How to play pickleball on a tennis court

Several of the venues in my city guides run pickleball on tennis courts, from Nollamara in Perth to Clifton Hill in Melbourne. Here is how the two fit together.

How many pickleball courts fit on a tennis court?

Some Australian builders advertise up to four pickleball courts on one tennis court. That matches the packed maximum above. With four, players have little room between courts, which matters for safety and stray balls.

The simplest option: one court using the tennis net

If you only want one game on a tennis court, centre a pickleball court on the tennis net. The geometry works neatly:

• A tennis court is 23.77 m long, so each tennis baseline is 11.885 m from the net. Tennis service lines are 6.40 m from the net.
• A pickleball court is 13.41 m long, so each pickleball baseline sits 6.705 m from the net, about 30 cm behind the tennis service line.
• The pickleball court is 6.10 m wide and fits inside the 8.23 m tennis singles court.
• The pickleball kitchen lines go 2.13 m either side of the net.

What about the net height?

The nets are close but not the same:

A tennis net is about 5 cm higher than a pickleball net at the centre. To get it right, tighten the centre strap to lower the middle to 86.36 cm. The rulebook allows a centre strap to adjust the centre height. For a permanent setup, a dedicated portable pickleball net is the clean answer.

Temporary lines: tape

Pickleball Canada's guide recommends green tape for temporary lines because it adheres well, does not leave residue, and is easy to tell apart from white tennis lines. It suggests:

• around 200 feet (about 61 m) of tape per court for temporary lines, with a minimum of 198 feet (about 60 m) per court
• two people to mark it, although one person can do it
• using existing tennis lines as guides, for example using the tennis service line as a marker for the kitchen line in its multi-court layouts
• avoiding duct tape, which it says can damage the surface when removed

Before taping any club or council court, get permission from whoever manages it.

Permanent lines

Permanent pickleball lines are painted onto the surface, ideally in a colour that contrasts with both the court and the tennis lines. The rulebook requires all pickleball lines to be 5 cm wide, the same colour, and clearly contrasting with the playing surface.

I did not find public Tennis Australia or Pickleball Australia guidance on line colours for shared courts. Pickleball Australia's Facility Development Guidelines, available on request through its website, cover converted facilities for local government.

Australian examples of conversions

• Kangaroo Valley, NSW: Australasian Leisure Management reported in May 2026 that Shoalhaven City Council converted one hard tennis court at Kangaroo Valley Tennis Club into three dedicated pickleball courts with new line-marking, and resurfaced two tennis courts in two-tone acrylic.
• City of Canning, WA: the council's court hire page lists pickleball lines marked on the tennis courts at Whaleback, for shared use.
• Tennis Australia and the National Pickleball League: in October 2026 they announced plans to convert existing tennis facilities into multi-sport racquet hubs that combine tennis and pickleball.

Things to check before converting a tennis court

1. Who owns or manages the court? Council courts and club courts need permission before lines go down.
2. Noise. Pickleball noise has led to restrictions at some Australian tennis clubs. At Kingscliff in NSW, Tweed Shire Council stopped pickleball after an acoustic assessment. Read the council approval and noise guide.
3. Surface condition. Cracks and worn acrylic affect both sports. See court surfaces.
4. Shared bookings. Agree how tennis and pickleball players will share times.