Who knew that April was National Pickleball month? I didn’t, at least until Lisa Tocci mentioned it the other day. Had I known, I’d have highlighted the fact before it faded into past memories.
In many ways, at least to Landings Club pickleball aficionados, every month is pickleball month. As there is not yet a truly effective way of measuring court usage on a daily basis, it is difficult to know how many club members are playing pickleball or, more importantly, how many are regular court denizens. Even the casual player knows that court usage is up significantly. Keep in mind, this is not exclusively a Landings Club reality. It seems the growth of pickleball here mirrors the national trend.
The Dink, an online pickleball magazine, recently reported that during the 1st quarter of 2023, pickleball was mentioned in the minutes of community budget hearings more than 16,000 times. By comparison, high speed internet was cited a mere 169 times. These numbers should not be ignored. There are currently 10,320 pickleball courts in this country. If every community whose meeting reflected an interest in pickleball were to build just one court in the next twelve months, court space would more than double. That may or may not happen, but it seems clear that there is pressure on community leaders to satisfy the demand. That demand is also reflected by homebuyers who are now looking for communities which already have pickleball courts.
The Dink further reports that the average age of picklers has dropped to 34.8, and growth is particularly high between the ages of 18 and 44. While the average age of players is most certainly higher at The Landings Club, given our community demographics, it is important to remember the rapid influx of younger members who relocated here since the COVID pandemic means the average age has dropped here as well.
Reliable indicators show Landings Club pickleball growing well into the future. First, there is we might call the “New Neighbors Indicator.” According to Greg Hoff, currently chief herdsman of the New Neighbors pickleball program, an average of fifteen people join the group every month. While some leave for any number of reasons, monthly growth seems to be net positive. Greg points out that on many Saturdays there are 60 people jockeying for space on 6 courts. This bodes well for the future popularity and growth of the sport at The Landings.
Another indicator is in the growth of lessons since Alex Fox, and more recently Bradley Morse, joined the staff. Lesson revenues are up 160% year-over-year, and let’s face it folks, people don’t take lessons unless they’ve already decided they like the sport. Indicators suggest we are in a significant growth trend, which seems to be in line with national trends.
Finally, the 2023 pickleball U.S. Open was played at East Naples Community Park, in Naples, Florida last week. The facility has 64 pickleball courts: 60 of which were needed to accommodate the 3039 players, including several from The Landings Club, who competed in 5155 matches. All 50 states and 20 countries were represented. The 3039 total players included 2742 amateurs and 297 professionals.
It is truly difficult to ignore the meteoric rise of pickleball popularity in the last five years. If you are still wondering if pickleball is the sport for you, come out and give it a try. Enroll in clinics, or book lessons from Alex and Bradley. Odds are, you too will become a fan.