What you need to know about Pickleball

April is National Pickleball Month!

I first became aware of pickleball when friends returned from vacation raving about how much they enjoyed playing pickleball for the first time. They dubbed it “tennis for the middle aged athlete.” 🙂 Then my good friend Jo told me she has switched from playing volley ball to pickleball at least twice a week! Recently, when I tried to buy a dampener for my son’s tennis racquet, pickleball equipment took up much of the space on the tennis aisle. Finally, just this morning I heard the hosts of Make Me Smart discussing how pickleball got its name, and that pushed this Word Nerd over the edge.

So now you have it: a quick and dirty overview of one of the fastest growing sports in the USA and around the world.

Brief history of pickleball

Pickleball started on Bainbridge Island, near Seattle, Washington in 1965. A congressman and a successful businessman wanted to create a game to keep their families occupied while the men played golf. The game was intended to be fun and easy for anyone to play – kids and adults alike. Players used table tennis paddles to hit a perforated plastic ball across a net on an old badminton court. The ball bounced well on the asphalt surface, so they lowered the net to 36 inches, and the game was born.

In 1972, a corporation was created to protect the sport, and in 1976, the first known tournament in the world was held at South Center Athletic Club in Tukwila, Washington. It’s been growing ever since.

Why is it called pickleball?

There are two different “legends” around the unusual name of this sport. Neither one has anything to do with pickles. One suggests that Joan Pritchard, the wife of one of pickleball’s founders Joel Pritchard, started calling the game pickleball because it combines different sports, the way the pickle boat in crew combines oarsman from different boats. (The pickle boat is made up of leftovers after all the other boats have been filled.)

Another theory is the game was named after the Pritchard’s dog Pickles, who would chase the ball and run with it, but people who know the family say the dog joined the family after pickleball was invented.

Basic rules

Pickleball is played on a badminton sized court marked by two service areas on each side, as well as a seven foot no volley area running adjacent to the net on each side. Players use pickleball paddles make of wood or high tech aerospace materials and a small ball similar to a wiffle ball. Serves are done underhand, and the ball must bounce once before a player can volley it to the other side. This eliminates the focus on power that often dominates tennis and keeps the ball in play longer.

I have never actually played pickleball, but I am definitely intrigued. Anything that keeps me moving and having fun with family and friends is a win.

To learn more about pickleball, visit:

Have you played pickleball? What do you like or dislike about it?

Thanks for getting nerdy with me!

Julia Tomiak
I believe in the power of words to improve our lives, and I help people find interesting words to read. Member of SCBWI.

2 Comments

  1. My family in Illinois has been playing for years and they love it! There are many pickle ball courts in the city parks. The recently went to Jamaica and even played there.

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.