Some stories say it was named after the founders’ family dog, Pickles, who kept running away with the ball.
Along with its whimsical name, this eccentric sport has begun to infiltrate mainstream American culture and become something of a novelty thing.
Dubbed America’s unofficial pandemic pastime, more than a million Americans have taken up a paddle in the last two years.
“A sport for everyone”
The basic goal of pickleball, like other racquet sports, is to hit the ball over the net and prevent an opponent from hitting it back.
It can be played in singles or doubles, indoors or outdoors on a 20ft by 44ft court – about the size of a badminton court – and lasts until a side reaches 11 points, with a two-point cushion.
Pickleball got off to an ill-fated start in 1965 when future US Congressman Joel Pritchard and his friend Bill Bell were trying to entertain their bored kids while they were on vacation.
Residing on a property on Bainbridge Island, Washington, with a paved badminton court, they gathered the equipment available — a wiffle ball, ping-pong racquets, and a badminton net, which they later lowered to 36 inches, closer to the height of a tennis court net when they realized that the ball bounced well on the asphalt.
Over the course of the holidays, with the help of another friend, Barney McCallum, they began creating rules for the game.
The ping-pong racquets were deemed undersized and replaced with larger plywood racquets they had made themselves, and a non-volley zone was created seven feet from the net on either side to prevent smashing.
The non-volley zone, or “kitchen,” gives Pickleball much of its distinctiveness.
It minimizes running so older players can be just as competitive as younger, fitter players and reduces the role of power so kids can play alongside adults.
In the adjoining plazas, unaware of the presence of one of the sport’s superstars, a group of four middle-aged “pickers” gathered alongside two women receiving a lesson and a child preparing his kit for a game.
“I’ve never seen anyone dislike it, and it spans a wide range of ages and people [different] backgrounds,” added Johns.
“I’m surprised it’s gone down so quickly, but I can understand why people love it so much.”
“A lot of potential”
Pickleball’s popularity has skyrocketed in North America, due in part to the Covid-19 pandemic, as it offers a safe, socially distanced form of exercise.
It had originally found a solid footing in retirement communities, where it was popular for its sociable aspect, moderate exercise and just because it was fun.
However, between 2018 and 2021, pickleball membership in the United States nearly doubled, and the organization estimates that 4.8 million Americans play the sport today.
Much of this expansion has been focused outside of Pickleball’s traditional demographic – the fastest rate of growth has been in players under the age of 24 from 2020-2021, which was due to the height of lockdown when pickleball portable nets temporarily sold out as people set up the little squares in driveways and gardens.
Many celebrities and athletes are among the new players who have taken up the paddle in recent years.
In January 2022, Olympic legend Michael Phelps played NFL wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald in an exhibition game while Stephen Colbert was producing a “celebrity” pickleball tournament.
“I find it kind of funny that the sport has had so much appeal to celebrities and athletes,” Johns said.
“It’s something that levels the playing field, so maybe you’ve got an NFL player playing with an NBA player and they’re like, ‘Hey, we can’t compete in our sports, but we certainly can in this sport. ‘”
‘The rest is history’
Johns first picked up a pickleball paddle after growing up playing tennis and table tennis, and became a professional hitting partner for his older brother on the pro tennis tour.
“And basically pickleball courts were built near the courts where I trained [tennis]and I just saw it played and thought it looked fun,” he said.
“So I gave it a try and like most people, I got hooked very quickly. I never stopped playing it after that and the rest is history.”
In his already illustrious career, the 23-year-old has won over 50 Professional Pickleball Tour (PPA) titles and more Triple Crowns than any other male professional player — a Triple Crown refers to winning gold medals in all three divisions during a single tournament .
“I think one of the greatest things about this sport is that a lot of people love to play it, they really want to improve and it’s hard to improve if you don’t really know… how to get better.
“It’s a lot easier to get better with quality instruction and that’s essentially what TopCourt does. They bring the best players to you.”
Waxing for an Olympic future?
Professional pickleball tournaments, like the one Johns competes in, are now broadcast on multiple networks, including Fox Sports, Tennis Channel, CBS Sports and ESPN.
Pickleball seems to be not only on TV but everywhere else in the US.
There are designer paddles on store shelves, pickleball-themed weddings, viral TikTok posts, weekly features from national news outlets across the country, and even pickleball-themed philanthropy.
Pickleball is also growing around the world, albeit at a slower pace. The International Federation of Pickleball currently has 60 member countries and is nearing criteria to become an Olympic sport.
“I think it has a lot of potential, not just in the US but around the world, just because it’s really a sport for everyone,” Johns said.
“I don’t think it’s caught on anywhere near enough in other parts of the world … but I think wherever it starts there’s going to be a similar trend in the US, which is just rapid growth, and once that’s in others pass areas that I think would be perfect for the Olympics. It’s just that you can’t accelerate growth.