G.T. Bray Pickleball Courts

Become a part of the fastest-growing community of pickleball players at the state-of-the-art C.V. Walton Racquet Center Pickleball Courts located at the G.T. Bray Recreation Center! The facility features 20 pickleball courts: 14 of these are covered and equipped with large ceiling fans to ensure excellent air circulation during the hot summer months, while the remaining 6 courts are open-air.

Reservations for the outdoor courts only can be made six days in advance. To reserve a court, call (941) 742-5973. The reservation line opens at 12:00 pm.

We can’t wait to see you enjoying the New State-of-the-Art Pickleball courts.

Daily Fee

$5 - includes tax

Hours

DROP-IN PLAY (all levels)

	Indoor (Monday - Friday)
			All Levels	4 Courts	10:00am - 12:30pm

	Outdoor (Monday - Sunday)
		Morning	Lower Levels Upper Levels Challenge Courts	11, 13, 15, 17 12, 14, 16, 18 19, 20	9:00 am - 12:00 pm

		Afternoons/Evenings	All Levels	11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16	12:00 pm - Close
RESERVATION PLAY (outdoor only)
		M - Th	7:30am - 9:00pm
		F	7:30am - 7:00am
		Sa & Su	7:30am - 4:00pm

Reservations can be made 6 days in advance by calling 941-742-5973. The phone line opens at 12:00 pm. One court can be reserved per call for up to 1.5 hours.

How To Make Reservations Using Court Reserve

Below are instructions to access Court Reserve or you can watch an instructional video using this link:

Court Reserve Instruction Video
You can access Court Reserve online at www.courtreserve.com or you can download the CourtReserve app on your phone. If you are unable to locate the app in the app store on your phone, the following are links that can be used:

Apple Store
Android Store

When you first access Court Reserve, please check to make sure you are not already in the system prior to creating a new account. Checking is easy. When you access Court Reserve, click on the forgot password link and type your email. If you are in the system, you will receive an email allowing you to reset your password. If you are not in the system, you will receive a message stating, invalid username or password. In that case, return to the home screen and click on Join Organization and type Manatee County Sports and Leisure Services and click on Sign Up.

Once you have created an account or reset your password, you are officially in the system and can begin reserving courts. By using the Court Reserve website or app, you will be able to make your reservations 7 days in advance starting at 7pm. You will still be able to make a reservation by phone 6 days in advance starting at 12pm and in person 6 days in advanced after all 12pm phone reservations are completed. Each person will be able to reserve a maximum of 2 hours per day.

Pickleball is one of the fastest growing sports in North America, it’s like ping pong on steroids, played on a badminton sized court with a tennis sized net and it is fun for all ages and fitness abilities.

Pickleball is a racket sport in which 2-4 players use solid paddles made of wood or composite materials to hit a polymer perforated ball over a net. It is unique from other sports because of the Double Bounce Rule, which requires the people on both sides of the net to allow the ball to bounce one time before hitting the ball, and the Non-Volley Zone, which is the area close to the net where you are not permitted to smash or volley the ball. It is fast paced and fun for any age or skill level.

Double Bounce Rule

Each team must play their first shot off the bounce. This is called the "double bounce rule" because the ball must hit twice (once on each side) before it can be volleyed. After the first two bounces, each side can then choose to hit the ball in the air (volley) or let it bounce once.

Non-Volley Rule

On each side of the net there is a 7' non-volley zone (sometimes referred to as the kitchen) and players cannot be inside the non-volley zone and hit the ball in the air (volley) unless the ball first bounces. When volleying the ball, the player may not step on or over the line.

Any other time, a player may be in the non-volley zone without penalty. A player who continues into the non-volley zone after a volley creates a fault and loses the rally no matter whether the ball was dead or not.

The Serve

The player on the right always serves first. The ball must contact the paddle below the waist using an underhand motion and must land in the diagonally opposite court, beyond the non-volley line. The server must start with both feet behind the baseline during the serve with at least one foot on the court surface at the time the ball is struck and hit the ball without bouncing it first. Both players on a team will serve before the service passes to the other team.

When the serving team wins a point, the server moves to the other side of the serving team's court. This first servers continues to alternate sides and continues to serve until the team loses a rally. In doubles, one team member will serve and continue to serve until the team loses the rally. Then the other team member serves until he/she loses their serve. Then the serves goes over to the other team.

From this point on each player from both teams will serve before losing the serve to the other side. To keep the first service of a game fair, only the first player serves during the first service of the game.

The Return

The receiving team must let the ball bounce before returning the serve. Also, the serving team must let the returned ball bounce once more before hitting it back. This means that there will be two bounces during the first two hits of the rally(known as the double-bounce rule).

Scoring

A team gets a point when they win a rally that they served. When the serving team wins a point, the server moves to the other side of the serving team's court. The first team to score 11 points wins (must win by 2 points).
A team shall score points only when serving. Each time the serving team wins a rally they score a point.
Rallies are lost by failing to return the ball in bounds (the lines are in bounds) to the opponent's court before the second bounce, stepping into the non-volley zone and volleying the ball, or by violating the double-bounce rule. The hand is considered an extension of the paddle. The player loses the rally if the ball hits any other part of his body or clothing. A ball hitting a line is considered in.
Because players switch sides with each point, a simple scoring system was devised to keep track of who is serving. Before each serve, the server calls out his team's score, the other team's score, and whether he is the first or second server for his team. For example, if his team has 5 points, the other team has 3, and his partner has already served and lost the point, he would call out, "5, 3, Server 2."

Pickleball

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