Pickleball - The Sport Taking Over IG
Pickleball, the sport that took over our Instagram feeds during the pandemic, and we cannot get enough! Pickleball, never heard of it? Neither had we until a few months ago and then it seemed like all of our favorite celebs, including the Kardashians, Gary Vaynerchuk, Novak Djokovic, and more were playing it and we had to learn more. It isn’t tennis, it isn’t squash, it’s pickleball, and it is our newest recreational habit obsession.
So, what is pickleball?
Pickleball is a sport played with paddles, typically made of wood that has tiny holes in it, and a plastic ball (similar to a wiffle ball) that you hit back and forth over a net. The court looks similar to a tennis court if you are familiar, but much smaller at 20 feet by 44 feet versus a tennis court which is 36 feet by 78. It can be played as singles or doubles, which we prefer, making it fun for our family and guests to get in on the fun. What was initially made for children in the 1960’s is no child’s play and according to a March 2021 BBC News article, the number of Americans who have started this sport increased by 21.3% in 2020.
The Rules:
The rules are simple, if you are familiar with the rules of tennis, badminton, or ping-pong! The biggest difference aside from the court size, is how to serve. When you serve in pickleball, the serve must be underhand, and the paddle must not come above your naval. The ball can only bounce once but you can also hit the ball before it bounces to the opposite side of the court. The first side scoring 11 points leading by at least two points wins the game. If the two sides are tied at 10 points apiece, the side that goes ahead by two points wins the game.
See you guys on the pickleball court, hopefully soon. Don’t have a pickleball court nearby? Don’t worry, we have listed some travel pickleball sets that you can set up and play anywhere.
