How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Enjoy Pickleball

As the world emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic, I remained cooped up in my third-floor apartment in Detroit, too eager to venture outside.

I stopped visiting friends, only went to restaurants for takeout, and worked from home.

To keep myself busy, I started collecting rare houseplants and reading lots of books. My cats and my wife were my constant companions. For exercise, I rode a NordicTrack stationary bike.

Prolonged isolation had made social interactions intimidating.

Nearly three years into the pandemic, I came to the disturbing realization that I had missed too many summer days outside and too many evenings with my friends and wife.

Then I discovered pickleball and it changed my life.

While visiting my wife’s family in Washington Township, they introduced me to pickleball, a game I associated with bored old people in Florida. In their driveway were a net, paddles and a yellow plastic ball. My first thought was, “What a stupid game.” »

But as we hit the ball, I began to see its appeal: Pickleball is easy to learn, quick, and promotes social interaction. It reminded me of ping pong, which I had excelled at in college, but it required a lot more physical effort.

On a sunny day in September 2023, my father-in-law and I met at a park in Dearborn to play pickleball. He’s an avid and fit tennis player, so it’s no surprise that he beat me for two hours straight.

But winning wasn’t the point – not yet anyway. I was drenched in sweat and exhausted, and the weight of my anxiety began to ease.

For the first time since the pandemic, I felt the need to be outside and with other people.

Later that month, I joined a pickleball league at Belle Isle in Detroit. Hosted by Come Play Detroit, the league exposed me to different players and skill levels.

And that’s where the fun began: Pickleball is mostly played with a partner, so there are usually four people on a court. In a league, you change partners every game, so it’s an easy way to meet new people.

Pickleball combines elements of tennis, badminton and ping pong, and matches are fast-paced, with volleys involving point-blank rallies near the net. The court is about half the size of a tennis court, so it requires quick reflexes and hand-eye coordination to time shots and make precise contact with the ball.

Although pickleball is easy to learn, it is incredibly difficult to master.

At higher levels, as I later learned, strategy and game awareness play an important role. More than hitting the ball hard, pickleball is about finesse and outwitting opponents.

But above all, it’s about fun and camaraderie.

Recreationally, pickleball adopts an open play format, which allows players to mix with a variety of people. With each game lasting on average about 15 minutes, pickleball allows players to interact with many different people they would never have met otherwise. In fact, a recent New York Post The article shows that pickleball is replacing dating apps as the new way to meet singles.

For me, that meant connecting with new people and reconnecting to the post-pandemic world. Not only was I getting some fresh air and exercise, but I was creating a network of new friends.

It’s no surprise that pickleball has become the fastest growing sport in the United States. Over the past three years, pickleball has grown 223.5 percent, according to the Sports and Fitness Industry Association.

It has even become a spectator sport. ESPN and CBS Sports Network recently signed deals to broadcast pickleball tournaments this year, and the Olympics are even considering adding pickleball to their slate of future events.

Until COVID-19, pickleball had a small, dedicated community. When team sports became largely banned, pickleball grew in popularity because it offered a way to stay active while social distancing. This brought people together after several years of isolation.

“These participation numbers are positive for the country and for our industry,” Tom Cove, president and CEO of SFIA, said in a statement. “Frankly, this is no surprise, as we know Americans value and continue an active lifestyle post-pandemic. The role of our industry is now to respond to this interest with positive sports and fitness experiences and quality, innovative and inspiring products.

It’s hard to miss this growth in metro Detroit. The Bash Pickleball Club, the Detroit area’s first pickleball-only facility, opened last month in Warren, and dozens of area parks now have outdoor pickleball courts. During the cold months, recreation centers transform gymnasiums into spaces for pickleball.

In Michigan, there are approximately 1,625 pickleball courts in more than 375 locations, according to USA Pickleball.

Pickleball was born in 1965, when three men from Bainbridge Island, Washington, wanted to entertain their family. They planned to play badminton, but didn’t have enough rackets. So they used what they had: ping pong paddles, a net and a wiffle ball.

Nick Hernandez, Bash’s Head Professional, teaches the ins and outs of pickleball to everyone from beginners to advanced players. I asked him why he thought pickleball had become so popular.

“It’s very addictive,” Hernandez tells me. “A lot of people realize that when you come to play, it’s easy to get started and learn how to play. It’s friendly at first. But like any sport, when you try to master it, it is very complicated.

Then there’s the social part, he says.

“It’s easy to find people to play pickleball,” Herndandez says. “You go to the local tennis court right now and you might not find anyone. Is random. You need to join an organization or know people. But for pickleball, you go to a public court and there are people playing.

Hernandez, who played tennis at Fort Valley State University in Georgia, was in his fourth year of pharmacy school in Florida when he hit what he thought were tennis courts in 2019. At the end of his shift work, he looked closer and found two dozen people playing pickleball. He was still in his scrubs.

“I looked and someone asked me to play. I had no idea what it was,” Hernandez says. “I took the plunge and played a match. It was great. From there, it took off. I tried to play as much as I could at that time.

And he got pretty good. At last year’s Royal Oak Classic pickleball tournament, he won gold medals in singles, mixed doubles and men’s doubles.

Unlike tennis, which largely maintains a country club tradition, pickleball appeals to a wide range of people due to its accessibility and affordability.

“It’s a huge melting pot of different cultures and personalities,” Hernandez says. “I think it’s a great equalizer.”

For me, pickleball became a way to reconnect with people and the world outside my apartment. At a time when the country is sharply divided, pickleball gives me a respite from what’s happening outside the 40-foot court and allows me to live in the moment, as if I were a child again without the worries of adult life.

It taught me to pay attention and appreciate the small joys of friendly competition and social connections.

Eight months after my first pickleball game, I now play at least five days a week. I play in leagues and tournaments and participate in open games.

But the best part is that pickleball helped me find myself, or a younger version of myself – one that worries less and smiles more. I am a much different person than the one cooped up in my apartment, letting life pass me by.

If you haven’t tried pickleball yet, what are you waiting for?