From tennis courts being converted to pickleball courts to places specifically made for playing pickleball, and pickleball supplies being readily available at every sporting goods store, pickleball has become the newest popular sport for people of all ages.
While about 50% of players are 55 years old or older there is still a large number of younger players about 31% between the ages of 6-34 years old, according to a report from The Sports and Fitness Industry Association. These numbers are growing too, in 2021 around 5 million people played pickleball, that number grew to 8.5 million in 2023.
The fact that anyone can play is something that appeals to lots of players. Spanish teacher Jennie Dillon started playing pickleball a few years ago after her neighborhood built courts. Dillion often sees people of all ages playing and likes to see others enjoying the sport.
“I’ll see families, or younger kids, or I’ll see an older couple, or I’ll see some teens,” Dillon said. “I feel like it kind of brings everybody together.”
One of the best things about the sport is that players of all levels can have fun playing. Places like Chicken and Pickle or Serv allow people to play casually but there are also leagues for players to compete against others. Dillon appreciates how the sport can allow anyone to play any way they want.
“I like that you can be as competitive as you want,” Dillon said. “You can run really fast, be really competitive, slam it down or you can play with someone that’s never played, and they don’t necessarily have to run all over the court, but yet they’re still enjoying it.”
While pickleball can be played for fun it can also be very competitive and can come with many challenges. Senior Aiden Lehr discusses what he goes through when playing and how he gets past it.
“The most challenging part of pickleball is when you lose a lot,” Lehr said.“There’s gonna be a lot of sports when you lose and you have to focus on not losing that next game and just [doing what] football says every single game: make that next one better than the one before.”
Pickleball can be played individually 1v1 or in doubles 2v2. This allows players to get close with other people who also play. Senior Joel Hayes, who has played pickleball for eight years, has seen how his relationships have grown through playing.
“I feel like I’ve gotten closer to my friends [by] playing pickleball with them every month,” Hayes said. “Then with my family, it definitely helps my relationships with them.”
On the other hand, Dillon prefers to play individually because it can be a struggle to work as a team.
“The most challenging thing is playing with another partner on the court with me,” Dillon said. “I’m always trying to rush in and get all of [the balls], and so then we end up not communicating.”
Like all sports and activities, pickleball can affect anyone physically or emotionally. Hayes shares how he has been affected by playing.
“Emotionally, it’s helping me be happier,” Hayes said. “It’s something to do when life’s stressful; [I can] go play pickleball, and have fun.”
Dillon echoed Hayes’ statement saying that pickleball could help anyone decompress.
“Everybody tends to have stress in their lives in one way or another, Dillon said. “And we tend to have to look at screens a lot. If we just force ourselves to get outside, and you’re actively holding the pickleball paddle, you can’t necessarily be looking at your phone or computer.”
