Pickleball in Montgomery Parks
Pickleball is one of the fastest-growing sports both in Montgomery County, and nationally. Pickleball is a fun, fast-paced, but low-impact sport that is a combination of several classic games – badminton, tennis, and table tennis.
It’s played on either a shared court with tennis (players use existing net or bring their own net) or a dedicated court with a tennis-like net that is 34 inches high. The sport uses paddles slightly larger than ping pong, and a plastic whiffle ball.
Pickleball is easy for beginners of all ages to learn and often becomes very competitive among experienced players. Pickleball provides opportunities for active and social experiences. The sport was earlier limited to indoor recreation centers, but there has been a rising demand for outdoor play facilities.
Montgomery Parks is actively working to increase the number of pickleball courts. In April 2019, Montgomery Parks concluded a Pickleball Study.
This study investigated service needs and gaps, user preference for facility location and design, and the service delivery strategies for a fast track implementation.
The study was a multi-year collaborative process with participation and inputs from various stakeholders — different sport court users (Pickleball, Tennis, and other users), agencies (like Recreation Department, and Municipalities), and citizen representatives — to identify best solutions for creating more opportunities for outdoor pickleball.
Parks with Pickleball Courts
Park |
Details |
Future Plans |
| Bauer Drive Local Park | 6 dedicated pickleball courts. Courts have lights. | |
| Cloverly Local Park | 4 pickleball courts on 2 tennis courts; user can bring their pickleball net or share the net with tennis | |
| Darnestown Local Park | 4 pickleball courts on 2 tennis courts; user can bring their pickleball net or share the net with Tennis | |
| East Norbeck Local Park | 4 pickleball courts on 2 tennis courts; user can bring their pickleball net or share the net with Tennis. Courts have lights. | |
| Indian Springs Terrace Neighborhood Park(opens in a new tab) | 2 pickleball courts on 1 tennis court; user can bring their pickleball net or share the net with Tennis. Courts have lights. | |
| Longwood Local Park | 4 pickleball courts on 2 tennis courts; user can bring their pickleball net or share the net with Tennis | |
| Meadowood Local Park | 2 pickleball courts on 2 tennis courts – share the tennis nets | Expand to 4 pickleball courts on 2 tennis courts and upgrade lighting; user can bring their pickleball net or share the net with tennis. To be completed in early 2022. |
| Mount Zion Local Park | 4 pickleball courts on 2 tennis court; user can bring their pickleball net or share the net with Tennis | |
| Olney Mill Neighborhood Park: | 6 pickleball courts on 2 tennis courts; user can bring their pickleball net or share the net with Tennis. Courts have lights. | Re-color coat the courts to current standard; 4 pickleball courts on 2 tennis courts; user can bring their pickleball net or share the net with tennis. To be completed in Fall 2021 |
| Tilden Woods Local Park | 4 pickleball courts on 2 tennis courts using new design standard – user can bring their pickleball net or share the net with tennis. Courts have lights. | |
| Sundown Road Local Park | 2 pickleball courts on 1 tennis court; user can bring their pickleball net or share the net with Tennis. Courts have lights. | |
Future Pickleball facilities (in order by anticipated completion date)
Park |
Type |
Details |
| Seven Locks Local Park | Dedicated & Shared | Convert one tennis court to 2 dedicated pickleball courts and add 2 pickleball court overlays on other tennis court. Courts have lights. To be completed in Fall 2021 |
| Piedmont Woods Local Park | Shared | 4 pickleball courts on 2 tennis courts. New park with new courts to be completed in Spring 2022. |
| Good Hope Local Park | Shared | 4 pickleball courts on 2 tennis courts. To be completed in 2022. |
| Silver Spring Intermediate Neighborhood Park | Shared | 2 pickleball courts on 1 tennis court –To be constructed in 2022 as part of a park refresher project |
| Stewartown Local Park | Shared | 2 pickleball courts on 1 tennis court. To be completed in 2022-23 as part of a park refresher project |
| Columbia Local Park | Dedicated | 4 dedicated pickleball courts. To be constructed by Spring 2023 as part of a park refresher project |
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