# How is pickleball different than tennis? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** tennis\ **Created:** [July 23, 2023, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-pickleball-different-than-tennis/987418 "2023-07-23T18:02:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2023, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-pickleball-different-than-tennis/987418/21 "2023-07-25T13:26:10Z")
Slower pace and less running is about all that is needed to explain the greater popularity over tennis. Also, equipment and court make it more readily accessible for neophytes who just want to get modest exercise volleying back and forth - as opposed to cutthroat competition. IME, many people have difficulty just making solid contact with a tennis ball and hitting it over the net in a manner that the other player can do the same. ---
**Author:** ![duality72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duality72/32/3910_2.png) [@duality72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duality72)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2023, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-pickleball-different-than-tennis/987418/22 "2023-07-25T19:28:54Z")
Yep, the [Holderness family](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Holderness_Family). ---
**Author:** ![xizor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xizor/32/102_2.png) [@xizor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xizor)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2023, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-pickleball-different-than-tennis/987418/23 "2023-07-25T19:52:35Z")
My mother described it to me as “playing tennis with a wiffle ball using a ping pong paddle” ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2023, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-pickleball-different-than-tennis/987418/24 "2023-07-26T19:14:46Z")
> [@Tride](#): > > Purposely very social–you put your paddle in the lineup and people are pretty much obligated to let you play. Just dinking around in tennis isn’t that fun or easy to do, but is easy in pb, or you can play as competitively as you want. My wife tried pickleball a few times at the local community centre, but she gave it up because (a) the lineup to play the game was too long (e.g. you wait 45 minutes to play a 15 minute game) and (b) she felt she was getting the stink-eye from the people she was teamed up with because she was new to the game and not very good at it. ---
**Author:** ![Tride](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tride/32/13907_2.png) [@Tride](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tride)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2023, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-pickleball-different-than-tennis/987418/25 "2023-07-26T20:22:35Z")
With 8 courts you can kind of evaluate the games and see where you might fit in. It’s _supposed_ to be welcoming to noobs, but… ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2023, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-pickleball-different-than-tennis/987418/26 "2023-07-26T20:51:46Z")
> [@hogarth](#): > > (b) she felt she was getting the stink-eye from the people she was teamed up with because she was new to the game and not very good at it. We have two parks with pickleball in our town. One has three courts and is casually designated as the novice courts. The other park has two sets of courts; one with three courts on a converted basketball court where intermediates usually play and a set of four on a tennis court where the advanced players compete. Nothing is written in stone, but that’s how it shakes out. If you are new to the sport or just new to the area; just ask someone waiting for a game what the local customs and etiquette are and they will likely be more than happy to tell you what’s what. ---
**Author:** ![RAWDuke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/71e660/32.png) [@RAWDuke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RAWDuke)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2023, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-pickleball-different-than-tennis/987418/27 "2023-07-26T22:01:05Z")
My description is, it’s just like table tennis only you get to stand on the table. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-pickleball-different-than-tennis/987418.md?page=1)