Ever wonder how pickleball came into being and how it got it’s name.  This newspaper article tells all.

Valley seniors bounce to new type of mini-tennis

Published online on Tuesday, Aug. 04, 2009

By Jeff Davis / The Fresno Bee

It looks like a mad scientist zapped a tennis court with a shrink ray.

No wonder people do double takes when they first see what John Browning built in the backyard of his Fowler home. A 36-inch-high net bisects a pristine, green playing surface only 20 feet by 44 feet - the same size as a badminton court.

On this day, two doubles teams are in action, swinging what appear to be oversized, rectangular ping pong paddles and volleying what looks like a perforated, orange Wiffle ball.

Meet the growing sport of pickleball, a hybrid of ping pong, badminton and tennis that is becoming a sensation among seniors in the United States. “Some people say it is like playing on top of a ping pong table”, chuckled Browning, who converted his basketball court into one for pickleball.

Browning, 72, is typical of a generation that is fast gravitating to the sport. A former triathlete, his body no longer can stand the pounding. So he turned to pickleball, which still fuels his competitive drive, is easy to learn and gets the heart pumping.

“There is a lot of action, it’s good exercise and a lot easier on the knees”, said 69-year-old Don Beringson, a retired Fresno State professor who built a pickleball court in his Clovis backyard 15 years ago and plays in national tournaments.

The sport is fast-paced with interesting rules: Games continue until a side scores 11 points and is leading by at least two; serves are hit underhand; the ball must bounce once on each side before it can be volleyed; and, to eliminate any advantage of power or brute strength, no volleying is allowed within seven feet of the net.

Wood or fiberglass paddles offer more surface area than in ping pong. The baseball-size balls are hard plastic.With the smaller court, there is less running than in tennis and a premium is put on quick reactions, strategy and ball placement. Volleys sometimes last for minutes.

“Patience is a virtue in pickleball”, Browning said. “Keep it deep on the serve, then get to the net. You want the other team to make the mistakes”.

Anybody at any level

Bill Booth, president of the USA Pickleball Association, estimates more than 40,000 people (mostly age 50 and older) play the sport in 45 states and Canada. In 2002, Booth introduced pickleball to fellow residents of Sun City Grand, a retirement community in Surprise, Ariz. Today, about 800 members make use of 12 courts.

“Our sport has grown 120% over the past year”, Booth said. “Anybody at any level can play this game”.

Pickleball was created as a family sport by the late U.S. Rep. Joel Pritchard and his buddies on Bainbridge Island near Seattle in the summer of 1965. They played with damaged badminton rackets and a Wiffle ball.

The sport was named for the Pritchard family cocker spaniel, Pickles, who chased down errant balls and hid with them in the bushes.

Today, Arizona and California offer the most pickleball courts: in trailer parks, retirement villages, tennis clubs, schools and recreation centers.

Players such as the 72-year-old Browning and Beringson went a step further, setting up backyard courts to play anytime without waiting in line.Former real-estate salesman Ken Engle, 65, built a court behind his house at Bass Lake.

“I have a house in Arizona, and within one hour of it 5,000 players play pickleball”, said Engle, a former Michigan state ping pong champion.

Browning is a USAPA ambassador for the central San Joaquin Valley. The former Fowler High basketball coach and school administrator advertises the sport in local papers and hosts a group of about eight almost every Tuesday. “This is the perfect game for me. Not a lot of running, but fast play and fun”, he said.

On Browning’s court this day are Jim Wainscott, 76, a former Equitable Life insurance administrator;  Marilyn Shulz, 74, a novice whose husband, Bill is on hand but sidelined by injury;  Browning’s daughter Sjammpm Weatherly, 42, a Fresno Unified instructional aide whose husband, Mark, coaches the Bullard High boys tennis team; and recently retired Bee sports writer Ken Robinson, 61, a tennis fanatic who got hooked on pickleball.

Tennis experience helps

Weatherly is a tennis player who adapted quickly to the nuances of pickleball. “If you have tennis strokes down and know strategy, you’ll pick it up fast, she said.

This is only Shulz’s second time playing, but she’s holding her own despite shaky knees. “It takes getting used to at first”, she said. “The rules are confusing and the paddle is shorter than a tennis racket. I missed a lot of balls” .

Wainscott, the oldest in the group, looks tall and frail, but shows grace under fire. He’s court-savvy, accurate and quick to put away shots. He and Bill Shulz are doubles partners who will compete in tennis and pickleball at the Huntsman Senior Games in St. George, Utah, in October.

“Pickleball is new to me, but I like to volley and this fits me good”, Wainscott said. “There’s certainly not as much running as tennis. I had a heart attack last year and it hasn’t slowed me down”.

In the covered patio next to Browning’s pickleball court, his wife, Sandra, has set out a pitcher of pink lemonade and tall glasses full of ice. Ceiling fans keep it cool on a 100-degree day.

After two hours of pickleball, the group shuts it down and each grabs a cool one in the shade, sweaty shoulders glistening, recounting games and smiles all around.

What’s not to like about this sport?

“I always have to be doing something, and it’s a sport I’ll be able to play until I drop”, Browning said. “And I won’t have to leave my home to do it.”

Want to Play? Cy’s Enterprise has all the equipment:

http://www.cysbackyardsports.com/content-categories/cat-399/pickle_ball.html