Pickleball
August 10, 2023
What the heck is Pickleball?
Image courtesy of YouFit. They have 23 gyms with a pickleball court!
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Pickleball is a paddle sport that combines elements of various racquet sports. It's played on a smaller court, typically a quarter the size of a tennis court, with a net that is similar to a tennis net but lowered in the center.
Gyms have had to adapt their facilities to serve the demand, and you'll often see the game played:
Pickleball is played with a solid paddle and a plastic ball with holes, similar to a wiffle ball. The objective is to hit the ball over the net and into the opposing team's court, with the aim of scoring points and winning the game.
Pickleball can be played in singles (one player on each side) or doubles (two players on each side). The game starts with an underhand serve, and once the ball is in play, players must let it bounce once on their side before returning it.
These rules apply just the same at gyms, where the difference is usually just the location (hardwood/tennis court).
After the initial bounce, both teams can volley the ball (hit it in the air) or play it off the bounce. Points are scored when the opposing team fails to return the ball successfully.
The first team to reach a predetermined number of points, typically 11 or 15, with a lead of at least two points, wins the game.
Funny story, we're still digging around to see if it's the truth! "Pickleball" is said to have originated from the Pritchard family's dog, Pickles, who would chase after the ball and run away with it.
Over time, the game gained popularity within the local community and spread to neighboring regions. In 1972, the first official Pickleball tournament was held, and the game continued to grow in popularity throughout the United States.
Actually, quite a long time ago. While it might sound brand new, it was invented sometime around the mid-1960s on Bainbridge Island, Washington. The founders were Joel Pritchard, Bill Bell, and Barney McCallum—and we're sure they would be ecstatic at how popular it is now.
Basically, the three friends wanted to create a game that would keep their families entertained during the summer. They improvised by combining elements from different sports and utilizing household items such as ping pong paddles and a net borrowed from badminton.
As of August 2023, there are 9 different gym chains with pickleball. From those, we count 161 different gyms where you can play the popular sport.
Here are the gyms that have at least one location with pickleball:
Head over to our main pickleball page to see the exact gym locations with a pickleball court. The courts are spread throughout the country—everywhere from Sacramento & San Diego, California, to Miami & St. Petersburg in Florida.
Sprinkle in some courts around Texas, Arizona, Georgia and Pennsylvania for good measure too.
We fully expect this number to grow in the coming years!
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