Pickleball - the new game in town

There’s a new game in town, and it’s rapidly growing, not just in Nenagh but worldwide. Well, it isn’t really new. Technically, Pickleball, has been around since 1965, when it was invented in a small city called Bainbridge Island in Washington state, in America’s Pacific northwest.

By Thomas Conway

It was a children’s game, a playground classic, but in recent years it has become sort of a sporting phenomenon, spreading widely across America and the globe. Ireland hasn’t been immune. A myriad of pickleball clubs have sprung up around the island in recent years, and the sport even has its own governing body, Pickleball Ireland, which proudly boasts that pickleball is perhaps perfectly suited to the inclement Irish climate.

For those unfamiliar with the sport, let me give you a concise explanation. Pickleball is essentially a mis-mash of tennis, table-tennis, and badminton, played on a small court (akin to a children’s tennis court) with two sides, interspersed by a net in the middle. Players wield paddles, which resemble enlarged table-tennis bats, to strike a round-shaped hollow ball with several holes in it. The equipment is simple. So is the game.

Although singles is played, pickleball is usually played in doubles format, with players striking the ball from one side of the net to the other in the hope of scoring a point. Each game is best to eleven, win by two. But wait, there’s a catch. The area of the court next to the net is known as “the kitchen.” Volley the ball inside the kitchen and that counts as an infringement. Bam, you’ve lost your team a point. Sounds straightforward, in theory, but in reality, it’s much more difficult.

So, say the members of Nenagh Lawn Tennis Club’s newly established Pickleball initiative, which was launched in June of last year. Margaret Harty, a longtime tennis player who now counts herself as one of the converted, admits that the rules - in particular, the kitchen - take some getting used to.

“The kitchen causes great consternation,” she admits.

“Because you can hit a fabulous smash, and you’re delighted, but then they shout back at you: ‘you’re in the kitchen.’ And of course, you’re left disappointed.”

Margaret is one of a group of over-60s which frequent the club twice weekly for a few shots and a laugh along with her fellow players. On this Tuesday morning she’s knocking up with another Toomevara native Marie Floyd, as well as Michael Geaney - a Nenagh Éire-Óg stalwart - and former secondary school teacher Tom Walsh. Your correspondent had never seen pickleballers in action until this day, but even on first impression, you can tell that these guys are good. But really it isn’t about being good, as Michael notes. Like tennis, the social dimension is one of the main motivations for playing.

“It’s a great way of getting to meet new people, of socialising as well,” Geaney said.

“And you can play pickleball as competitively, or as socially, as you want. There’s no pressure. It’s up to you.”

Marie Floyd didn’t know what to expect when she joined but was immediately taken by the sport. Having played tennis for years, she made the transition pretty quickly. Like the others, she’s well able to whack the ball and could certainly qualify as one of the more elite players, but she’s been playing consistently for the bones of nine months now, enjoying every bit of it.

“We got a big crowd initially, but we’re sort of the ones who stuck with it. So, we’re here every Tuesday and Thursday, and we love it really,” she says.

Forward-thinking

The committee of Nenagh Lawn Tennis Club has always been forward-thinking and inventive, but the move to introduce pickleball was particularly avant-garde. One of the architects was Paul Dillon, son of club legend Eamon, and longtime tennis player himself. Paul explains that the committee did their homework in relation to this. They had seen pickleball adopted in some other clubs and could identify good reasons as to why it might prove a success in Nenagh.

“We could see there was a demographic of club members that might be able to benefit from this,” he revealed.

“Once you get to age 60/65, the tennis court actually becomes quite big, and then you know, you have people with knee replacements, hip replacements, that kind of thing. But they still have the enthusiasm for competitive sport, and you can see that out there with the people we have playing.

“So, we were interested in pickle, and the tennis club committee had explored the idea, maybe looked at investing in it. But we decided to start off with the over-60s, and we have up to about forty players in that demographic alone.”

The club knew they had the numbers, but did the numbers have the drive? Most certainly, Paul says. There was no hesitancy or reluctance, and very few reservations. People started to flock to the sessions on Tuesday and Thursday mornings, and everything took off like wildfire.

“They generate the enthusiasm themselves - the craic they’re having, and the cup of tea and everything,” Dillon added.

“It’s as much a social thing as it is a means of exercise. And the key thing we’re seeing with it, as a club, is the age range is expanding. Maybe a few years ago our range would have been kids from the age of three or four, up to seventy - max. Now we have pushed from 65 to 80, so that’s a big increase for us. And it’s lovely to have ex-members coming back playing this, which is what we’re seeing.”

So why isn’t Pickleball open to all ages? That’s a question of facilities, Paul explains. Initially, the club was blessed to have two small children’s courts which could be perfectly adapted to pickleball, and those courts are currently the ones they’re using. But the aspiration is there to construct a fully-equipped pickle and padel ball facility at the far end of the club, just beyond courts nine and ten.

What is padel ball, you ask? Padel is effectively a close relation of pickle, a similar racquet sport which is played on a slightly bigger court with walls at the back and on either side. It’s comparable to squash. Such a facility would, undoubtedly, enhance the tennis club further and add another dimension to what is now a ten-court complex.

The demand is there, Tom Walsh feels, and although he’s a “committed pickleballer” at this point, he would be partial to giving paddle a whack if the opportunity arose. Michael has been in to see the newly opened paddle ball unit in Limerick, located in Ballysimon, and admits to being impressed. He too, would be open to embracing it.

Hive of activity

The upper end of the club is a hive of activity on mornings like these. The two children’s courts are full, with Marie, Michael, Margaret, and Tom on the furthest and a group of senior ladies enjoying a fairly pulsating game of pickle themselves on the court nearest the clubhouse.

Ambling in from the carpark is another group of four, led by Silvermines man John Sherlock, who has enough hurling experience to be able navigate his way around any pickleball court.

The general consensus is that it’s great fun. Addictive too, according to some of the players. Once you get the hang of it, you just can’t stop. Plus, there’s a rather satisfying “pong” every time bat meets ball, which provides a soundtrack to the morning’s events.

Paul is delighted with how it’s going and emphasises the club’s plans for further expansion in the near future. For now, it’s limited to over-60s, but the intention is for pickleball to ultimately be open to all club members.

Marie provides a final reflection. The benefits are self-evident, she says - socially, mentally, and physically.

“We have such a laugh here every Tuesday and Thursday, competitive or otherwise. It’s great fun, and it is a way of getting out and keeping active.”

If you would like to try pickleball out for yourself, Nenagh Lawn Tennis Club will be hosting an open morning on Thursday, April 10th.