Beaufort’s Pickleball Community

Both Fun and Social
Pickleball Continues to Grow

story by KAREN SNYDER           photos by JOHN WOLLWERTH

It’s the fastest growing sport in America — with the funny name — and it’s on fire right here in the Lowcountry! Part tennis, part badminton, and part ping-pong, pickleball is enticing people of all ages to join the highly social and easy-to-learn sport.

“It’s now more popular than tennis,” says local player Terry Rice, who began playing pickleball four years ago after being introduced to it by a couple from North Carolina. “It’s a fun and welcoming sport, and has an addictive quality about it.” Rice plays pickleball 3 to 4 times a week along with fellow players who live in Coosaw Point on Lady’s Island.

Indeed, according to USA Pickleball and Jeff Conradi, local resident and the organization’s district ambassador for South Carolina, the sport has grown to 3.8 million players nationally at a rate of 11 to 13 percent a year. “That compares to tennis which has seen a decrease of about 3 to 5 percent a year,” he explains. Conradi has played the sport all over the country and has served as an ambassador for USA Pickleball since 2014 while living in Minnesota. Upon relocating to the Lowcountry two years ago, he transferred his ambassadorship to South Carolina and is excited about introducing the sport to others.

“People love it because you can be successful at it very quickly. It’s not a game about power, like tennis. It’s more about strategy and finesse. That’s why it’s so gender and age friendly, attracting men and women of all ages and even our youth.”

Invented in 1965, pickleball is not a “new sport” but has grown over the decades in various resort and retirement hotspots on the West Coast, Arizona, and Florida, eventually making its way to the Eastern Seaboard. Today, some 55 years later, many are still curious about the sport’s name and what the game entails.

According to USA Pickleball, the sport evolved after three fathers living on Bainbridge Island, off the coast of Seattle, were looking for a fun summertime game that their bored children could play. Using handmade equipment, the fathers wanted simple rules the kids could follow and created a game that was a combination of several familiar games. Though pickles had nothing at all to do with the newly invented game, there are several different accounts about how the name came to be — perhaps the most popular story being that it was named after the dog Pickles, who was owned by one of the founder’s Joel Pritchard. The dog loved to run off with the ball.

Played on a court that measures 20 feet by 44 feet, “There’s less ground that you have to cover than in tennis,” explains Conradi, who says he enjoys teaching the game as much as playing it. The game lasts about 30 minutes and is played to 11 points. It uses an underhand serve, and the ball must bounce on both sides of the net before volley play can begin. Players are not permitted to step in a 7-foot zone that surrounds the net called “the kitchen.” The game relies on players returning a soft shot on a bounce called a “dink,” requiring the opponent to return the shot back over the net.
Conradi serves as a pickleball coach and lead instructor at Sun City, where there are 18 dedicated pickleball courts with 12 of them lighted. He also partners with players in Habersham in an effort to establish the sport in that community.

Rice, also an advocate for growing the sport here in Beaufort and north of the Broad, agrees that pickleball is popular with former tennis players and gaining momentum in the area. “It’s not as demanding as tennis,” she adds, pointing out that most of the game is played up at the net, using a paddle and a ball that resembles a smaller-sized Wiffle ball. “There’s more side-to-side action with your partner than running on the court like you do in tennis. It’s more of a volley game,” she adds. “With pickleball, those of us who may have a few more aches and pains than we used to are still able to stay active, get in a good workout, and just have some wonderful social and recreational fun.”

Other local players feel much the same, but all would agree that the sport is growing faster in the Beaufort area than the space needed to play. Matt Straut, an area resident who has owned his own appliance repair business for the last 21 years, has been playing around town for the last two-and-a-half years. According to Straut, Rice, and Conradi, the issue is that most pickleball courts exist within private communities, limiting the availability of play to only those who live in those communities.

Straut, who has been active for many years in adult sports both back home in Connecticut and here in the Lowcountry, says the sport is being limited locally by the lack of public space to play. Straut jokes that the game is “like ping-pong but you get to stand on the table,” and he also says there is high interest locally by all ages.

“It’s not an ‘old people’ sport anymore. The average age of players has continued a downward trend. Literally anybody can play!” In fact, Straut, age 53, recently competed in his first post-COVID pickleball tournament in North Augusta with his doubles partner, age 36, in the 19-49 age bracket. “It’s an inclusive game — a great way to have fun, meet people, and make friends,” says Straut, who plays about six days a week. “You can take the game to whatever level you want from beginner play to intermediate to advanced.”

Resorting to “taping off” the tennis courts to the size of a smaller pickleball court at Southside Park in the City of Beaufort and bringing their own portable net in order to play, Straut and other players who are part of the Sea Islands Pickleball Club would love to see Beaufort embrace the growing interest in pickleball with dedicated courts.

Emily Upperman, who is treasurer of the newly formed pickleball club, says “Our club grew out of the players who played pickleball at The Shed (in Port Royal) for over four years. We have about 45 members with play primarily at the 3.5 level or lower.”

She adds, “Our average age range is best stated as 55+, but pickleball’s appeal is to all ages. As the sport grows in our area, the age range will as well.” Her hope, like the others, is to “find a new home for play, grow our membership, and grow pickleball in our area.”

Still, most courts in the Beaufort area exist primarily in private communities where residents work closely with their POAs to establish courts and related programs. With more than 20 active players, Dataw Island residents have four new courts expected to be ready this fall. Pleasant Point on Lady’s Island recently added four dedicated pickleball courts. And new courts can also be found at the Beaufort Yacht & Sailing Club.

“Of course, only residents or invited guests can play in these communities which have been restricted due to COVID right now,” explains Rice, adding that the Olde Beaufort Golf Club in Royal Pines is building six new courts expected to be open to the public this fall. Both the Yacht Club and Old Beaufort Golf Club involve fees and/or membership to play.

Those wanting to learn more about the sport, says Straut, are encouraged to stop by Southside Park on Mondays and Wednesdays at 6 p.m. Or, reach out to USAPA SC District Ambassador Jeff Conradi at pickballjeff@gmail.com for more information.

“Pickleball is the kind of sport that really grows by word of mouth,” says Conradi, “along with the number of courts that are available on which to play. If we had city park space, our reach could extend beyond adults to youth in our community as well. Ultimately, it would be great to run summer camps or clinics for kids in our area to get them and their parents involved.”

There’s no doubt that the local pickleball community — no matter the age of the player — is eager for Beaufort and the Lowcountry to join many other coastal areas who have made pickleball a destination sport.