Pickleball
The Sport That Promotes Comradery, Fun, and Sportsmanship
Sasha Bush
The Ashland Beacon
If you can’t stand the heat… get out of the kitchen. Well… the proverbial kitchen of Pickleball that is. What? You haven’t heard of the game called pickleball? Don’t fret… you’re not alone. Most people have never heard of pickleball… let alone played it.
Pickleball is a game that encompasses aspects of tennis, ping-pong, and badminton. Two to four players can play this game at the same time, and the great thing about pickleball is that you do not need to have any prior experience to start playing. Players use smooth, flat paddles (like that of a ping-pong paddle) that are often made of wood or composite to hit perforated plastic balls over a net.
Despite many people not knowing about this fun and fast-paced game, pickleball has been around for quite some time. The origins of pickleball date back to 1965 on Bainbridge Island, which is near Seattle Washington. Congressman, Joel Pritchard and his friend Bill Bell, as successful businessman, had just returned home from a golf outing. Upon their arrival, both Pritchard and Bell found their families sitting around being bored with nothing to occupy them. Since the property had an old badminton court, Prichard and Bell suggested that the family play badminton. But, neither of them could find any badminton equipment. So, they improvised, Pritchard grabbed a few ping-pong paddles and some perforated plastic balls and suggested they their own version of badminton. At first, they began playing with the badminton net set at its original height of 60 inches, but as they played, they noticed that the plastic balls bounced well on the asphalt surface, and they decided to lower the net to a height of 36 inches. The game was a big hit with the family. The following weekend, Pritchard and Bell introduced Barney McCallum to this new game they had come up with. McCallum immediately found the game intriguing and the three men then came up rules. Thus, the game of Pickleball was born!
Pickleball has been growing steadily in popularity over the years across the United States and is slowly making its way across the globe. Just within the last few years, it seems that pickleball has experienced an explosion of popularity as fitness facilities, YMCAs, parks, and community centers add this game to their facilities. According to the Sports & Fitness Industry Association’s report, “the sport has become so popular that there are approximately six million pickleball players, playing upwards of twenty million games a year.” What makes pickleball so appealing is that this game can be enjoyed by people of all ages and skill levels.
It wasn’t until roughly nine years ago that pickleball made its way into the Tri-State area. Bob Stacey, Lynn White, and Tom LeMaster were among the first to play the game of pickleball and to help spread the news of it within the Ashland area. LeMaster shared, “It was actually Bob Stacey that brought the game to our area. He was always involved in the Kentucky Senior games. While away on one of his trips, he saw some people playing it. He started playing it himself and then decided to introduce it to myself and a mutual friend of ours, Lynn White. Bob got several of our racquetball buddies to give it a try. One thing led to another, and it just took off from there.”
LeMaster described his love for pickleball as a real passion. In the past, you would find LeMaster on a golf course playing upwards of 100-120 rounds of golf a year. If he wasn’t on the course, you would find him in a racquetball room. But once LeMaster was introduced to the game of pickleball, it quickly became a way of life for him. Now, you will find LeMaster playing pickleball between three to five times a week.
“I played racket ball for 35 years, and racquetball is so much harder on your body than pickleball is. When Bob brought pickleball to town and we started playing it… we liked it. So, we just kind of ended up switching over from racquetball to pickleball because pickleball is a lot easier on your body. Plus, the social aspect of it is just as fun as the game itself,” noted LeMaster.
If you are interested in learning more about the game of pickleball or even trying it out for yourself, head on over to the Ashland, Ky Pickleball Club, on Facebook for more information about where you can get involved in a game or just watch others play pickleball. You can also call the Ashland Area YMCA and inquire about the times pickleball is offered throughout the week.