tennis court, you would first need to divide the width of the court in half, creating two 18-foot-wide sections on each side of the court.

Then, each of those sections can be divided into two equal 18-foot by 22-foot rectangles, creating four separate pickleball courts.

Each pickleball court has a dimension of 20 feet wide by 44 feet long, so there would be ample space for each court within the 18-foot by 22-foot rectangle.

It’s important to note that while it is possible to fit four pickleball courts onto a single tennis court, it’s essential to ensure that each court has adequate space and clear boundaries to prevent interference between games when building a pickleball court on tennis court

How to Convert Tennis court to Pickleball Court?

Converting the tennis court to pickleball court requires you to follow the given instructions below:

Space Distribution

Changing a tennis court into a pickleball court can usually take half of the total court area, and it can also depend on the existing tennis court dimensions and layout, the space community players need to play pickleball, and the number of courts you want to build.

Markings

Now there are two ways you’re going to do this. First, you either keep your tennis court and build a temporary pickleball court on tennis court Or second, you permanently convert it into a pickleball court.

First of all, you need to take markings for the pickleball court. You can do this by using paint, chalk, or tape. Chalk will be the preferable option if you are looking to convert it into a temporary court.

These lines are called blended lines and should be of a different color than that of your tennis court lines. If you want to permanently build a pickleball court on tennis court, then use white paint or a line paint color. You can also use a black acrylic resurfaced.

Setting Up The Net

Next step, you need to set up a net when building a pickleball court on tennis court. You can purchase and use a portable net available in the market, or you can simply adjust the on-court tennis net.

Just adjust your portable net according to the location of the tennis court and the number of pickleball courts you want to build on it. You can also lower the tennis court net to 2 inches and convert it into a pickleball court.

This net height difference is so small yet so significant because it affects the gameplay of the players. The lower the net will be, the more you will be able to focus on the precision and control of the shots rather than using a great amount of power to get the ball across the net.

Court Boundaries

Also, don’t forget to set boundaries if you are building more than one pickleball court on tennis court so that your ball does not get stuck with other players’ faces. Making boundaries will also prevent the ball from getting out of bounds while you play.

Court Direction

The direction of the court is also an important factor to consider when setting up a pickleball court on tennis court for a better and fair game experience.

Always set the head parallel to the North direction (from north to south) and not perpendicular to your existing tennis court. This will prevent your player from hazardous sun rays and their glare, which can be pretty distracting while playing.

• Tags: Blog, Pickleball Court