Pickleball invasion?

a10best said:
Move to Pickelball section. This is tennis league talk, not Pickellball, Padel, or Pop tennis.
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Well I’m ok with one pickleball thread being over here, with the understanding that it’s mostly to mock pickleball. I feel we’d probably get warned or banned if we flooded the pickleball section of the forum with negative posts about how embarrassing they all are.
 
kevin qmto said:
Well I’m ok with one pickleball thread being over here, with the understanding that it’s mostly to mock pickleball. I feel we’d probably get warned or banned if we flooded the pickleball section of the forum with negative posts about how embarrassing they all are.
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No way. Just the mention of it makes me think of hearing that painful sound. I prefer a fasten seat belt or car alarm sound.
 
Last edited:
kevin qmto said:
Well I’m ok with one pickleball thread being over here, with the understanding that it’s mostly to mock pickleball. I feel we’d probably get warned or banned if we flooded the pickleball section of the forum with negative posts about how embarrassing they all are.
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Well I hate to break this to you but I was at a PB tournament last week in Richmond Virginia and there were a few former D1/D2/D3 tennis players in this PB tournament. I saw Jordan Chrysostom who used to play for Virginia Tech in this tournament. It seems like there are a lot of former D1 tennis players that are currently playing PB. It is not slowing down anytime soon. Just saying.
 
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bobleenov1963 said:
Well I hate to break this to you but I was at a PB tournament last week in Richmond Virginia and there were a few former D1/D2/D3 tennis players in this PB tournament. I saw Jordan Chrysostom who used to play for Virginia Tech in this tournament. It seems like there are a lot of former D1 tennis players that are currently playing PB. It is not slowing down anytime soon. Just saying.
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I really don’t care.
 
pickelball taking over,, most tennis players already switched to Pickleball.. i don't have any tennis players left to play with
 
Mongolmike said:
This isn't a rant against pickleball... I'm for any activity that gets people off their couch.

I'm a member at my local recreation center, and during the weekday if I'm off work, I will often go to the rec center to work out. There are 4 basketball couts and one all purpose court. The all-purpose court is set-up for senior "aerobics" and Zumba later on, and one of the bb courts has two pickleball courts set up on it. No problem with it. Lot of seniors waiting for a picklecourt to open. Cool. Good for them.

Today, I was reading the Tennis Industry mag and there was an article in it about the continued growth of pickleball AND the growth of "Masters" tennis... which is for seniors, played on a 60' court (vs the 78'), and using the orange balls to accomodate a slower pace.

So I'm wondering.... on some Saturday or Sunday morning in mid May/June (this year, next year, whenever...) when I show up at the courts I usually play on... when will I see some seniors lowering the tennis nets and setting up cones or something to play pickleball on the courts that have been used exclusively for tennis (all the courts are used 90% of the time Sat/Sun a.m.) for the past 25 years? (Note- tennis court net height at strap 36"- pickleball 34")

Honestly, if some peeps were playing "Masters" tennis... not using all the court, and using the orange balls... I'm ok with that. They are playing tennis.

But pickleball... I'm not so keen on that... especially if they start lowering the nets. They don't use tennis racquets, they don't use tennis balls, but it is a public court. However, if someone was skateboarding on a court, or had a group doing yoga exercises... that's not tennis and there would be a discussion (which would probably turn into an argument), that THEY are not doing their thing in the right place. Tennis courts: tennis-yes, not tennis-no.

Has anyone had to wait on a tennis court, or left to play elsewhere because the tennis court was being used for pickleball? Do you think pickleball on public tennis courts is ok? In some of the southern states with a larger senior population... do pickleball and tennis co-exist, or are there specific courts just for pickleball?
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This was settled in Tucson a few years ago. The tennis courts weren't being used much, and there was a high demand for pickleball. So the town resurfaced the courts, and added new fencing, to create 12 new individually fenced in, permanent pickleball courts where there used to be six tennis courts. The courts are used virtually all day. one day when I visited, there were 48 players on the court and 32 waiting. Tennis blew it.
 
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Dartagnan64 said:
My Dad is up there and still plays tennis with his 80 year old cronies. He hates the pickleball revolution.
I'm a member at a tennis club and we have plenty of seniors playing tennis and badminton and being active. Pickleball isn't inherently more easy to play than either of those sports IMO. It wasn't a "necessary" addition to the racket sport catalog. Other than being outdoor.

Will be interesting if it goes the way of racketball or develops staying power.
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Ten years later.....pickleball is not just for seniors. It is MUCH easier to learn than tennis, but almost as hard to master. It is moe social. You can still play VERY well in your 70s...even against much younger players. Height is not the huge advantage it is in tennis.
 
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Tennis is a game for Ladies and Gentlemen with an emphasis on sportsmanship. :) And the unathletic are mostly weeded out. By contrast, Pickleball in my experience draws a lot of folks with little sports background. They tend to be unathletic and hyper competitive in an unsocial manner even during recreational pickup games. And some of them are crazy too:

Of course it’s a Florida man. :giggle:

apnews.com

Pickleball argument sparks a brawl at a Florida country club

Authorities in central Florida say an argument over a pickleball rule at a country club turned into a brawl that saw about 20 players get involved.
apnews.com apnews.com
 
RSJfan said:
Tennis is a game for Ladies and Gentlemen with an emphasis on sportsmanship. :) And the unathletic are mostly weeded out. By contrast, Pickleball in my experience draws a lot of folks with little sports background. They tend to be unathletic and hyper competitive in an unsocial manner even during recreational pickup games. And some of them are crazy too:

Of course it’s a Florida man. :giggle:

apnews.com

Pickleball argument sparks a brawl at a Florida country club

Authorities in central Florida say an argument over a pickleball rule at a country club turned into a brawl that saw about 20 players get involved.
apnews.com apnews.com
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20 people got involved in the brawl? I don't think tennis is more athletic, but definitely more cool. PB highlights are unwatchable. Maybe if it's set to music.
 
I just saw a crazy article about a somewhat famous right wing figure who died from a pickleball accident. Don't want this thread to get political so I'll leave the details out, but it sounds bizarre.
 
The articles are trash. Just say he fell playing and was injured. Then the rest is all about his life and projects. I want more details on the pb.
 
travlerajm said:
This step is necessary to preserve a healthy ecosystem.

It’s kind of like thinning trees to avoid forest fires.
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Just a few thoughts.

The number of private indoor pickleball facilities in our area has skyrocketed. There is a nationally top-ten male singles pickleball player whose parents are members of our tennis club. Those parents are co-owners of two private indoor pickleball facilities that have combined around 100 indoor courts and have opened within the past five years to a lot of competition. If you want to play pickleball year round in the Pacific Northwest, you have to play indoors or you have minimal opportunities from roughly November through about April. Pickleball has grown into a sport that requires indoor play in wet climates if you want to be competitive and/or play year round.

Second, demand for tennis remains really high. Many private clubs in our area have waitlists in the triple digits, despite high initiation costs and monthly dues. This is reflected in the demand at public facilities, which in turn affects decisions regarding parks and rec resources.

For those who insist that pickleball remains a highly accessible sport, the growth in the sport and the greed of equipment manufacturers have conspired to bring pickleball into the economic realm of $300 replaceable paddles. Once you get used to that, paying initiation and dues to join an indoor pickleball facility is just a minor further step.

My personal opinion is the recent intrusion of pickleball courts onto tennis courts was overdone, and this is a course correction. Adding on top of that the noise complaints about pickleball and I don't see this as a controversial decision if emotions were taken out of it.
 
Injured Again said:
Pickleball has grown into a sport that requires indoor play in wet climates if you want to be competitive and/or play year round.
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That is true for any sport. In fact, table tennis and badminton have to be played indoors because of wind.
Injured Again said:
For those who insist that pickleball remains a highly accessible sport, the growth in the sport and the greed of equipment manufacturers have conspired to bring pickleball into the economic realm of $300 replaceable paddles.
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There are much cheaper frames available (including legit ones - don't be like @ByeByePoly)
 
sureshs said:
That is true for any sport. In fact, table tennis and badminton have to be played indoors because of wind.

There are much cheaper frames available (including legit ones - don't be like @ByeByePoly)
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My non-legit stage was a legit ;) protest against the greedfest @Injured Again rightly pointed out. $100 right now will buy a great paddle (measured against current “lacking” paddle tech). How long that lasts might depend on the success of the current JOOLA lawsuit.

While the tennis players are up in arms about the pickleball invasion … the greedy game of $thrones$ in pickleball might kill pb by itself.
 
ByeByePoly said:
My non-legit stage was a legit ;) protest against the greedfest @Injured Again rightly pointed out. $100 right now will buy a great paddle (measured against current “lacking” paddle tech). How long that lasts might depend on the success of the current JOOLA lawsuit.

While the tennis players are up in arms about the pickleball invasion … the greedy game of $thrones$ in pickleball might kill pb by itself.
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I will be buying 10 paddles with the tariff refund
 
ByeByePoly said:
How long that lasts might depend on the success of the current JOOLA lawsuit.
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JOOLA has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against 11 paddle companies, including Franklin Sports, Proton Sports, and others, for allegedly copying its "propulsion core technology." This technology is a key innovation in JOOLA's Gen 3 paddle line, which has been among the most powerful on the market since its release in 2024. The lawsuit aims to protect JOOLA's proprietary technology and ensure the integrity of competition in the pickleball paddle industry. JOOLA's CEO, Richard Lee, emphasized the importance of protecting the investment and creativity required to advance the sport. The case is significant as it could lead to exclusion orders that would block infringing paddles from being imported into the United States, potentially affecting the availability of JOOLA's products in the market.
 
sureshs said:
JOOLA has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against 11 paddle companies, including Franklin Sports, Proton Sports, and others, for allegedly copying its "propulsion core technology." This technology is a key innovation in JOOLA's Gen 3 paddle line, which has been among the most powerful on the market since its release in 2024. The lawsuit aims to protect JOOLA's proprietary technology and ensure the integrity of competition in the pickleball paddle industry. JOOLA's CEO, Richard Lee, emphasized the importance of protecting the investment and creativity required to advance the sport. The case is significant as it could lead to exclusion orders that would block infringing paddles from being imported into the United States, potentially affecting the availability of JOOLA's products in the market.
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That is there International Trade Commission (ITC) lawsuit which would prevent paddles being shipped to US. Now there is a second Federal one for the $$$.

It appears Ben Johns paddle company (JOOLA) is suing is ALW paddle company (Franklin) … both of tightly coupled with PPA. PB Game of Thrones season is the best ever.
 
ByeByePoly said:
That is there International Trade Commission (ITC) lawsuit which would prevent paddles being shipped to US. Now there is a second Federal one for the $$$.

It appears Ben Johns paddle company (JOOLA) is suing is ALW paddle company (Franklin) … both of tightly coupled with PPA. PB Game of Thrones season is the best ever.
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Why don't you start a US company to manufacture paddles using a 3D printer?

Or you can just fund me and I will do it.
 
The Aceserver said:
Patents shouldn’t even exist for something as silly as pickleball. Appropriating the practice ball of another sport should have been litigated.
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Yep … new cancer medicine … yes … horseshoe cut in paddle plastic polypropylene core … nope.

Drug patents are for 20 years … maybe paddle patents for 2 months.
 
Could a 4.5 tennis player using a $10 paddle from Goodwill hang with your average public court PB players using $300 Joola paddles ? I'm going to say yes.
 
S

Thread 'Typti today'

Boys, I will be trying Typti today outdoors at 5 pm. A tennis coach here has procured 4 Typti rackets and balls and will be lending it to us for free for trying out the game on a Pickleball court.

As you know, I am a cheap guy who like free things.

If this works out, I might have to say Bye Bye Pickle to @ByeByePoly.

I was hit on the shoulder two weeks ago in Pickleball by a smash caused by a weak lob by my partner, and I don't want to wear safety goggles. Pickleball has reached an inflexion point where injuries are possible even though level of play is low. A good reason to move...
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You guys will need to careful now that Craig Tiley is CEO of USTA. Whilst CEO of Tennis Australia he jumped on the PB upturn so now TA actively promotes mixed Tennis/PB facilities which I strongly disagree with. As I understand it USTA currently views PB as a competing not complementary "sport" which is how it should be IMO.

From TA annual report 24-25 "Tennis Australia’s constitution was formally updated to include padel, pickleball, POP Tennis and beach tennis, formalising the organisation’s commitment to develop and grow these disciplines throughout Australia"
WTF is POP and Beach tennis??
 
As a volunteer in a tennis fest yesterday, I was asked to feed Red balls to adult beginners as an introduction to tennis, and this woman joined the group. I said we would be doing mini tennis service line to service line, and she goes: Oh you mean the kitchen.
 
mauricem said:
You guys will need to careful now that Craig Tiley is CEO of USTA. Whilst CEO of Tennis Australia he jumped on the PB upturn so now TA actively promotes mixed Tennis/PB facilities which I strongly disagree with. As I understand it USTA currently views PB as a competing not complementary "sport" which is how it should be IMO.

From TA annual report 24-25 "Tennis Australia’s constitution was formally updated to include padel, pickleball, POP Tennis and beach tennis, formalising the organisation’s commitment to develop and grow these disciplines throughout Australia"
WTF is POP and Beach tennis??
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That will conflict with the recent introduction on USTA coaching where the USTA is doubling down on its claims of tennis only and makes it clear that unlike the RSPA or PTR, it will not do other racket sports.
 
In 2025, Pickleball paddles sales by $ exceeded Tennis racket sales in the USA.

Padel crossed 1 million players in the US.

Table tennis equipment sales also increased.

Racketball was the loser with falling sales.
 
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