Padel Comes to Orange County: Newport Beach's First Court
Padel Comes to Orange County: Newport Beach's First Court
One court, four-player bookings and a three-month trial at The Tennis & Pickleball Club
Orange County has roughly 3.2 million residents and one of the densest concentrations of racquet clubs in California. Until this fall it had no padel at all: our directory tracks 44 clubs across the state, 34 of them open, and not one sat inside the county line.
That has now changed, on exactly one court.
Three million people, one padel court
The Tennis & Pickleball Club at Newport Beach — TTC, to anyone local — has put a single padel court into service, and the club's own padel page states that it "brings the first padel court to Orange County." Nothing in our data contradicts it: no other Orange County venue is tracked in our directory.
One caveat for anyone searching locally: this market is unusually polluted with near-misses — pickleball courts and platform or paddle tennis listings indexed under "padel." Our explainers on padel vs pickleball and padel vs platform tennis sort out which is which.
The court
The Tennis & Pickleball Club at Newport Beach
TTC is a private members' racquet club on Clubhouse Drive that began as a tennis facility and reinvented itself as what it calls the world's first private pickleball club. The padel court is by far the smallest part of it: one court, on a property already running 31 pickleball courts and 12 tennis courts — including what the club says is the only European red clay court in Orange County.
Padel at TTC is led by founder Sean Bollettieri, with teaching pro Amir Palmen running the court. Palmen is typically on site Tuesdays and Fridays, which is when the programming runs.
Courts: 1
How to actually play on it
Members book in the TTC app
Members reserve padel the same way they reserve tennis or pickleball — through the TTC app. Fees are settled at front reception on check-in or billed to the member account.
Non-members book by calling the club
There is no online booking path for outside players. TTC asks non-members to call (949) 759-0711 and have staff arrange it — the club calls this group "approved non-members," so expect a conversation rather than a self-serve checkout.
Fees run per person, per hour: $20 members, $40 member guests, $50 approved non-members. A court seats four, so that is $80 for an hour of member play, $160 for member guests, $200 for a non-member four-ball.
Four players required — no singles
A booking needs a minimum of four players, and the club does not offer singles at this time. If you are used to walking into a tennis club and hitting with one other person, this is the adjustment: arrive with a four, or ask the club to help you find one.
With only one court on site, cancellations cost 50% of the fee unless you reschedule within two days. Rain is handled more gently — no charge if play has not started, 50% once you pass the 30-minute mark.
Clinics on Tuesdays and Fridays
Tuesday mornings run three back-to-back hours from 8:30, built around "Padel 101: Learn to Play" and a practice-and-points hour — the instructional, beginner-friendly end of the week, at $35 for members and $50 for non-members.
Fridays are the showcase. From 4:30 the court runs a Padel 101 hour, a social points-and-games hour, then a Friday Night Challenge Court at 6:30 that feeds into TTC's Friday Night Social. Fridays are free for members and $50 for non-members — cheap against what a first padel clinic usually costs. Private lessons can be arranged with the pro.
A trial, not a commitment
TTC is explicit that this is a pilot. There is no padel membership, and the club says programming, pricing and availability may all change "as we learn what members want." After roughly three months it will assess demand and announce what comes next — which may be nothing.
If the trial lands, the club has said additional courts would be considered at its TTC Newporter Club, also in Newport Beach — a stated possibility, not a construction plan. The honest summary: Orange County has padel today, and whether it still has padel next spring depends on how busy this one court gets.
Why a pickleball club added padel
The pattern is familiar. Padel's cheapest route into a new US market is rarely a ground-up club — it is an existing racquet facility with spare square footage, a membership already in the habit of booking courts, and staff who know how to run a clinic. TTC has all three, plus experience doing this once before: it converted itself from a struggling tennis property into a pickleball destination. One court and two programmed days is an efficient way to find out whether the same crowd takes to a third racquet sport, before committing concrete.
The nearest alternatives
With one court and four-player bookings, it will be busy. The fallbacks are still in Los Angeles County and inland — our Los Angeles guide and South Bay guide go deeper:
- South End Racquet & Health Club — two outdoor courts in Torrance, the closest shot up the 405. Members only.
- Padel Up — four rooftop courts on the Westfield Century City Skydeck.
- Padel Up - Culver City — three indoor courts under 30-foot ceilings, with gym, sauna and cold plunge.
- The Padel Courts — a boutique three-court club on Sunset Boulevard in Los Feliz.
- PURA PADEL LA (SHERMAN OAKS) — three rooftop courts at Westfield Fashion Square.
- Rad Padel | Powered by Padel California — in Murrieta, the nearest open club outside LA County.
Two more will shorten the drive. Padel California - Whittier is building five outdoor courts and a clubhouse — the closest serious venue to north Orange County once it opens, and a project we covered here. Ballers DTLA is planning four courts in the former Macy's at The Bloc downtown.
Our breakdown of padel growth in California tracks the clubs and courts added through 2026. Orange County has just stopped being the conspicuous hole in that map — by one court, on trial.
Frequently Asked Questions
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