Pickleball Group Moves Indoors and Seeks New Players

An informal group of Pickleball players has moved from the outdoor basketball courts at 15th Street and Bay Avenue to the Ocean City Sports and Civic Center, and they're looking for new players to give the sport a try.

Beginners are invited to play in casual pickup games from 10:30 a.m. to noon on Mondays and Wednesdays. There's no cost and equipment is provided. Intermediate players are invited to play from 9 to 10:30 a.m. on the same days.

For more information, call Don Hepner at 609-391-2103.

Hepner, 64, was instrumental last winter in lobbying for the city to provide space and equipment for Ocean City residents and visitors to play Pickleball, a sport popular with players of all ages.

The city purchased two nets and taped lines for temporary Pickleball courts in September. Pickleball play moved indoors earlier this month. 

“The easiest way to describe it is, it is sort of like playing pingpong on a table big enough to stand on,” Hepner said. “If you mix a little ping pong, badminton and tennis together, you get Pickleball.”

Pickleball — as a less physical alternative to tennis — has a big following among 55-and-overs, but the sport has also been a staple of Ocean City High School physical education classes for years.

“It’s a social game,” Hepner said. “Unlike tennis, you can get a large group of friends and take turns playing doubles matches. It’s a great way to get out of the house, if you want meet new people.”

The sport was reportedly invented in a Seattle driveway in the 1960s and named for the mischievous dog who kept stealing the ball: Pickles.