The Best Places to Play Pickleball in or Near Seattle
Pickleball is gaining popularity at a fast pace, and with good reason. It is an easy sport to learn and play. In addition, ordinary tennis courts are now incorporating pickleball courts, so it’s easy to find a pickleball court near you. But if you are new to Seattle, you may not even know where to find a tennis court. So here are some pickleball courts where you can learn and play pickleball in Seattle.
1. Maple Leaf Reservoir Park – 1020 NE 82nd St, Seattle, WA 98115
Love playing in the outdoors? If yes, you will love Maple Leaf Reservoir Park. It is a complete park with all the beautiful features of a typical park – trees, green grass, e.t.c. But, if you have children, don’t leave them at home; the park consists of a children’s area where they can play as you train or play pickleball. The park is open from 4:00 am to 11:30 pm.
2. Green Lake Park – 7201 East Green Lake Dr N, Seattle, WA 98115
Green Lake Park is another pickleball arena where you can enjoy several other activities. From playing pickleball on the tennis courts to watching the sunset, you can also enjoy kayaking and paddle boating in the lake. Besides that, if your main reason is to play pickleball, you can play with friends on the tennis court. On the tennis courts, you can train to play pickleball.
3. Yesler Community Center – 917 E Yesler Way, Seattle, WA 98122
If you are a beginner pickleball player in Yesler, this is the best place to nurture your skill. The Yesler Community Center has different amenities, like a children’s section where kids can enjoy themselves while you play pickleball. In addition, the Yesler community center has a basketball court where you can play and compete with other players.
There are also trainers who are keen on what they teach and are very helpful to both beginners and experienced players alike.
4. Forest Crest Athletic Club – 4901 238th St Sw, Mountlake Terrace, WA 98043
If you want a place you can check at any time of the day or even at night, then Forest Crest is the place. The club incorporates training for beginner players too. One thing to note is that you don’t just get on the court and start playing pickleball – you may need to play as a member by becoming one or as a guest. You can also book lessons online; the customer service is super friendly and helpful.
5. SeaTac Community Center – 13735 24th Ave S, SeaTac, WA 98168
The SeaTac Community Center is open from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm, and you can book pickleball lessons anytime. The center offers a sweet and calm, serene where you can play and let off some steam. If a small competition calms you down, you can have a friendly pickleball competition at the courts.
The center has two centers – one for the big kids and another for the smaller ones. If you have a loved one, don’t leave them behind; the center is friendly to senior players.
6. Brickyard Road Park – 16800 Brickyard Rd NE, Bothell, WA 98011
If you’re into pickleball courts that are exclusively for this game, then you will love Brickyard Road Park. The park features other sports amenities like basketball hoops, but they have an exclusive pickleball court. The park operates on the dawn-to-dusk schedule so that you can check in anytime during the daytime.
7. Spencer 68 – 6711 NE 182nd St, Kenmore, WA 98028
If you’re looking for accommodation where you can play pickleball without trekking or driving to a distant court, Spencer 68 offers that. Among the many amenities the apartment offers is a dedicated pickleball court where you can check in at any time and play during your stay. It’s an apartment, so once you check-in, you may be allowed to play pickleball anytime. However, if you’re playing as a guest without booking an apartment, the place is open from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm.
8. 24-Hour Fitness – Redmond – 7320 170th Ave NE Redmond, WA 98052
24-Hour Fitness is one of the most reviewed centers in Seattle. The center is open from 5:00 am to 10:00 pm on weekdays, but on weekends the center is open from 6:00 am to 8:00 pm. It features a training center for pickleball players.
This is a fitness center but also offers a pickleball court with lessons on Tuesdays and Fridays, especially if there is no basketball game on the schedule.
9. Sammamish Family YMCA – 1620 Perimeter Rd SW, Auburn, WA 98001
Sammamish Family YMCA is all about health and fitness matters. For example, pickleball is listed as an adult game, but as you know, anyone at any age can play pickleball. To keep fit, the center incorporates a pickleball court for families. The center is open from 6:00 am to 9:00 pm from Monday to Thursday, 6:00 am to 8:00 pm on Fridays, and 8:00 am to 5:00 pm on Saturdays and Sundays.
10. Westside Park – 5810 156th Ave NE, Redmond, WA 98052
Westside Park offers an open lawn for different sports for the family. The park provides a family-friendly environment where one can enjoy themselves with their seniors and younger and older kids.
A broad, open lawn with enhanced drainage, provides for flexible play, clear sightlines, casual pick-up sports, and year-round play.
The park offers a dawn-to-dusk schedule, which means you can check in with your family at any time of the day.
11. Meadow Park – 15670 NE 85th St, Redmond, WA 98052
If you are looking for serene environment with numerous amenities when playing pickleball, then Meadow Park is the place you are looking for. The park features a pickleball court where you can visit and enjoy playing.
Sometimes the dedicated pickleball courts are full, but you can use the tennis courts to play your game.
12. Laurelhurst Pickleball Court – 4544 NE 41st St, Seattle, WA 98105
Laurelhurst Pickleball Court is open from 6 am to 10:00 pm, but you must make a court reservation before you visit. If you are near, you can make a face-to-face reservation, but if far away, you can head on to their reservation page to make one.
On the contractor’s recommendation, a permanent net was recently put in place to increase the court’s lifetime and safeguard the court surface. Tennis players would still be able to utilize the whole court under the original designs, which called for a movable net. Tennis players may now practice against the walls on either side of the net’s backboard.
Can I Play Pickleball on a Tennis Court?
What if all you find near you in Seattle are tennis courts and not dedicated pickleball courts? You don’t have to wait until you find a pickleball court to play this simple and fun game. Just a normal tennis court and you can play pickleball. A regular pickleball court is only two feet longer than the service boxes -the boxes near the net of the tennis court- of a normal tennis court.
The long lines of a normal pickleball court are 3½ feet wider than your normal tennis court. So now, you see where we are headed. To mark a tennis court for a pickleball game, you are going to need cones, clothes, or water bottles. Why not markers? Markers may become permanent or semi-permanent, which is not allowed in most tennis courts, so cones or a few bottles are the perfect examples for temporary court marking.
The service box lines parallel to the net will be the backline or baseline of the pickleball court. So you don’t have to change the centerline of the tennis court because it will be the centerline of the pickleball court.
Short rubber strips are best for temporarily marking a tennis court. They are affordable, easy to store, and transport. They are less obstructive to the tennis court, and in the end, they provide a better playing experience.
Another thing you should decide on when it comes to a pickleball court is the net. A normal tennis net is two inches higher than a normal pickleball net. Therefore, you have two options to adjust the tennis net to become a pickleball net. First, you can lower the net by two inches. To do this, you can slide the center strap of the tennis net to one side. This should be approximately one inch or so. Ensure that you return the net to its original size. Leaving the center strap folded to one side makes the net loose in the end.
Another option is to leave the net as it is. Playing pickleball on your regular tennis court is not complicated, and you can keep the pickleball rules as you play. There’s only one rule and exception when playing pickleball on a tennis court. The first rule is that the point should be replayed if the pickleball ball touches any of the marked areas.
Most centers we have listed above have tennis courts. So if you feel like you can’t find a pickleball court, then you can fix a tennis court to be one.
