Pickleball - Open Play Etiquette and Procedures
 

I’m in a weekly 4-some of pickleball players who play each week during open play at the Rec Center. We’re on the courts at the crack of dawn and usually play until about 830 AM or so. Up until January, there has been no waiting to get onto a court. Now that we’re in snowbird season, a line starts forming around 745AM, which is understandable for this busy time of year. Our group is probably at an “advanced beginner” stage, but none of us are rated, as we are just out to have fun and get some exercise.

Question - while waiting our turn in line, a group of 3 in front of us who’s turn it was to go onto the court needed a 4th person, we allowed a single person behind us in line to go in front of our group of 4, so that we could wait and play together when a court became available for us. This infuriated a man further back in line who yelled out at us to split up and for one of us to join the group of 3 ahead of us. The man was pretty belligerent and wouldn’t let it drop, even after the fact. We just smiled at him and didn’t respond to his outburst. I noticed a group of 4 ladies playing together did the same thing, as they wanted to play as a group. If we were in error, we surely want to be corrected, and play by the rules, but I never remember in pickleball class this particular issue ever being brought up. Was hoping someone from the pickleball community could chime in whether what we did is permissible or not. Thank you for your replies.

Ah yes. "Florida's friendliest hometown".

The complainer is full of crap. It didn't change the number in front of him. Some people are not happy unless they are miserable.

You did nothing wrong.

I agree, OP by smiling you did the right thing.

Known as pickleball hogs. Some claim court on open times and don’t get off ( just look at us we so good don’t challenge us) if you guys want to play by yourself do it after open play times 10AM preferably reserve court for your group.

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OP was not hogging, merely keeping his group together. OP and his group were well within their rights to do what they did. There is always someone who thinks they know the rules and tries to enforce "their" rules on other people.

OP did the right thing. Smile, be sweet, and don't let bossy "know-it-alls" push you around.

During open time you fall in line wait for your turn. We not middle school girlfriends. O wait..

Wait your turn, yes.

Must play with whoever happens to be next to you in line? Nope.
Even if you resort to middle-school name calling, you don't make the rules.

Correct. You are under no obligation to break up your group just because the line falls that way as long as you wait your turn in line and play only one game to 11 if others are waiting. Correct etiquette is exactly what the OP did: allow someone further down the queue to jump in front of their foursome so they can stay together. The guy who was griping was clueless.

If proper etiquette is playing one game to 11 and others are waiting wouldn't that mean the 4 players of that game should walk off and the whole court becomes available after each and every game ? If standard practice how often is this adhered to ? Are there published rules of etiquette posted on/near the courts ? Just curious I'm not a pickle-ball player.

NEVER said must.
And you don’t either.

61, U R all good.

Sorry you met one of the 1% boneheads in TV.

Thanks to everyone for replying - I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t in violation of some rule for which I was unaware - I love pickleball, and for the most part, the people I meet there are some of the nicest and kindest people here in The Villages. Retirement is the best!

Depends on what rec center, some only two leave court while winners play 2 games in row before they get back in line. Some play rally score but most don’t.

Really proper etiquette is get back in line and play your turn. What happens some don’t want play with lower level players cause they think it will ruin their game. Which IMO not that good if the can’t deal with lower skilled player’s. And there are just snobs that want only play with their little group at open times. Which they have open play and group reserved times.

Or… a lesser player may not feel comfortable playing with much better players. Maybe that’s why they came with their group in the first place. If that guy was too belligerent, video him and report him. If he was just upset then turn your back and talk with your group.

Yes, that is correct. If there is a line of people waiting (as in the OP's story), when you finish your one game to 11, all 4 players would vacate the court and go to the end of the line. If there are fewer than 4 people waiting, one or more people finishing may be able to stay on the court to fill out the foursome. But if they are a group, while it would be nice to allow others OF EQUAL ABILITY to mix in, they are under no obligation to do so. You make think that is rude, but it is like that not only here, but everywhere I have ever played in locations across multiple states.

You were not in error. The guy needs to get a life.

Probably this guy was a New Yorker lol

You did the right thing OP. The complainer was in the wrong.

I have played open play at more than a dozen of the various rec center courts, and each facility seems to develop their own particular way of dealing with this. Often, if only a few are in line, say 4, or 6, they'll replace two at a time, let winners stay together, and as long as you keep winning, you keep playing. However, if the line grows to 8, or 10, or 12, they'll swap out 4 at a time so the wait times don't get too long. During the busy season this might work from sunrise to about 8:30, then the lines get too long and you have to go 4 at a time.

There is no rule that says you have to play with whoever is next to you. Most people do because most people don't show up with a group of 4. However, if you do have a group of four, you can stay together as long as you wait your turn for a court, exactly the way OP described. Sometimes there will be a pair of players who are preparing for a tournament and want to stay together. Some people don't like to see this, but , again, there is no written rule anywhere that states you can't do this during open play times.

For some reason this may draw the ire of someone who thinks this is wrong. There is no written rule anywhere that I've found that makes the practice out-of-bounds. Some people just insist upon trying to force their opinion of how things should be, upon others, with no authority to do so.

:1rotfl: :1rotfl: :1rotfl: :1rotfl:

You have every right to stick together and rotate play with everyone else. With over 100,000 people in the villages you will come across a few idiots that are never happy. Don’t let a few idiots tarnish the reputation of so many great friendly Villagers.

It begs the question that if the person complaining was in a group of 3 in front of you and you were all rank beginners and lousy players, would he still want one of you to join his three? Probably not!

TV is a great melting pot.

From all over the USA (maybe more), all backgrounds, all income levels, coming together.

:mornincoffee:

In the future, go to the rec center manager and bring him/her out to speak with the person. You were waiting in line anyway, so you had the time to go.

Heh. The common stereotype.

We play a lot of tennis. Primarily mixed doubles, tennis socials, things like that. Most of the social involves changing partners after every set (play to four, not six) or rotating players in and out after every game if there is an odd number of players, and we never really know who is going to show up. Quite a lot of Noo Yawkers do show up. They can be loud and brash, but also good-natured and fun. You're never a stranger with them. After 5 minutes playing with them (or against them) it is like you've known them for years.

Maybe the pickleball crowd is different.

I've watched videos for everything from etiquette to technique, strategy, etc. for pickleball, but the things that stand out from posts here, etc. are it seems like too many Type A personalities, playing to 11 seems like it would be much quicker than the time in line waiting to play, etc. I understand there are Rec Centers that are unofficially for beginners, mid and advanced level players, but as someone thinking about starting out, it all seems a bit stressful to be fun.

Don't assume everyone from NY State is from the "city". ("Noo Yawker's"). Western NY is far different from NYC, as is NY state north of Albany.

Yeah, noticed that.

My wife and I play a lot of golf with strangers. Prefer it actually as we get to meet a lot of non - fulltime TV'ers here for a couple of weeks, a month, or whatever. Conversation during the round often centers on where we come from. I noticed that New Yorkers NOT from NY City invariably say that they come from UPSTATE New York. Are they merely reacting to the stereotype (as in "if I say New Yorker without qualifying by saying "upstate" these strangers might assume the worst about me?), or do they really see themselves as that fundamentally different from the folks who actually hail from the Big Apple?

I think you were spot on, the guy yelling is just an entitled jerk.

NYC natives seem to have a stereotype as loud, boisterous, and "in your face". Maybe somewhat true but you have to consider their urban environment. But that area of the state is vastly different than the rest of the state, in geography, weather, cost of living, salaries, and concentration of population. NYC considers "upstate" to be basically anywhere in the state north of them. Those not from NYC area consider upstate to be north or west of Albany. West of Albany could also be considered western NY.

My standard reply/thought: "You don't like what I'm doing, write me a ticket." They almost never can. I don't let people make up rules for me that are not truly legally enforceable. Don't like what I'm doing? Write me a ticket. Can't? Too bad, pound sand and kick rocks. Want to take it up a notch? Ok, bring it on, but I'd rather just be left alone.

I'm not one to initiate conflict. I prefer everyone get along and I be left alone. However, I will not back down one single iota if it comes my way. Bullies are my least favorite people, and I have ZERO tolerance for people that take advantage of others. I am a welcome mat, not a door mat to have you wipe your feet upon.

Question - while waiting our turn in line, a group of 3 in front of us who’s turn it was to go onto the court needed a 4th person, we allowed a single person behind us in line to go in front of our group of 4, so that we could wait and play together when a court became available for us. This infuriated a man further back in line who yelled out at us to split up and for one of us to join the group of 3 ahead of us. The man was pretty belligerent and wouldn’t let it drop, even after the fact. We just smiled at him and didn’t respond to his outburst. I noticed a group of 4 ladies playing together did the same thing, as they wanted to play as a group. If we were in error, we surely want to be corrected, and play by the rules, but I never remember in pickleball class this particular issue ever being brought up. Was hoping someone from the pickleball community could chime in whether what we did is permissible or not. Thank you for your replies.[/QUOTE]

If specific courts were designated to various skill levels that might help. As to the rube a javelin skillfully hurled generally would quiet the beast. 🤭

I've lived all over the country, and for over a dozen years I've lived in Upstate NY, and yes, they are as different as people that live in Macon GA vs Atlanta GA, Austin TX vs Waco TX, etc. Upstate is rural and is not unlike rural PA, rural Western MD, etc. In short, city people are city people regardless of the city and rural people are rural regardless of the state. The exceptions are the wealthy that buy up rural properties for vacation homes, they sometimes bring attitude with them but oftentimes leave it behind to be chill, just depends on if they are showing up or showing off.

Rochester, Buffalo and Syracuse are considered upstate (and Western). NY. These metropolitan areas are far from being rural, although they have areas immediately surrounding them that are considered rural.

In most cases, open play is designated to a specific ability. Clearly posted on the board adjacent to the courts and also on The Villages app. In some cases, it's not specified, but most rec centers have a "reputation" for level of play. You can ask one of the folks in line, or get into a game and find out the hard way.

You need to re-read the post. They did not stay on a court and did nothing wrong.

What did you not understand? They got in line, waiting for their turn, and even allowed someone to go in front of them. Again - nothing wrong.

Yes. Posted on every gate. The OP correctly followed the rules.

All rec centers have open play every morning. Although it is recommended that true beginners do not attend, there is no hard and fast rule. OPEN play ends at 9:50 and anyone of any skill level or village location may play any court (unless otherwise reserved).

There is a schedule put out by the Rec Department that shows where you can go (days/times) for OPEN BEGINNER play, OPEN ADVANCED BEGINNER play and OPEN INTERMEDIATE play. These typically start at 10AM.

Beg-Adv Beg Play.gif - Google Drive