The sonic “thwack” of pickleballs will be heard at Fenway Park for one more day in July, with high demand to play on one of the dozen pickleball courts at Fenway Park prompting organizers to add Wednesday, July 12, to the inaugural Ballpark Series, which is scheduled to run through July 16.
“Interest has far exceeded even our most optimistic projections,” said Mike Dee, chairman of Pickleball4America, in a text Monday.
Registration to reserve court time for either recreational play or a doubles competition began on June 1. Registrants can go to redsox.com/pickleball to sign up, with court assignments expected to be unveiled in the coming days.
Advertisement
Even with the rental cost fixed at $1,500 for 80 minutes of court time for a single group of two to 10 players, Pickleball4America organizers had expected demand to exceed supply.
“We’re going to do our best to accommodate everybody and as many people as possible,” Dee said last week. “But I think it’s fair to say that the early interest, based on the announcement of a few months ago, is extremely high.”
The doubles competition is for players at a 3.5 or higher skill level, with medals for the winners. Everyone who gets court time, for recreational or competitive play, will receive a Red Sox pickleball paddle, courtesy of Franklin Sports.
If you want to watch but not play, general admission will cost $10. There will be live music plus food and beverages for sale. One of the days will feature an exhibition match with top professional pickleballers.
“We want players to come and hang out and not just come and play their match or play their court time and leave,” said Dee. “We’re going to make it hopefully a festival kind of feel, a place where they may play for an hour and a half but want to hang out for four or five hours, get something to eat, walk around, enjoy the music, enjoy the vibe of the event.”
Advertisement
This story was updated with new information about dates and availability.
Michael Silverman can be reached at michael.silverman@globe.com.