A national pickleball tournament is being held at St. Louis’ Forest Park

The growing sport of pickleball is having a moment in the St. Louis area.

More than 400 amateur and professional players compete in the Association of Pickleball Players’ Sunmed St. Louis Open this week at the Dwight Davis Tennis Center in Forest Park.

“It’s a great opportunity for everyone in the area to go to Forest Park to see some professional pickleball players compete for cash prizes,” said Mike Chapin, a pickleball enthusiast and certified trainer who runs StLouisPickleball.com .

Chapin has no official connection to this week’s tournament – he just loves pickleball. And he’s largely responsible for launching Pickleball in St. Louis after taking an interest in the sport in 2014.

“I’ve never seen a sport where a grandchild and a grandparent can be physically active and play together on the same court,” Chapin said. “It’s a game I can play really long, and when I started looking in my neighborhood, in the south borough, there were parks with unused tennis courts and opportunities to make change.”

Brian Munoz

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St. Louis Public Radio

Jack Foster, 21, of Vero Beach, Fla., competes in a men’s singles pickleball game during the Association of Pickleball Professionals’ Sunmed St. Louis Open Tournament Thursday at the Dwight Davis Tennis Center in Forest Park.

In southern St. Louis alone, seven city parks have pickleball courts, including Carondelet Park, Tower Grove Park, and Benton Park.

There are other well-established pickleball spots in the area. The Missouri Pickleball Club in Fenton is one such place, which has 18 courts. A newer nine-seat venue that opened this summer in Lake St. Louis in a former Bed Bath & Beyond is the Paddle Up Pickleball Club.

Other pickleball venues slated to open later this year include Real Dill in Chesterfield and Chicken N Pickle in St. Charles. LawnLove.com recently named St. Louis the sixth best pickleball city in the country.

“We’re excited about the growth,” said Chapin. “St. Louis is definitely a hotbed for people to come here and play pickleball.”

To hear more from Mike Chapin about Pickleball’s growth in St. Louis, and to recap our conversation with Pickleball Champion Teri Clemens, listen to “St. Louis on the Air” on Apple Podcast, Spotify or Google Podcast by clicking the play button below.

Pickleball, America’s fastest growing sport, draws hundreds to Forest Park

“St. Louis on the Air tells you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our area. The show is produced by Miya Norfleet, Emily Woodbury, Danny Wicentowski, Elaine Cha and Alex Heuer. Ulaa Kuziez is our production intern. The sound engineer is Aaron Doerr. Send questions and comments about this story to [email protected].