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(Image credit: Kerry Pittenger) Pro Players Anna Bright, Anna Leigh Waters, and Catherine Parenteau
Why disrespect a sport that has gotten people of all ages moving, as well as using their minds, improving their reflexes and their hand-eye coordination, making them happier, healthier, and, in some cases, more outgoing?
Comments I’ve heard:
“Pickleball is for failed or washed up tennis players.”
“Pickleball is for frail old people.”
“Can’t believe pickleball is considered a sport. It’s a joke.”
“My four-year-old can do that.”
“Pickleball is for people who can’t cut it in tennis.”
“How hard a game could it be with a sixteen-year-old ranked number one?” The answer: play her and find out.
Challenging the Skeptics
Could those who made the above comments score a point against a professional player? Beat them? Doubtful. If they did, the world would have heard about it in the post-match courtside interview. Something like, “I told you pickleball was easy. I told you it was for weaklings.”
People of all ages play pickleball and compete in tournaments; some professional athletes play—or have played—both pickleball and tennis and succeed at both (and at other sports). Anna Leigh Waters, Anna Bright, Callie Smith, Travis Rettenmaier, and Jack Sock, all top players, have competed in both sports. There are more, but enough for now.
The Online vs. On-Court Reality
It is easier to be aggressive on the keyboard than face an opponent on the court. Online, one can hide behind a username, provoke a reaction. Insults seem to get more attention than real substance, disrespect spreading wider and faster than encouragement. As soon as one realizes their own inadequacies, knowing they can’t compete, they heat up, tension builds—that mountain of insecurity becomes volcanic. Remember, anything can be said with the mouth, with keystrokes or by tapping a cell phone, but can the body back it up? Have naysayers the courage to meet on court and prove their assessments? Well?
Would You Criticize Someone You Care About?
Critics—if a loved one or a friend played pickleball, would you still criticize? What if pickleball helps their overall health? What if practicing and improving provides a sense of accomplishment? Still hate it? What if you yourself, critic, were told you were good enough to play as a professional and could earn more than you do now? Is the game still a joke? Seen as a job, which it is, albeit more fun and glamorous than others, pickleball and its players should not be maligned. Nor should any job or any worker.
A Personal Testimony
At fifty-three, I am active and in shape, having spent my life as a blue-collar worker, toiling in weather conditions—heat, cold, rain, snow—that many could not tolerate. In pickleball matches, women and men—both young and old—have worked me hard, moving me around the court, overpowering me and beating me. Ask me if I feel like a pansy.
The True Rewards of Pickleball
For me, playing pickleball is strenuous exercise, demanding on my body. Aches and pains creep in after a match. Even during a match! But those sensations always surrender to happiness and pleasure and a better, balanced life, a stronger, more versatile mind and body. Those who cannot find value and purpose and benefit in pickleball—and disrespect it—have probably only given the sport a cursory look or listened to others who haven’t a clue. Please, take a longer, penetrating look—an honest look. If you still find yourself at a loss, well, that loss would be yours alone.
As for the rest of us, rather than behave as others do casting aspersions from a seated—or horizontal—position, we’ll see one another on the court, where all misconceptions are proven wrong.
List of other reasons why people hate pickleball
It’s Not Tennis:
- Tennis players find it hard to accept pickleball as a distinct sport.
- Similarities in court and equipment lead to comparisons.
- Professional pickleball players often have a tennis background.
Noise Complaints:
The sound of the game is a common complaint among those living near courts.
Reluctance to Pioneer:
- People generally avoid being the first to try new things.
- Pickleball, being less known, faces skepticism.
The Name “Pickleball”:
- The unusual name can be off-putting.
- It’s seen as less serious, affecting the sport’s perception and chances to get into the olympics.
You just hate sports:
- Some dislike pickleball without trying it, reflecting a broader dislike of sports.
Court Line Confusion:
- Tennis courts marked for pickleball can confuse players.
- Permanent lines are problematic; temporary markers are a compromise.
Pickleball’s Popularity:
- Growing popularity, with cities converting tennis courts to pickleball courts.
- Some tennis players and residents are resistant to these changes.
Pickleball Isn’t A Workout:
- It’s enjoyable but may not provide an intense workout for everyone when playing doubles.
- Singles pickleball can be more physically demanding.
Scoring Complexity:
- Pickleball scoring is often seen as confusing.
Ageism in Pickleball:
- Perceived as a sport for older individuals, though demographics are changing.
A versatile and diversified writer, David Boyle has written three short story collections, published by independent presses. Though he earned his readership by writing reality-based fiction, Boyle has gained a reputation for literary stories, essays, articles, reviews, interviews, analyses, travel writing, reportage, and poems, a good number of which have appeared in both print and online magazines. Inspired by his wife’s passion for the sport, David now loves pickleball and aims to illuminate current pickleball events and subjects with a fresh, creative perspective, offering readers something they can’t find anywhere else. | My website | [email protected] | My Pickleball Journal
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49 comments from our community
These comments were originally posted on our WordPress site and have been preserved here. New commenting coming soon.
Matt, regarding sound, there is something interesting to share. A tennis ball hitting a tennis racquet is actually louder than a pickleball hitting a paddle. That’s a fact. But there are more details in this story. Go to YouTube.com and do a search with these words: Sound – Pickleball vs Tennis. Thanks for the interesting article and other blogs!
Get over it…pickleball is fun!
I am finding that after a period of time, the super competitive skilled people try to eliminate those who are more fun-oriented. or “newbies”……they will manipulate whatever system a group is using to “next to play”……..Sometimes if’s not possible for the folks who are more fun-oriented to separate themselves from those folks.
So if you’re one of those “too good to play with you” people………………..make room in your world for the “less fortunate”
The name really is “public enemy #1”. It kept me from playing 4 years sooner. As soon as I heard “geezer ball” I was out n I was 50.
As for a “workout”? SERIOUSLY!?
if you play with ANY vigor and live in the southwest, I’ve found NOTHING that comes close.
Maybe only basketball gets your heart pumping more, and it’s the “start stop” action that really makes a difference..
Toss the rest of the list as “sour grapes”…
Pickleball is NOT Tennis..
Get over it.
Hi Matt. Loved your article.
I believe we should make rules that improve the quality of the game. Not rules that make a game that is already whacky….worse.
For example, who was the wayward soul who came up with the idea of allowing a person to hit the net on the serve?!!! Worst rule ever in the history of mankind. I HATE that rule. Haven’t seen anyone return it yet. And don’t expect to. In every sport that has a net, hitting it on the serve is a fault. Period. As it should be. And what is the excuse of the other people on the committee that agreed to this horrible idea???
Someone told me the rule is only experimental and could be reversed next year. I certainly hope so.
Another rule that would vastly increase the quality of the game would be to have the offensive players make the call, NOT the defenders. Why? Two reasons. First off, the team that hits the ball has a better angle and look at the ball 90% of the time. Yup, they do. Better look down the middle, better look down the sidelines, and better look at the kitchen line. That leaves only the baseline. Ok, fine. Let the receiving team call the baseline shots. No problem.
How many times have your good shots been called out? And how many times have you seen long or wide shots called in? And almost invariably that one missed call completely changes the nature of the game. Point lost or side out.
I am not suggesting that players are cheating. They just aren’t getting the best look at the ball!!!!
In addition, most partners will not reverse a call or “get it right” because any disagreement will result in a lost point or fault. Even though they know their partner for it wrong. This poor rule encourages a lack of ethics. I’ve seen it time and again. It’s cheating, literally. I say get the call right. If people need to vote on it then do so. If no one can agree then replay it. Simple. The rule as it stands is not good for pickleball. Nor would it be good for any other sport for that matter. No other sport has such a silly rule. Why should pickleball?
The game is slow and clumsy and will never be watchable for a tennis player.
I won’t play it as construed, instead I play ‘house rules’.
1. No two bounce rule on serve. Serve must land but volley on return is fine.
2. No one up, one back. All points start behind service line. Double fault and point penalty to
cross before ball lands.
3. No let on serve. Play if touches the net.
4. Ball touching line is in.
5. Volley in kitchen is ok when moving forward. Stationary volley in kitchen is penalty point.
6. Winner on return is receiver point and switches service.
I agree that a let on a serve unless it lands out or in the kitchen should be replayed. Just like tennis!
As an avid tennis player, I confess I have an urge to arrogantly look down on pickeball – given its name and low skill level required. On the other hand, I acknowledge how it may be fun and beneficial for many people, and see it in a more favourable way.
However, I still can’t help myself but to think that healthy, younger people playing it is pathetic and a big waste of coordination and stamina that is better used in tennis, padel or even squash.
This was a very good balanced piece, thank you. I’ve been playing pickleball regularly for about 2 years — 74 year old male — with no prior racquet experience except for ping-pong (basement recreation in my teens) and squash (in my twenties). Tennis always seemed to have a very high barrier to entry for reasonably decent recreational play — requiring lessons and considerable commitment, kind of like golf. Perhaps unfairly, it seemed a bit exclusive and elitist — a country club sport.
So far, at least for me, pickleball has no time/fitness barrier at all and it’s fun immediately — it’s kind of like I’ve been miniaturized and placed on a ping-pong table. For seniors, it’s generally not very competitive. I also find that — despite the hype from supporters — it’s not a particularly good work-out, particularly for cardio work, even after hours of play. It does help with balance and coordination and hand-eye, and I hope that it helps the aging brain a bit. But I find that I really need to supplement it with resistance training (weights) and more rigorous cardio (biking, running).
There is a social aspect that I thought I would hate (extreme introvert) since nearly all the games (particularly for seniors) are doubles. But I’ve found even that aspect kind of nice and I’ve met a lot of neighbors in our community that I would not have talked to absent pickleball. I have no clue whether it will continue its momentum as a sport, or become a niche low-impact recreational activity like badminton or table tennis. But I’ve found it surprisingly addictive. I do understand the relative lack of respect paid to the support by tennis players — “tennis for non-athletes” — a fair criticism, at least as I have experienced it at our suburban Virginia courts. But for seniors like me who are, admittedly and unashamedly, non-athletes, it provides a very nice outdoor social recreational activity.
Face it – Pickleballers are selfish. They unrealistically decide to ignore the reality that listening to whack after whack after whack is in fact annoying to everyone else in the world. You wouldn’t hesitate to call the police with a noise complaint if your neighbor played loud music to 4am every night, but you simply cannot understand why others dont want to listen to your ridiculous popping sounds all day long.
Grow up and take some responsibility for your societal role, or remain the self-centered person you are.
Just.Play.Tennis.
Pickleball is what it is. Tennis is what it is. The rules and the way it is played makes pickleball unique. Don’t look for pickleball to fade as young people are getting into the game. The sport is growing every year. It’s a sport for all ages.
Oh, Come on now! Your friends hating pickleball? That’s like hating sunshine on a picnic day! But you know what they say, haters gonna hate, and lovers gonna love pickleball. It’s all in good fun, and if they give it a shot, who knows, they might get hooked and join the pickleball frenzy🤷🏻♂️
I am an aging tennis player and have played some PB. PB has lots of bending, glutes, quads, and hamstring workout. Nothing beats the pleasure of a nice, one handed backhand return or the fluid strokes of tennis. PB does sharpen some reflexes at the net. I did see a younger man smash a shot into an older woman. She was not quick enough to fend it off. The ball hit her face, made her sunglasses fall to the ground. She had to lay on the ground to recover, but was able to get up and play again. That was sad to watch. On our mixed level tennis courts, I have not seen that happen with the experience of our players. We manage to get the racket on the ball or on occasion, take a defensive position. We have had years and decades of balls coming at us and can deal with it. Will inexperienced PB without the tennis experience will have a steep learning curve with this situation? I also agree that young, athletic minded folks should seriously consider tennis. There are so many incredible tennis models for young men and women these days. Amazing skill and inclusiveness. As for noisy players…I can’t stand screamers like Azarenka nor people who talk constantly on the tennis court during a game.
The sound and the game are both annoying.
I am thankful for all of the comments here as they helped me understand the game better. Many of my (retired and too athletic) friends started playing pickleball lately, and talk about it all the time. I admit that I do not know much about it but am already annoyed. The noise is one aspect I never thought about before, and for me it is a deal breaker. I hope everyone enjoys their pickleball activities away from my neighborhood.
I don’t hate pickleball. I hate pickleball players! Why? (Disclaimer: Tennis player here)
They are freaking loud. Not just the ball against the paddle, but all the yelling. And the music! They bring their portable stereos and blast some hideous 80s music…
They take over the tennis courts. There’s a public facility with two courts that I used to enjoy playing on, one with a backboard on one end of one court. Both are striped for pickleball, so that’s four pickleball courts on the two tennis courts. Where do the pickleballers play? On the one side of the court that has the backboard.
I’m just hoping that pickleball goes the way of racquetball.
“Sandbagging is another reason why some people don’t like it.”
Great article! I just starting playing this year and gave it up today because of all the rudeness and clicks. You can have this snobby sport, I would rather take a hike in nature by myself!
