“I run all of our programs here, we have a few leagues, we have an introduction to the pickleball course. I also do one-to-one classes for people who might get into the sport, ”said Zitur.
Pickleball grew in popularity during the pandemic, the sport now having nearly three million players nationwide.
“I think it’s easy to get. It’s one of those things that doesn’t have a very high entry bar. Something like tennis can be a bit frustrating because it takes a while before you can even hit pickleball, really on the first day you can start, ”said Zitur.
Some see pickleball as a relaxing sport or another way to stay active, just ask LPGA golfer and avid pickleball player Amy Olson.
“It’s competitive, my husband and I can play with my parents, and it’s a great game. So you have to be fit and active at this level, but all ages can play, ”said Olson.
“My mom probably introduced me four years ago, she started playing with a couple of her friends, came home and started talking about that pickleball thing and we thought oh mom was into something new. When we started playing, my whole family loved it. We hooked Grant, we got his parents hooked, and now pretty much everyone we know introduces, too, ”added Olson.
Pickleball is a combination of badminton, tennis and table tennis. Pickleball is played on a tennis court or gym floor, the net is smaller than a tennis court, a wiffleball is used instead and you hit with a paddle, not a racket.
“It’s like an enlarged ping pong paddle. Really, one of the nice things about it is that you can just buy one and be fine. Verus, when you play tennis, especially hitting the ball harder, you can obviously break the strings. That’s solid, of course, so it doesn’t really break, ”said Zitur.
But Zitur’s main message is that this is a sport that anyone can try.
“I think it’s just that snowball effect that people kind of played with. I think that is why it has such a wide reach because you meet younger people, but it has also found its way into the senior community as something you can just do to stay active, “said Zitur.
Courts Plus starts its indoor pickleball league in late October. Follow this link to find out how to join a league.
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