Pickleball in Mesa and Gilbert: What to know and where to play

Maritza Dominguez, Arizona Republic
·2 min read
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The pickleball fad isn’t slowing down and cities are responding by building more courts in their parks.

With pickleball popular among retirees and millennials alike, courts are often packed with long wait times. In Mesa, 12 new courts recently opened in two parks in the city.

Here’s where to play in Mesa and Gilbert and what to know about its rules before heading out to a play.

Pickleball courts in Mesa

Among its more than 70 large parks in Mesa, the city has 66 pickleball courts.

Mesa’s Tennis and Pickleball Center at Gene Autry Park has the most courts totaling 21. In October, the center opened eight new courts. The lighted courts are available to residents at $4 an hour for walk-ins or $6 an hour with reservations.

Reservation and walk-up rules differ park by park.

The city recently added four courts at Monterey Park along Power and Guadalupe roads. The courts are open to the public, but those with reservations will have priority. The pickleball courts can be reserved between 8:30 a.m. and 10 p.m. Monday to Sunday.

Kleinman Park, along Extension Road and Eighth Avenue, has four courts that also can be reserved for a fee. Other times, the courts are free and open to the public.

Red Mountain Park, along Power and Brown roads, has two courts that cannot be reserved and are based on first come, first served.

Washington Park, along University and Mesa drives, and Sheepherders Park, along McDowell and Lindsay roads, have one court for first-come, first-served use.

Some Mesa parks have painted pickleball lines on the basketball courts, but one catch is residents will need to bring their own net.

Those parks are:

  • Augusta Ranch Park at 9455 E. Neville Ave.

  • Chaparral Park at 1635 N. Gilbert Road.

  • Emerald Park at 1455 S. Harris Drive.

  • Sheepherders Park at 2455 E. McDowell Road.

Pickleball courts in Gilbert

Gilbert’s Regional Park, along Queen Creek and Higley roads, is the only town park with pickleball courts. The 16 courts at the park are open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis until the courts are at capacity. After that, court rotation etiquette rules must be followed.

Waiting players can set their paddles in the racks from left to right to indicate their place in line and wait from a group to finish their game.

Winners of a game can stay on the court for two games before stepping off the court, according to Gilbert’s park rules.

Reporter Maritza Dominguez covers Mesa and Gilbert and can be reached at maritza.dominguez@arizonarepublic.com or 480-271-0646. Follow her on X, formerly Twitter: @maritzacdom.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: What to know about playing pickleball in Mesa and Gilbert