Here is the short answer on pickleball in Augusta ME: the city runs a $2 indoor drop-in in the Buker Community Center gym on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings, and lists two outdoor pickleball courts at Calumet Park. For more court time, the Kennebec Valley Tennis Association runs open play and court rentals indoors at 23 Leighton Road, and you don’t need a membership.
Maine’s capital is not a big pickleball town on paper. The city counts three pickleball courts in its whole parks system. But between a two-dollar gym session and a private indoor club that openly welcomes non-members, Augusta is one of the cheapest places in central Maine to get regular games in, especially once the weather turns. The catch is that almost every directory listing for the city is either stale, double-counted, or both.
The 30-second version
- Cheapest game in town: drop-in pickleball in the Buker gym, 22 Armory St — $2 per person, 8:00–10:30 a.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday, per the city’s own program listing.
- Outdoor: the city lists 2 pickleball courts at Calumet Park, alongside a pool, basketball court and playground. It counts 3 pickleball courts across the whole parks system.
- Indoor club: the Kennebec Valley Tennis Association plays at the A-Copi Tennis & Sports Center, 23 Leighton Road. Open play is $8 non-member / $5 Silver member on weekday middays, and no membership is required.
- Directory trap: several national sites list “KVTA” and “A Copi” as two separate venues at two different Leighton Road addresses. KVTA’s own site says they are one building.
- Questions: Augusta Parks & Recreation, (207) 626-2350; KVTA front desk, (207) 213-6286.
What does it cost to play pickleball in Augusta?
Pickleball in Augusta is free. All 2 courts we list in Augusta are free public courts — no permit and no fee. Just show up and play. See the courts and venues below for each location’s details.
Where can you play pickleball in Augusta ME?
There are three places worth knowing about, and they suit three different kinds of player:
- Buker Community Center gym, 22 Armory St — the city’s indoor drop-in. Cheapest option, weekday mornings only.
- Calumet Park — the city’s outdoor pickleball courts. Free, seasonal, first come first served.
- A-Copi Tennis & Sports Center, 23 Leighton Road — home of the Kennebec Valley Tennis Association (KVTA). Indoor all year, with open play, rentals, clinics and lessons.
That’s a shorter list than the national directories show, on purpose. Everything on it is confirmed against the city’s or the club’s own pages.
How does the $2 drop-in at the Buker gym work?
Augusta Parks and Recreation runs its office out of the Buker Community Center at 22 Armory Street, and its program listing for drop-in pickleball is short and specific:
- Price: $2.00 per person.
- When: 8:00–10:30 a.m., Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
- Where: the Buker gym.
- Fine print: the city marks the schedule as subject to change.
Two dollars is the lowest indoor price we have found anywhere in Maine, and it’s a fraction of what the private clubs charge. The trade-off is the schedule. It’s a weekday-morning session, so it mostly serves retirees, shift workers and anyone with a flexible morning. If that’s you, this is the best deal in Kennebec County.
Watch out for older schedules. At least one national directory still shows a different Augusta indoor schedule, with free play for members, a $5 non-member rate, weekday open play from 9 a.m. to noon and an early-morning 3.0+ session. None of that matches what the city publishes today. Go by the city’s program page, and call (207) 626-2350 before your first visit, because gym schedules shift around school-year childcare and other bookings in the building.
What about outdoor pickleball in Augusta?
The city’s parks page describes Calumet Park as having a community pool, a basketball court, a playground, green space and 2 pickleball courts. Those are the only pickleball courts the city names by park.
Here’s where the numbers stop adding up. The city’s facilities summary puts the total at 3 pickleball courts citywide, which leaves one court unaccounted for. Directories also list pickleball at the Buker outdoor courts behind the community center. The city’s own description of that park mentions only tennis courts, plus a softball field, volleyball, basketball and two playgrounds. Our best guess is that the third court is a pickleball line painted on a Buker tennis court. The city doesn’t say so, and we can’t confirm it, so ask Parks and Recreation before you drive over with a net bag.
For comparison, the Maine towns we have covered so far run from Biddeford’s locked-net-bin parks to Lewiston’s first dedicated courts. See our Maine pickleball guide for the statewide picture.
Can non-members play at the Kennebec Valley Tennis Association?
Yes, and that’s the most useful fact about indoor pickleball in Augusta. KVTA says it plainly on its membership page: the club is open to all who are interested in playing tennis and pickleball, and you don’t need a membership to play. Memberships just lower the price.
The posted pickleball schedule and prices:
| Day | Session | Non-member | Silver member |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon, Wed, Fri | All-levels open play, midday | $8 | $5 |
| Tuesday | Higher levels, 5:30–9:00 p.m. (approval required) | $12 | $5 |
| Sunday | All-levels open play, 9:00 a.m.–noon | $10 | $5 |
| Thu & Sat | Advanced private groups (invitation only) | — | — |
A few details worth knowing before you go:
- Midday times vary by page. KVTA’s rates page lists weekday open play as noon to 2:00 p.m. Its programs page says noon to 1:30 or noon to 2:30. Call and ask which one is current.
- Court rental gets cheap with a full court. A one-hour non-member rental works out to $27 each for two people, but just $8 each with six or more. With four players it’s $14 each.
- Clinics: coach Dan Bence runs a Wednesday 10:30 a.m. clinic and a Thursday 5:00 p.m. clinic, $25 for members / $30 for non-members. You sign up with him directly.
- Memberships: Silver runs $515 a year or $135 a quarter with a three-month commitment. Gold is $1,560 a year. The same page also calls that “the full amount of $1,500,” so confirm the price at the desk.
- Hours: 8 a.m.–9 p.m. weekdays, 8–6 Saturday, 9–5 Sunday.
Why do directories list two indoor clubs on Leighton Road?
If you search for indoor pickleball in Augusta, you’ll likely see two listings: Kennebec Valley Tennis Association at 23 Leighton Road, and a separate “A Copi” at 34 Leighton Road with six indoor courts and a members-only tag. It looks like the city has two indoor clubs a few doors apart.
It doesn’t. KVTA’s own site gives its home as the A-Copi Tennis & Sports Center, 23 Leighton Road, the same name as the second listing. That’s one facility entered twice, with one listing carrying a wrong street number and a members-only claim the club’s own membership page contradicts. We have now seen this kind of double-listing in several New England towns. It inflates a city’s indoor court count, and it sends people to the wrong door.
We also can’t give you a verified court count for the building. KVTA doesn’t publish one, and the directories disagree. Ask the front desk.
Where else can you play near Augusta?
Augusta sits at the center of a string of Kennebec Valley towns. For a longer drive with more courts, the nearest places we have covered are pickleball in Waterville, about 20 miles north, where Champion’s Fitness Club runs eight indoor courts, and pickleball in Lewiston to the southwest. Our indoor pickleball in Maine roundup covers the rest of the state’s winter options, and the New England court directory has every listed venue.
New to open play? Read our pickleball etiquette guide first. The rotation rules are the same at a two-dollar drop-in as at a private club.
Frequently asked questions
How much is drop-in pickleball in Augusta Maine?
The city’s drop-in session in the Buker Community Center gym, 22 Armory Street, costs 2 dollars per person. It runs 8:00 to 10:30 a.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and the schedule is subject to change.
Are there outdoor pickleball courts in Augusta ME?
Yes. The city lists 2 pickleball courts at Calumet Park and 3 pickleball courts citywide. It doesn’t say where the third court is, so call Parks and Recreation at 207-626-2350.
Do you need a membership to play pickleball at KVTA in Augusta?
No. The Kennebec Valley Tennis Association says it is open to anyone who wants to play. Non-member open play is 8 dollars on weekday middays and 10 dollars on Sunday mornings, and members pay less.
Is A-Copi a different club from the Kennebec Valley Tennis Association?
No. KVTA lists its home as the A-Copi Tennis and Sports Center at 23 Leighton Road. Directory listings that show A Copi as a separate venue at 34 Leighton Road are a duplicate.
Where can I take pickleball lessons in Augusta?
KVTA offers private lessons and two weekly clinics with coach Dan Bence, on Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. and Thursday at 5:00 p.m. Clinics cost 25 dollars for members and 30 dollars for non-members.
Sources: City of Augusta, Parks and Parks & Recreation pages; Augusta Parks and Recreation drop-in pickleball program listing; Kennebec Valley Tennis Association rates, programs and membership pages. Verified September 2026. Schedules and fees change, so confirm before you go.
