Could I play pickleball outside in NYC? (lower Manhattan)

August 12, 2023 12:20 PM

I would like to try to play pickleball. Outside. Near the East Village. What do I do?

I see that there are pickleball courts in Stuyvesant Town, but apparently they're just for the residents (makes sense).

There also seems to be one pickleball court outside of Asser Levy Recreation Center. Let's say I wanted to play there. I have a partner, but you need four people, right? How could I get another two people?

And what's with the "levels"? What is the level number of "never played before, has no idea what to do"?

Are there any other outdoor courts that I could get to? What if my partner didn't want to go to some other place, like uptown? Could I go myself, or do you have to have your own partner?

Is this hopeless? (it kind of seems so at this point.)

also, I"m 72. All the players in Stuyvesant Town were very young.

Do I have to move to Florida to find appropriate pickleball for my age and abilities? (KIDDING)

posted by DMelanogaster to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (5 answers total)

It looks like the Sol Lain Playground has outdoor courts.

I understand you can play "singles" pickleball, but I don't know anything about it!
posted by praemunire at 12:37 PM on August 12, 2023 [1 favorite]

If you can get over to Brooklyn Bridge Park there are four pickleball courts on Pier 2, newly installed last year. I think you can borrow gear from the roller rink if you don't have your own. The courts are outdoor but protected from the elements by the old shed. They seem to be very popular with a broad range of ages, so maybe not so difficult to find playing partners?

The most pleasant way to get there would be to take the ferry over to Fulton Landing from Corlears Hook. It's like an 8 minute voyage and then a very nice 10 minute walk through the park to Pier 2. If you take the ferry from Stuyvesant Cove (which may be closer to where you live) you'll have to connect through Wall Street.
posted by theory at 1:01 PM on August 12, 2023 [2 favorites]

NYC Pickleball may be able to answer many of your questions and also has a pretty comprehensive list of courts, including info on how to contact and join groups at various locales. It looks like a lot of them use Slack to communicate.

If you're looking to join a group or just let others know what your skill level is, here is a chart for determining your level and here is another.
posted by theory at 1:43 PM on August 12, 2023 [1 favorite]

There have been pop-up pickleball courts in Union Square (17th St side) on Thursdays all summer. They're run by CityPickle, whose website is woefully unclear about whether they're still running, but if it's not too out of the way for you, could be worth dropping by on a Thursday.
posted by snaw at 4:01 AM on August 13, 2023

In my pickleball experience -- not as a player, but surrounded by them -- you can show up solo and they will happily absorb you into their cult.
posted by The corpse in the library at 7:31 AM on August 13, 2023