The fastest growing sport-Pickleball

Looking for a new warm-weather sport? Try pickleball.

April 21, 2019, 10:28 PM CST

By Amanda Loudin

One of the fastest growing sports in America involves a court and a net. And, no, it's not tennis or badminton, it's pickleball. Yes, that pickleball, the one your grandma plays, and the one you may consider beneath your athletic pay grade. Time to rethink that.

Pickleball has had a 650 percent increase in numbers over the last six years, according to USA Pickleball Association (USAPA). The biggest subset of that growth is not in the over-60 crowd, says Justin Maloof, executive director of USAPA, but the younger set. “When the sport first caught on in the sunbelt states around 2009, it was at 55-plus centers and RV communities,” he says. “It snowballed from there. But these days, there are many municipalities and parks and rec departments that are setting up courts, making it accessible to a younger crowd.”

That’s how 49-year old Rocky Brown first learned of the sport. The Woodbine, Md., real estate professional gave the game a try through his local parks and recreation department and before he knew it, Brown was hooked. “I fell in love with it, found a league and soon was playing five days a week,” he says. “I wanted to help it grow locally, so I became the league director.”

Now Brown oversees a league that plays on multiple days per week and offers beginner, intermediate and advanced levels. The Wednesday night, intermediate league now has 120 players, up from just 30 a couple of years ago. And while there are certainly senior citizens in the league, there are plenty of middle-aged and younger participants moving around the courts as well.