Pickleball: a little bit Ping-Pong and a little bit badminton. All it takes is a little bit of pract

Paul Fenn, Fairfield Harbour Pickleball Ambassador, (pictured right ) practices drills with Ellen McElree (far left) and Dennis Howard (2nd from left) and Dee Schernig (across the net).

Pickleball is fastest growing sport in America. Fairfield Harbour has stepped up the game with three brand new state of the art courts that stay crowded with players. Pickleball is a paddle sport (similar to a racquet sport) that combines elements of ping-pong, badminton and tennis. Players use composite paddles to hit a perforated polymer ball, similar to a wiffle ball, over a net.

Pickleball like most sports takes practice to become proficient. On most Wednesday mornings you can find Paul Fenn, Fairfield Harbour Pickleball Ambassador, on the courts giving pointers and running drills for those interested in improving their game.

Here are a few of Paul’s drills:

• Put the first serve where it needs to go. Paul places a hula hoop on the court and encourages players to serve the ball in the middle of the hula hoop.

• How to return an effective 2nd long shot. Paul shows players how to follow through on the swing to get the best range.

• Practice the 3rd shot drop. Paul stages a third shot drop practice round. He emphasizes that a well placed third shot dink allows you to begin the dink game. The dink game begins when all four players at the net (if you're playing doubles) are trying to dink the opponent out of position.

If you have not tried Pickleball – give it a shot. The game is fun, the comradery is inspiring and the exercise is good aerobic workout without as much stress and strain on joints and muscles.

The Pickleball Courts in Fairfield are located on Port Drive, off Barbary Coast Drive. Beginner play is Wednesday and Saturday mornings. New payers welcome!