Our indoor court facilities are perfect for your year-round needs, with six brand-new regulation pickleball courts and a bonus basketball hoop. Whether you want to have a regular game, do some occasional drop-ins or learn some new skills, GMCF Pickleball is ready for you!
Central Vermont’s Premier Pickleball Arena
GMCF hosts six regulation courts with professionally installed acrylic textured floors and semi-permanent net systems. With 32′ high ceilings and regulation side and end line spacing, your full game can be on display. This is Central Vermont’s premier spot to get your year-round pickleball fix!
FREQUENTLY ASKED PICKLEBALL QUESTIONS
The easiest way to play pickleball at GMCF is to join a scheduled, drop-in play session. These sessions are scheduled every day and organized by level. You can view the drop-in schedule and sign up for a session here or on PlayerLineup.
Outside of the scheduled sessions, you may reserve a court through the GMCF app or by calling the front desk. Classes, clinics and private lessons are also available.
PlayerLineup is the scheduling system that GMCF uses to organize drop-in sessions. Visit PlayerLineup to create a free account, see the schedule, and sign-in for sessions. The PlayerLineup schedule is organized by day, time, and level. Each session indicates how many player slots are available and which courts are reserved for the session. You can also see the names of people that are currently signed-in for the session. It is important to sign in if you plan to attend the session and sign out if you can no longer attend a session you previously signed in to.
Most commonly, drop-in sessions consist of games played on one or more courts with rotating partners and opponents.
PLAYER ROTATION SESSIONS
If there are enough people registered for the session that some are waiting, the general practice is for two of the four players who just completed a game to leave the court and for two waiting players to join the next game. Then, the two players who played two games in a row would be the next players to leave the court for the next two waiting players.
ROUND ROBIN SESSIONS
Other sessions use a round robin system where each player is assigned a number and partners and opponents are assigned randomly using these numbers so that players have an opportunity to play with a mixed group of players in the session.
CHALLENGE COURT SESSIONS
Friday evening sessions use a challenge court system in which the winning team stays on the court and plays the next challenging team. The winning team gets to choose if they stay together or split. After 3 wins in a row the winning team must relinquish the court and re-challenge.
Read more about Challenge Court Sessions here.
Drop-in sessions are level-based so that similarly skilled players are generally playing together. Levels are determined based on a rating system called DUPR and indicated by the number range in the session header (e.g. 3.3 to 4.0, 3.8 to 4.5 etc.).
Each session includes a maximum number of people that can sign up for a session. This is to ensure that all players get a good amount of time on-court relative to time waiting for each session.
Yes! Often plans change and people will sign out of sessions that were full. By signing in to a full session you are essentially on a waiting list. Check about 1 hour before the scheduled session to see if spots have opened up.
A DUPR rating is a measure of your skill and is determined by the number of points you win and lose against your opponents in DUPR-recorded matches.
DUPR (“dynamic universal pickleball rating”) is a rating system that measures a pickleball player’s skill level. It’s designed to be accurate and inclusive, rating players on the same scale regardless of age, gender, location, or skill level.
The DUPR system is similar to rating systems used in tennis (UTR) and chess (ELO) in which each player has a rating that changes based on games won or lost against higher or lower rated players.
Generally, your rating goes up if you win games and goes down if you lose games. (This isn’t entirely true as your rating may go down if you win or up if you lose depending on the expected score of the game.)
The more games you play that are recorded in the DUPR system, the more accurate and reliable your rating will be.
Most tournaments are organized by DUPR level so that players are competing against similarly skilled opponents.
You can get a DUPR rating by playing matches that are recorded into the DUPR system. Start by downloading the DUPR app and creating a free account.
Generally, all organized tournaments are recorded, as are other competitive events. GMCF hosts regular “DUPR days” where all games played during usual drop-in sessions are recorded in the DUPR system. You can also self-report game scores in the DUPR system.
Yes! Even if you don’t plan on playing tournaments it is still useful to have a rating to find the most appropriate drop-in play session at GMCF or other clubs.
Yes! We encourage people to follow the 20/60/20 rule. You should aim to play 60% of sessions at your rated level, 20% of sessions below your rated level and 20% of sessions above your rated level. The one exception to this are sessions with a COMP designation.
A small number of sessions each week are designated “COMP.” These sessions have been scheduled to satisfy the goals of the players who are looking for some more specific styles of play, and more competitive games.
In order to play in a COMP session, you must have a DUPR rating of 4.0 or higher. If you are an unrated player you may also contact [email protected] to arrange for a provisional DUPR rating evaluation.
COMP games are there for players who are actively developing their drop shots, their point construction, their soft game and the full breadth of tactical tools that exist at the higher levels of pickleball.
We are so glad you asked! All pickleball play at GMCF is subject to both our facility-wide Code of Conduct and our Pickleball Culture Guide. Play with these policies in mind so everyone can enjoy!
courts calendar
Organized Play
Throughout the week we have court time set aside for level-specific play so you can find the right cohort to join. We use Player Lineup to manage sign-ups for these sessions. Click the button to create your account – it’s a great system for ensuring enough people will be there for a great game.
Private Play
If you’ve got a group of pickleball partners ready to play privately, please call our Front Desk at (802) 223-6161 to book court time outside of our regularly scheduled games.
clinics & Series
Adaptive Pickleball Series
In this series, GMCF coaches and volunteers create a fun, supportive environment with instruction and gameplay designed specifically to make the game accessible to people with disabilities.
2026 Dates:
Sept. 16th to Oct. 28th
Beginner Pickleball Clinic
This two hour clinic for beginner pickleball players led by certified GMCF pickleball coaches will cover the basics of technique like stance, grip & swing as well as the rules of play and scoring. Attendees will learn about opportunities for play in the central Vermont region. This clinic is appropriate for brand new players as well as those who picked up the game on their own but have never learned proper technique.
2026 Dates:
January 18, 12:30-2:30 PM
March 22, 1:00-3:00 PM
September 12, 9:00-11:00 AM
6-Week Pickleball Series
A 6-week clinic series designed for players to learn the skills and tactics to bring them up to the next level. Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced divisions available.
2026 Dates:
2/1 – 3/8/26; Sundays 12:30-2:00 PM
4/5 – 5/10/26; Sundays 1:00-3:00 PM
9/20 – 10/25/26; Sundays 12:30-2:30 PM
classes
We offer regularly scheduled opportunities to learn and play pickleball, using class credits on your Summit membership, or a member-priced drop-in fee with your Base Membership. Non-members are also welcome to try our classes with an easy drop-in fee!
COMPETITIONS
5-week level-based sessions of competitive play using a variety of different formats. Leagues take place in 3 seasonal sessions: Fall, Winter & Spring.
Fundraiser tournament supporting Capstone’s “Fuel Your Neighbor” program. Register as an individual and play 9 games of scramble format with different players.
Individual registration doubles tournament with round robin format and the opportunity to play as long as you keep winning.
Doubles pickleball tournament using a triple elimination bracket format.
Round Robin Doubles format with mixed and gender categories and multiple player levels.
Tournament series featuring player draft and 9 total games of gender doubles, mixed doubles and team singles.
newsletters
Subscribe to The Drop, our pickleball newsletter featuring general news and updates from the GMCF courts!
Subscribe to our pickleball competitors’ newsletter for direct updates on competitions!
Pickleball Events & News
GMCF Pickleballers Perform at VSG
GMCF had a big showing at the recent Vermont Senior Games pickleball tournament. Our athletes were represented across many age groups and playing levels and we are proud to have them all representing our community on the court, and on the podium!
PickleSTRONGER
Love Pickleball? Take your game to the next level! This progressive strength and agility class is designed specifically for Pickleball players who want to move better, react faster, and play stronger. Each session focuses on improving balance, coordination, core stability, and joint resilience—helping you cover the court with confidence and power. You’ll build strength where…
Join the Fall GMCF Pickleball Leagues!
5 weeks of fun and competitive pickleball play await you with the GMCF Pickleball Leagues’ Fall session! The GMCF courts will host players registered in this league on Mondays from 4:30 to 7:00 PM, from September 21st through October 19th. The League welcomes Upper Intermediate to Lower Advanced players (DUPR of 3.5 to 4.0). The…