Looking for a place to play pickleball this summer?  Some of the best courts might be right under your nose and you don't even know about it.

Pickleball is for old people, right?

I know it has that reputation, but no, pickleball is not "just for old people."  It's the fastest-growing sport in the country, so there are tons of people who are picking it up.  My wife and I just started playing pickleball for the first time last year and we fell in love with it.  It's something that we can both do together and we can either play hard and really get the blood pumping or just take it easy.  It's one of those types of games.

How do you play pickleball?

If you've never played pickleball, picture a combination of tennis, ping-pong, and badminton.  The courts do have to be lined a little differently than a tennis court does.  It's a little smaller than in tennis, but it's played with a net that's of the same height.  The ball can only bounce once per side and the game continues until the ball either bounces twice on one side or is hit out of bounds.  It's a very quick learn.  Click here for a really good breakdown of the rules.

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Where do you play?

You can play indoors or outdoors.  Just be prepared if you play outdoors.  You'll have to adjust your game for windy days.  The thing I love the most about playing outdoors is that you can normally find places to play for free.  Once you own your own paddle and have some wiffle balls (that's what a pickleball is) it doesn't have to cost you a penny to play.

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I put together a list of some of my favorite places to play.  Many of them, you wouldn't even know existed if you weren't looking for them.  It's like they're secret little courts that only a few people know are there.  I live in the southtowns so most of these places are there, but if you've got suggestions of great places to play, I'd love to try them out.  Please email them to me at brettalan@wyrk.com.