Count Brooklyn's Ted Weissberg as one of the nearly five million folks in the U.S. who have discovered pickleball.

"It's a game that you can be reasonably good within the first couple of times you play," said Weissberg.

What You Need To Know

  • There are four new Pickleball courts in Brooklyn Bridge Park

  • Pickleball is the fastest growing sport in America

  • The game is played with a paddle and a ball that resembles a whiffleball

  • It's a combination of racquet sports like tennis, table tennis and badminton

Weissberg was among the first pickleball players to enjoy the four brand new courts at Brooklyn Bridge Park's Pier Two.

The game is a combination of tennis, ping pong and badminton. Players use a paddle and a ball that resembles a whiffleball.

Brooklyn Bridge Park President Eric Landau says the courts were built on the site of underutilized bocce courts. Pickleballers had been setting up their own courts at Pier Two's handball courts.

"We got lots of requests from people in the community and beyond the immediate community asking why doesn't Brooklyn Bridge Park have pickleball," said Landau.

The group that plays at Brooklyn Bridge Park is around 800 strong and growing. Landau says time will be allotted for pick-up matches as well as league play.

"There will be time every weekday for league permits, every weekend for league permits, as well as first come first served seven days a week," said Landau.

Players are already flocking to the new courts, and they like what they see.

"It's awesome to see that they set this up for us and now we don't have set up and brining our own nets and all that stuff," said player Karim Kerawala.

You might say the courts are already a smash hit!

To find out more about pickleball and other activities at Brooklyn Bridge Park, head to brooklynbridgepark.org.