Updated list of pro-approved paddles

Pickleball has taken over thousands of tennis courts

September 09, 2025

 

The New York Times recently published a story providing an in-depth look at how pickleball has taken over thousands of tennis courts across the country.

The numbers were truly staggering: They analyzed nearly 100,000 aerial photographs and through that identified more than 26,000 outdoor pickleball courts surfaced in the past seven years -- "a majority of them at the expense of once-exclusive tennis spaces and created since the onset of the pandemic in 2020," according to the piece.

We dive into more of the details below.

Also in this issue:

  • The drama of building the world’s biggest pro pickleball tour 🎙️

  • Throwback to the most gangsta shot in pickleball history 🤌🏻

  • PPA Tour Cincinnati Showcase starts TODAY 📺

  • A new way to bet on pro pickleball tournaments 💵

  • Feel and play your best with Picklebalm 💪

Let’s get cookin’. 🧑‍🍳

HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK

We still can’t believe how awesome this shot was

There was no pro pickleball this past weekend, so we thought it was a good time to revisit this gem of a shot from junior player Hudson Hall.

We think Hudson became the biggest gangsta in pickleball history with this no-look putaway — and undoubtedly many people have tried to replicate it since. But we’ll always know who did it first.

🔗 Check out this point on Instagram, Facebook or TikTok

PICKLEBALLERS PODCAST

The drama of building a pro pickleball tour with PPA Tour founder Connor Pardoe

In case you missed it last week, Connor Pardoe (the CEO of the UPA, which runs the PPA Tour and Major League Pickleball) joined the Pickleballers Podcast to discuss how he built the biggest pro pickleball tour in the world and what’s next for the sport at the pro level.

Pardoe walks us through exclusivity deals with players, the pivotal partnership with Tom Dundon and the wild Kansas City “Tour Wars” weekend that changed the sport forever.

🔗 Watch the full episode on YouTube or listen on Spotify

SEASON 2 OF PICKLEBALLERS COMING SOON: We have come to the end of Season 1 of Pickleballers, and what a season it was. We had some amazing conversations with pro players, industry experts, pickleball personalities and more. We’re taking a short break before ramping back up for Season 2 in October, which will feature more great guests and plenty of insider info. Now is your time to catch up if you missed any of the Season 1 episodes — you can find them all here. 

FEATURED STORY

Pickleball has taken over thousands of tennis courts

The New York Times recently did a deep dive on how pickleball has taken over thousands of tennis courts across the country.

The piece, written by Ethan Singer, analyzed nearly 100,000 aerial photographs and through that identified more than 26,000 outdoor pickleball courts surfaced in the past seven years -- "a majority of them at the expense of once-exclusive tennis spaces and created since the onset of the pandemic in 2020," he writes.

"In total, we found more than 8,000 tennis courts that had been transformed for pickleball."

The analysis doesn't include all of the tennis courts (270,000) and pickleball courts (68,000) in the U.S., but Singer's reporting certainly made it clear that the pickleball takeover has been swift and vast.

"The photographs are an expansive, bird's-eye view of what has been happening on the ground in all corners of the country," he says in the story. "There's only so much ready asphalt to go around, and pickleball can't get enough of it."

In the story, Singer spoke with Jon Neeter, the owner of the Santa Monica Pickleball Center, who changed the focus of his business from tennis to pickleball a couple of years ago. That decision has paid huge dividends for Neeter, who said the business was bringing in seven times as much revenue as it did as a tennis-only facility.

It's basic geometry, Singer writes.

"Using the same square footage (on his lone tennis court), Mr. Neeter can now host four times as many people, across four times as many classes and events," Singer said in the story. "He can schedule different programs simultaneously, like a children's camp on one court and a competitive drill on another, or lessons at two different skill levels."

PRODUCT OF THE WEEK

Play more, hurt less with Picklebalm

Pickleball can be hard on your joints — there’s lots of starting, stopping, bending and lunging. But you can power through aches and pains with Picklebalm, a topical analgesic that offers more than generic pain relief.

Their clinically-proven C.A.L.M. formula features 4% lidocaine (more than competitors), healing arnica, 1% menthol and soothing cucumber seed oil in a fresh, non-medicinal scent that won't clear the court. Picklebalm is available in three player-friendly formats – roll-on, cream and balm stick – to deliver fast-acting, targeted relief specifically for pickleball-related aches and pains.

Available at picklebalm.com, Amazon and select CVS stores nationwide.

TRENDING

Futures markets for PPA Tour events are now available in the U.S. on Kalshi, a regulated exchange and prediction market where you can trade on the outcome of real-world events.

A prediction market is a trading platform where participants buy and sell contracts based on specific events, ranging from pop culture to politics. Investors select markets aligned with their interests and trade using "YES" or "NO" contracts, with each trade affecting the consensus and reflected in real-time price changes.

There are currently several futures markets being offered for the PPA Tour Cincinnati Showcase, which started Tuesday. Participants can bet on the winner of each pro division, and more than $4,000 had been bet into the markets since they went live Tuesday morning. You can find the Kalshi markets here.

THE PROS

PPA Tour Cincinnati Showcase features deep fields in every division

The PPA Tour is in Ohio this week for the tour's third "slam" of the season -- the Cincinnati Showcase.

The event takes place at the Lindner Family Tennis Center, which recently underwent a $260 million, campus-wide renovation designed to enhance the fan and player experience. The venue got rave reviews from those who attended the Cincinnati Open tennis tournament earlier this summer.

Pickleball courts were also installed in the renovation, so it's sure to be one of the best venues that the PPA Tour will go to this year. If you’re in the area, you can buy tickets here.

As a slam, the tournament offers 2,000 ranking points to the winners of each division, so almost all of the best players and teams are in the field this week.

Here are a few of the main storylines heading into the week 👇

  • Is there a new rivalry brewing in women’s doubles? Jorja Johnson and Tyra Black took down the previously unbeaten team of Anna Leigh Waters and Anna Bright at the Walgreens Open in Las Vegas two weeks ago. Now the challenge for Johnson/Black is sustaining that level. If they can go back-to-back and beat Waters/Bright in the final in the process, we'll have a very interesting discussion on our hands.

  • Can Ben Johns/Gabe Tardio continue streak? After a stretch of unprecedented parity earlier this season on the men's side, things have started to normalize again. Ben Johns and Gabe Tardio have really hit their stride this summer and solidified themselves as the team to beat -- they've won the past three PPA Tour events and are going for four in a row this week.

  • Some pros are using different paddles this week: The United Pickleball Association of America — the governing body of the PPA Tour and Major League Pickleball — recently changed the certification requirements for paddles at the pro level. Learn more and find the full list of pro-approved paddles here. 

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