An unfamiliar sport, Pickleball, has recently been adopted by neighborhoods throughout Parkland and Coral Springs. Although given a bizarre name, Pickleball is a combination of familiar sports: tennis, badminton and ping-pong.

According to the USAPA, Pickleball was invented around 1965 on Bainbridge Island. Joel Pritchard, Bill Bell, and Barney McCallum, three dads, created this game to keep their kids occupied, since they were overbearingly bored with their usual summer time activities. Pickleball has evolved from hand made equipment and simplisitc rules, into a popular sport that has grown tactically throughout the USA and Canada. The game is also growing internationally; many European and Asian countries are now adding courts.

Although the sport is unknown to many athletes throughout Florida, there are Pickleball facilities located in all 50 states, and according to the SFIA, there are currently 2.46 million Pickleball participants worldwide. Facilities in Coral Springs and Parkland have recently been experimenting with giving the opportunity to play this new sport.

Even though Pickleball is extremely unfamiliar in the athletic world, students attending Douglas are aware of the sport and have even participated before. “Pickleball gave me a reason to get more involved in sports again, I started getting my friends involved and it’s one of our favorite hobbies now”, Tayorann Varias, a Junior attending Douglas stated.

Pickleball is recommended to anyone who is fond of tennis, ping pong, and racket ball, and if you are considering indulging in any of those sports, Pickleball would be a perfect option.