Outside the Office: Josh Stephens goes ‘all-in’ for pickleball

Josh Stephens is an early adopter of new ideas, innovations and products. If there’s a gap in the market, Stephens strategizes a way to fill it. And while his background is in sales, it is Stephens’s entrepreneurial spirit that has led him to his current role as co-founder and COO of EBO MD, a membership-based primary and affordable healthcare company, offering in-office consultations, testing and surgery, without copays or deductibles.

According to Stephens, when he sees something he wants to be a part of — in business, wellness or sport — he goes “all in.” So, when he stumbled upon a group of older women playing pickleball at the gym (a sport he had never heard of), he joined them and began learning to play.

“This was 10 years ago. Pickleball wasn’t popular yet, so everybody was making fun of me, telling me it was an old person’s game,” Stephens said, who used to play semi-pro beach volleyball. “But I got a taste of it and loved it. It was competitive. My new volleyball.”

Now Stephens is so proficient he competes in tournaments regularly and is sponsored by a paddle company.

To learn the game, Stephens started playing at the gym and the Osage Centre. While he admits to getting his “butt kicked” quite a few times, he eventually caught on to the strategy of the game, understanding the rules and language of the court. The Cape Girardeau resident was hooked.

Pickleball, most commonly played as doubles, with two players on each side of the net, is played on a badminton-size court. According to the Pickleheads website, the net height is 36 inches on the sidelines and 34 inches in the center. On each side of the net is a seven-foot area called the non-volley zone, also known as “the kitchen”.

Photos submitted by Josh Stephens

Play begins with an underhand diagonal serve across the court to the opponent and continues until there is a fault. Points can only be scored by the team that is serving. First team to 11 points, with a lead of two points, is the winner.

“It’s a chess game,” Stephens said, regarding the strategy of pickleball. “It might take 30 hits, or 30 dinks [a soft shot that just clears the net], for someone to get a pop-up and be able to score.”

And while the height of the net levels the playing field for almost everyone, Stephens says he has noticed the speed of the game is getting faster as more young people, and retired tennis players, join in.

“It’s a welcoming group,” Stephens said. “... no matter what level you’re at, there’s a place for you. Pickleball people are just cool people.”

As Stephens advanced in the game, he began entering tournaments across Southeast Missouri, Southern Illinois and the surrounding St. Louis area, making new friendships and forming doubles partners as he went.

He is ranked 4.9 on the DUPR (Dynamic Universal Pickleball Rating) scale, which is a global rating system designed to evaluate a player’s skill level and performance in the sport, allowing them to be matched appropriately with an opponent. Most recently, he became sponsored by ProDrive, a pickleball paddle company out of Naples, Florida. He says their Carbon Fiber Drive is his favorite paddle on the market.

But for Stephens, it’s not about the medals. It’s about longevity, wellness and health. It’s about doing something he loves.

“When I started pickleball, I weighed 279 pounds,” Stephens said. “Through repetitive play, I was able to drop some weight, feel better. I started taking supplements, doing micro-workouts, lots of stretching and mobility work. I even went vegetarian for six years. Now, I’m 212 pounds. I don’t drink or go to the bars. Outside of work and family, this is what I do.”

And through coaching and private lessons, Stephens is helping others do it, too.

On his lunch break, Stephens gives pickleball lessons to people in the community who want to learn or improve their game. He practices several hours a day as well, with at least six to seven hours over a weekend, through tournaments or just for fun. While he prefers to play outside, Stephens enjoys the controlled environment with indoor courts, in which sun and wind are not a factor in gameplay.

Many of his friends who used to laugh at him playing pickleball, are playing the game now, too. And his oldest daughter and his wife both want to learn the sport.

“Father time is undefeated,” Stephens said. “I can’t play volleyball like I used to. I quit playing basketball and golf. But in pickleball, you don’t really jump. There are injuries, but they’re different — you’re twisting and squatting quite a bit. Have to keep your hips loose. But it’s doable. There’s longevity of pickleball into your 80s and even 90s. That’s why people play it. They can do it forever.”

Stephens plans to do just that.