In a fun pickle
THE KARDASHIANS PLAY IT AND SO DO THE CLOONEYS – WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF PICKLEBALL
When Boost Juice founder, Janine Allis, sold her Toorak home last year, the new owners inherited a custom-built mansion with five bedrooms, home offices, a pool, yoga room – and a pickleball court.
In the US, where pickleball is played by 4.8 million people, the Kardashians, George and Amal Clooney and Bill Gates are also fans. The US Sports and Fitness Industry Association describes pickleball as “America’s fastest growing sport”.
The game was invented in the US in 1965 by three men who wanted to create a game that all family members could play. The result was a cross between tennis, table tennis and badminton. It’s played on a badminton court with a net a little lower than a tennis net and with a plastic ball with holes. Bats were originally wooden but can now be carbon fibre.
While pickleball is wellestablished in the US, it’s now gaining followers in Australia. In Tasmania earlier this year, Pickleball Tasmania ran extra courses to introduce new players to the sport after the initial course was oversubscribed.
In Queensland, the first pickleball players picked up their bats more than 10 years ago and the Pickleball Association Queensland now boasts hundreds of players. In October, the Sunshine state will host the Australian Championships.
Pickleball Victoria estimates 1000 people play each week and one of them is Aaron Blitz, 25, from Pearcedale. He’s played for five years and has won national and state pickleball titles.
“I discovered pickleball while I was at uni and coaching tennis. My head tennis coach had a friend who coached pickleball professionals in the US and he introduced me to it,” says Blitz. “I’d played tennis for 10 years at a high level and wasn’t enjoying it as much. Pickleball was more social.”
He started one of Victoria’s first pickleball clubs at Pearcedale Tennis Club.
“We began with one court, four paddles and a net and now have six courts and 30 or 40 people play every Wednesday night,” he says. When Aaron was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma last year, his duties as Pickleball Victoria Secretary and his matches helped him through.
“You don’t need as much energy and mobility as you need for tennis because the court is smaller and the ball is easier to return, so I could still play,” he says.
“That kept me sane. I could still do something that I enjoyed at a time in my life when everything else had to be put on hold.”
Throughout the year, there are competitions across Australia for those who want to take their pickleball to the next level. Victoria and NSW compete in the Battle of the Border event and there are competitions across NSW, Queensland and Victoria. The Tasmanian Open, the South Australia Doubles Championships, the WA Mixed Doubles Open and the East Coast Masters are all opportunities for Australia’s most proficient pickleball players to show their talents.
Mark Taylor, President of Pickleball Victoria, began playing pickleball two years ago. He plays three times a week and also competes. “A friend encouraged me to have a go and I was hooked,” he says.
“I like the social side of it plus you can start without much physical fitness and gradually build your skills. It’s a great way to get active again.”
For details of the nearest pickleball club or venue in your state go to pickleballaus.org.