Pickleball was invented to entertain a few antsy kids outside of Seattle in 1965.
It has since become a popular sport, and drew more than 200 adults from as far away as North Carolina and Maine to be part of a pickleball tournament this weekend in New Canaan.
Pickleball is “big buzz right now,” Len Simard, general manager of New Canaan Racquet Club on Grove Street, said as he explained why he organized the tournament, held Friday, Jan, 4, and Saturday, Jan. 5.
It is the “biggest growing sport in the country,” said Jeff Siegel, who came from Pennsylvania to help Simard organize the tournament.
Pickleball is played with solid paddles to hit a perforated plastic ball over a modified tennis net and on a badminton-sized court. It uses similar equipment and combines elements of tennis, badminton and ping-pong.
The racquet club is not the only place in New Canaan that offers pickleball. The game is also played at the New Canaan YMCA and at Grace Farms. The Parks and Recreation Commission has discussed having some Mead Park tennis courts transitioned to pickleball courts.
Picklely, not prickly
“It is like playing ping pong on top of the table,” Siegel said.
Pickleball started growing in popularity in the United States in the year 2000 and now is becoming an international sport, Siegel said. There are different theories around its name, including being one of the founder’s dog’s names.
It is “mostly for seniors who can’t move as well, so they went from tennis to pickleball,” said Siegel. The average age of players is 55 years old, he said.
Pickleball “lends itself to people who wouldn’t physically be able to play other games,” said Jim LaBrosse, the USA Pickleball Association [USAPA] Volunteer Ambassador.
“Early on a lot of rules were designed so people wouldn’t fight,” and guidelines were deliberately created to be “least controversial,” LaBrosse said. For example, when compared to tennis, it is not as strict about hitting the ball twice or hitting the hand, he explained.
People generally are able to start playing after getting a little instruction and are “good enough to enjoy the sport,” said Simard.
The serve is underhand and “not a complicated overhand serve,” like tennis, said Simard.
“The player doesn’t have to be that great an athlete,” he added.
“You are playing it right away,” Simard said. Being proficient is not just about spiking the ball as hard as one can. Instead, as one gets better the sport employs an “uncanny combination of touch and power,” said Simard.
He emphasized the social aspect of the sport, as did many of the other people who the Advertiser spoke with.
“Everybody knows each other,” said LaBrosse. They get to know each other at barbecues, potlucks and other social events, players said.
Ralph Smith, 64, from Putnam Valley, N.Y., came to play and said he loves the camaraderie. He travels a lot and “finds people all over the country” to play.
“Usually I can find a place where I can play,” Smith said.
Smith took home a bronze medal for doubles from the Pickleball U.S. Open in Naples, Fla. In the upcoming year he plans to travel to Ireland and play the game there.
Pickleball is “great for seniors,” he said.
As much as the game is popular with seniors, “there were probably 10 or 12 playing under the age of 25,” on Friday, Simard said.
“It is not as hard as tennis, but people do take lessons,” said Simard.
“Looks like we might do more” pickleball at the racquet club in response to “this trend or craze,” said Simard.
“It think is it a great facility. Fantastic,” player Kaitlyn Berry said at the Racquet Club.
New Canaan Y
Pickleball’s popularity is “growing tremendously,” said Kristina Barrett, YMCA vice president of Financial Development, Marketing and Strategic Initiatives.
The YMCA has been offering pickleball for five years and has a “solid group of regulars,” she said.
“It serves as a nice way to socialize and be active. Nice camaraderie. It is important for the older people not only to stay physically active but socially active as well,” Barrett said.
However, the program is not just for seniors, “It has a nice balance of ages,” she said.
Adult pickleball is offered daily at the YMCA, with family pickleball offered on Saturday mornings.
“We have seen participation in the sport grow over the five years that we have offered it at our Y, and each day can see anywhere from a small group to up to 20 people play,” said Barrett.
“Pickleball is a sport that can bring family and friends together and be played by youth, adults, seniors, and individuals with special needs,” YMCA Sports Director Will Shwartzstein wrote in an email.
“It’s easy to learn, play, and creates minimal stress on the joints. It’s a great workout and can be as intense as you like, making it accessible for all ages and abilities,” he added.
The sport offers “opportunities for older adults to come together and stay active,” said Barrett.
Parks & Recreation
Pickleball courts on the Mead Park tennis courts was an idea volleyed about at a couple of meetings at the Parks & Recreation Commission this fall.
As pickleball has risen in popularity, Mead Park tennis permits have declined from 443 to 142 over the past decade, according to the commission in October, 2018.
Also, the tennis courts at Mead Park were closed until June 21, 2018, because the clay courts were not ready.
Chairman Sally Campbell told her fellow commissioners over the fall that the courts could get more use in the future if they accommodate games such as pickleball.
During fall meetings, the commission’s discussed renovating eight tennis courts that are a Har-Tru surface to a Rubico surface with money in the budget. Rubico is a harder surface that is better for pickleball and would be better to accommodate year-round court use.
Campbell said she wants to “create more recreation opportunities for everyone in town,” at the October meeting.
Grace Farms
The 7,500-square-foot gym called the “court” at Grace Farms is open to the public for pickleball for free from 10 a.m. to noon Tuesday to Friday.
Caption: The pictures are of competitors in the tournament at New Canaan Racquet Club. — Dave Stewart photos.
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