Pickleball has been around since 1965 and is played by millions. However, it has not really been very popular until around 2020-21.

According to the Pickleheads blog, pickleball participation has grown 223.5% within the last three years and has become the third most-participated, popular sport in America. This is one of the fastest growing sports in amount of participation and while the majority of players used to be older, the largest percentage of participators are now between 18 and mid- 30s.

The first time I heard of pickleball, it was in middle school gym class. I thought it was just one of those games you play in school, like sharks and minnows, to create a new option and keep us interested. More recently, pickleball has become extremely popular and people have realized how fun it is. Now, with such a jump in players (there were 10 times as many in 2023 compared to 2017) there has to be an explanation, right?

Pickleball is usually described as a mix between table tennis and regular tennis but is played with a wiffle-like ball. The game tends to be easier than tennis and ping pong because of the design of the paddles and balls. The paddles are short and light and the balls don’t fly through the air as fast. This makes it more fun for family events and easier for kids to win. This would explain why so many people have found it to be their sport of choice during the last few years.