Odell Weeks pickleball guidelines

GENERAL GUIDELINES

  • Please read the Court Etiquette article under the "Information" tab on our website.
  • When you arrive to play, please help set up a net standard before starting play.  Before you leave, please help take down a net standard unless there is someone waiting to play on your court.  Please do not assume that the court will be used later in the day.  All courts use the paddle line-up system to determine who goes on court next when there are more players than courts available.
  • When partners want to practice for upcoming tournaments, they may play together if their opponents agree.
  • No player should continue to play on the same court during drop-in play for more than 2 consecutive games (unless no one is waiting to play).  If there are many players waiting to get on a court, please consider playing games to 9 points instead of the regular 11, as this will speed up play and allow more players access to a court.  This should be done by agreement of the players affected.
  • Shout “Pickle” if a ball from your court goes into another court.  To prevent injury and to avoid hindrance to play on another court, do not go on to the other court to retrieve the ball.  Also, please do not simply hit a ball back that rolls onto your court from another court; pick it up and keep it or return it to a player on the court it came from, when that player knows you are returning it.
  • This website (www.aikenpickleball.com) contains our playing schedule calendar, handouts, news, and links to all things related to pickleball.  Go to the “Contact Us” tab on the home page to send an email with any questions or comments you have about the Odell Weeks pickleball program or to have your email address added to our List Serve.  You may also send an e-mail to the help desk at info@aikenpickleball.com. Positive and constructive comments are always welcome!
  • Please continue to exhibit the tenets of good sportsmanship, courtesy and friendliness for which Aiken Pickledillys are so well known!   All newcomers and visitors are welcome to our program!
  • If there is no one waiting for your court in Gym 2 when you finish playing, please take down the net and net standard, put it in the bag, and take them to the equipment room in Gym 2. Even if there is play scheduled for later in the day, please do not assume that your court will be used.  If there is any doubt, take the net down.  The staff at the front desk do not know our schedule, so they will not be able to tell you whether the court will be used later.

LOCAL RULE

Pickleball courts set in Odell Weeks gymnasiums usually are quite close together, so we often use collapsible dividers between each pickleball court. In previous play, sometimes exuberant players have crossed over or through these dividers attempting to get a wide shot. This behavior represented an unacceptable safety risk for the player as well as others on the adjacent court. Accordingly, we established the “local rule” described below.

A player crossing a court divider is a fault.

  • Includes the imaginary line from divider to wall
  • Regardless of whether the adjacent court is occupied
  • Even if the ball is dead before momentum causes the player to cross divider (same as a kitchen fault)
  • Does not apply to merely reaching over a divider, nor safely retrieving a ball after a point has ended

PLAY FORMATS

At present, we have three formats for pickleball play:

1. Drop-in Play (DIP) - Mixed levels

2. Drop-in Play (DIP) - Court designation

3. Court Reservation Play (CRP)

The days and times for each format session are listed on our website under the "Calendar" tab.

A description of the guidelines for each play format follows:

 1. DROP IN PLAY - Mixed levels

All skill levels mix together.  There is one paddle queue feeding into all six courts. This is co-mingling time to welcome and play with newcomers or play at another skill level to advance your game.  We encourage players to partner up in the most balanced way possible, ensuring the best game for all players.

 2. DROP IN PLAY - Court designation

Players may play at their skill level determined by the Rating Committee as posted on our website.  The schematics below indicate skill level court assignments.  Players who do not have a rating should play on court 1 at all court designation sessions.   Visitors may obtain a temporary rating from a player representative.  

 3. COURT RESERVATION PLAY

During these play sessions, all players may arrange for a group of four players to play together.  Reservations are required and can be made by using Sign Up Genius.  Instructions and a link to Sign Up Genius are on our website for this purpose.   

Rating Process for Court Designation Play

All players who use the court designation system at Odell Weeks must obtain a skill level rating from the Aiken Pickleball Rating Committee (APRC).  The APRC will only rate people who play regularly at Odell Weeks.  There are no fees for this service.  

The Aiken Pickleball Rating System is managed by our head teaching professional; Once a minimum of three (3} players have signed up to be rated, a Skill Rating Session will be scheduled at Smith-Hazel Recreation Center on either a Monday or Wednesday morning on a date convenient to all. The APRC uses the three decimal system for local ratings: 0.0-1(L), 0.0-2(M), 0.0-3(H). Only requests for 2.5, 3.0, 3.5 or 4.0. will be accepted. Players requesting a rating of 2.0 or less will not be rated using this system. Those players will be rated by the local (OW) Pro using a less formal system

Ratings from other sources are not valid at Odell Weeks.  Even if the rating source is reliable, other ratings do not contain the low, medium, and high designations for each level that are essential for the Odell Weeks court designation system.  The only exception to this is the USAP rating. For 4.0 and up players, the USAP rating will automatically be used. For players 3.5 and below, this rating may be used at a player’s request.

When new players arrive, those with no previous experience will start play on Court 1.  New players with previous experience will start play on Court 3. Player representatives on the aforementioned courts may give these players a temporary rating. The temporary rating will be valid for court designation play, but only for three months.  After that, these players will receive an email from the APRC stating that they must obtain a rating in order to continue attending court designation play at Odell Weeks. A list of players currently eligible for court designation play at Odell Weeks can be found under the Home/People/Player List tab on this website.

Players without a rating and players with a temporary rating will be given the full-format rating that includes both drills and games.  Once a player has been rated there is a four-month waiting period before they can be rated again.  Players that have an Aiken Pickleball rating and want to move up in their level (i.e., low to high) will only have to play games.  Drills will not be part of the process.

Each month an article will appear on the Aiken Pickleball website announcing the date and time of the next rating session.  The article will include contact information and instructions on how to get scheduled.  Before signing up to be rated players should use the Skill Self Assessment Guide found on our website under the “Information” tab. Once a player signs up and is scheduled to be rated they will receive a copy of the skills expected at a given level.

Gym 2 Court Designations - 10-11am

Courts 1, 2, 3 -  Levels 3.0 and below

Courts 4, 5, 6 -  Levels 3.5 and above