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  • Instructions
  • Open level play
  • COURT RENTAL
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tHE PICKLEBALL EXPLOSION

Why Pickleball is the fastest growing sports in America?

Pickleball — a combination of tennis, badminton and ping-pong — surged in popularity over the past two years. But the sport's rapid rise is much more than a pandemic-fueled fad.  For the last several years, the sport of pickleball has been dubbed the “fastest-growing sport in America.”  According to the 2019 Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA) Participant Report, there are currently approximately 3.3 million players in the United States.


State of play: Pickleball participation grew by 21.3% between 2019 and 2020, prompting the Economist to declare it "the fastest growing sport in America." 4.2 million Americans now play at least once a year.  

  • Demand for courts is exploding, with cities building new facilities and private clubs replacing tennis courts. 
  • Professionalization has expanded, with newly-launched Major League Pickleball joining the APP and PPA tours. Country clubs are also hiring their own pros to teach members. 
  • Commercialization is happening fast, with equipment/apparel brands like Recess and publications like In Pickleball banking on the sport's continued rise. 
  • A youth movement is underway, as more schools add pickleball to physical education classes. Most "core" players (play 8+ times per year) are still 65+, but most "casual" players are now in the 8–34 age range. 


What they're saying: "Pickleball is the only sport where my whole family — from my kids to my parents — can play together and have an absolute blast," says Dave Fleming, 54, a senior pickleball pro.  


  • At the same time, people are starting to recognize that it can be played at a crazy high level, in huge venues, in front of tons of fans. 
  • Celebrities are playing. 
  • Athletes from other sports are playing.


How to play: Pickleball was invented in 1965 on Bainbridge Island (near Seattle) by three dads, including future Rep. Joel Pritchard.  The three dads in Washington state faced a dilemma familiar to beleaguered parents in 2021: how to keep their restless children entertained. They threw together wooden paddles, a badminton net, and a perforated plastic ball. The sport “pickleball” was born, deriving its name—according to one legend—from a dog named Pickle, which kept running away with the ball.


  • Games are generally played to 11 (win by two) on a surface roughly a third the size of a tennis court (20 feet x 44 feet) with whiffle balls and paddles. You can play doubles or singles. 
  • Points are only scored by the service team. Volleying is allowed as long as it's not on the service return or the return of that return — and as long as it's not in "the kitchen," a seven-foot-deep area on each side of the net.

PICKLEBALL: THE FASTEST-GROWING SPORT IN AMERICA

NBC Nightly News:  Find out why the Pickleball craze is sweeping the nation. Originally aired March 18, 2014 on NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams.  Story by NBC News Correspondent Mark Potter.

How the name Pickleball created.

Ever wonder how this amazing game that you love so much got started?  Watch the video.

Connect With Us

 Managing Director: Victor Urzua -  Victor@playUDSC.com and 

Mark Spann - mark@UpperDubliSportsCenter.com

Club Manager:  Carla Dimuzio - carla@UpperDublinSportsCenter.com

 Seasonal Court Coordinator: Val Shalbrack -  VAL@UpperDublinSportsCenter.com 

Pickleball Ambassador: Paul Laurie - Paul@playUDSC.com

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