It was a big day for pickleball players in Swift Current yesterday morning as the City officially introduced a hexad of courts.

The six courts constructed inside Riverside Park were converted from a pair of tennis courts.

Sue Johnston, the president of the Swift Current Pickleball Club, said they've been using the tennis courts for years but now having proper facilities in Swift Current is exciting.

"The nets that are for tennis are a little bit different, they're flat across, whereas pickleball has a different height and in the sides and the middle, so these are actual pickleball nets, so that's a substantial difference," she said. "These are actual court sizes which we had on the other ones but this is just so expanded and so nice, just for pickleball."

After the ribbon cutting, Swift Current Mayor Al Bridal tried his hand at the sport

The 18+ club joined both Pickleball Canada and Pickleball Saskatchewan late last year and is in the process of switching over their members (they currently have 43 registered for all three).

"They're really trying to get more affiliated clubs under the blanket of pickleball because then it really promotes the sport," she said. "It offers an opportunity for people to also have insurance, which is nice, like if you have injuries if you're playing pickleball and are part of an affiliated club and part of Pickleball Canada then you have the opportunity for that too. But I think the biggest thing is to be recognized as a club."

Once the snow begins to fly they'll head indoors to the Lt. Colonel Clifton Centre.