Local pickleball scene welcomes players of all skill levels

While living in Georgia for more than 30 years, Julie Straus, her husband and five children played tennis in tournaments and for fun together. When Straus moved to Cape Girardeau in 2016, she couldn’t find the tennis community she was hoping for. In 2017, while reading the newspaper one day, she came across a story about pickleball, a game that combines tennis, badminton and ping pong, and decided to go to the Osage Centre to try it out. After playing for a couple of hours, she paid her dues to join the SEMO Pickleball Club and has never looked back.

Recently, Straus and her pickleball partner Sarah Aydt played in the U.S. Open in Naples, Fla., a tournament Straus says is very competitive, and won second place in the 60+ 4.0 age and skill level; players playing at a 5.0 are considered professional. The pair also won bronze in a St. Louis tournament where they played against professionals, and Straus has won medals at the Atlanta Open. Last year, she helped to organize the Cape Girardeau Country Club Classic tournament, which brought in 105 participants.

In addition to playing in and organizing tournaments, Straus helped raise the money to transform the tennis courts at the Cape Girardeau Country Club into six new pickleball courts and start a pickleball league there of approximately 20 dedicated players. She also teaches lessons to pickleball players at the country club and helped bring the renowned pickleball coach John Callahan of Callahan Pickleball Academy in St. Louis to the country club to teach clinics. She describes the sport as an intimate game where players get to know their partners and opponent, “fun, fitness and fellowship rolled into one.” She says pickleball has allowed her to make friends all over the country, and she seeks out places to play when she travels.

Balls used for playing pickleball sit in a crate at Litz Park in Jackson. J.P. Clubb, president of the SEMO Pickleball Club, says the culture of the community is one of openness: Players often lend out extra paddles and equipment to other players to help them discover what works well for them.Photo by Jennifer Goodman

“The great thing about pickleball: It’s a game that anybody can play,” Straus says. “You don’t necessarily have to be an athlete. … You can learn the game, because the court is small, the paddle is wide, and you can play at whatever level you [want] to be comfortable within the game. And some people advance and they get better and better and better, and some people might just stay at the same level and be happy with that. So, it can be as competitive as you want. … [It’s a] very inclusive game.”

According to U.S.A. Pickleball’s website — the national governing body for the sport of pickleball in the United States — pickleball was invented on Bainbridge Island, Wa., in 1965 by fathers Joel Pritchard, Bill Bell and Barney MacCullum, who made up the game for their families as a game the whole family could play together. They played the game with ping pong paddles and a Wiffle ball on a badminton court, lowering the badminton net from 60 to 36 inches to help the ball bounce better. The game, which is played on a court that is smaller than a tennis court and can be played as doubles or singles, gained traction throughout the 1970s, and by 1990, people in all 50 states were playing it.

Today, pickleball is the fastest-growing sport in the United States: There were 4.8 million players in the U.S. in 2021, with 1.4 million of those playing more than eight times a year, according to the 2022 Sports and Fitness Industry Association (SFIA) Single Sport Report on Pickleball. The average age of those who play the sport more than eight times a year is 47.9, and 52% of those players are age 55 and older. With the rise in popularity, injuries have also risen: The National Electronic Injury Surveillance System estimates there are approximately 19,000 injuries incurred from the sport each year, with 91% in players age 50 years old and older, according to the study “Pickleball-Related Injuries Treated in Emergency Departments,” by Mathias B. Forrester.

Blake Traw hits the ball to his opponent while playing pickleball at Litz Park in Jackson on Tuesday, May 31, 2022. The SEMO Pickleball Club Facebook group has approximately 485 members.Photo by Jennifer Goodman

Still, the sport continues to grow: according to SFIA, at the end of 2021, there were more than 9,500 pickleball facilities listed on U.S.A. Pickleball’s Places2Play map, and the sport is now played internationally on multiple continents. In the U.S., the sport is currently gaining popularity fastest in the West North Central region of the United States, which includes Missouri.

Dianne Lawrence, Cape Girardeau Parks and Recreation assistant rec division manager, says she first noticed interest in pickleball in the Southeast Missouri region approximately five to seven years ago, when she worked at Fitness Plus in Cape Girardeau and the gym began adding pickleball courts to their service offerings. At the Osage Centre, they recently retaped the courts and added an additional court for a total of four indoor courts. They are also working on finishing six outdoor courts at Arena Park. She says a community of approximately 10 to 30 people play in the mornings, depending on the day, and in the evenings, there is a group of 10 to 20 people who play at the gym.

Paddles used for playing pickleball hang on the fence at Litz Park in Jackson while people play pickleball on the court. There are eight outdoor pickleball courts at Litz Park in Jackson, where players regularly meet to play the game.Photo by Jennifer Goodman

The game is especially well-suited as a form of exercise for aging bodies and has many diverse benefits, she says.

“It’s side-to-side movement, so it’s not just marching in place or walking front to back, and as we get older, side-to-side movement becomes more important,” Lawrence says. “[Pickleball] works on hand-eye coordination, which as we get older, that tends to slow down just a little bit. Also, [pickleball] just fosters movement in general and keeping moving. Strategy … it’s a lot of mental calculations, as well. It’s also very social.”

That’s something SEMO Pickleball Club President J.P. Clubb found when he decided he wanted to get in better shape in 2020. He says when he started playing pickleball, he lost 75 pounds and gained an equal number of friends. In addition to being the SEMO Pickleball Club president, a role he assumed approximately eight months ago, he became a U.S.A. Pickleball ambassador for Cape Girardeau two months ago, working to promote and grow the sport of pickleball throughout the region.

Players touch their paddles to tell each other good game at the end of a game of pickleball. The game can be played as partners or singles.Photo by Jennifer Goodman

The SEMO Pickleball Club Facebook group has approximately 485 members and states its mission is to “organize the play of pickleball, promote the development and growth in Southeast Missouri, whether for fun or to make it competitive, for people of all ages.” They also host a tournament, the SEMO Chemo Bash, at the Sportsplex in Cape Girardeau each year.

One of the best aspects of the game, in Clubb’s opinion, is the diversity of people who play. He says on any given evening when people from the club meet, there are people from ages 5 to 85 playing the game, as well as people from different socioeconomic backgrounds, places of origin and professions.

“Everybody plays,” he says.

A player hits the ball during a game of pickleball at Litz Park in Jackson on Tuesday, May 31, 2022. The game is played to 11 points, and a player or team must win by two.Photo by Jennifer Goodman

The levels of expertise vary, too, ranging from beginner and those who are there to have fun, to those who play in tournaments and are there to continue improving their game. Clubb says he enjoys competing in tournaments, as well as inviting new players into the game.

“Pickleball is good for your body and staying active. It’s also great — and that’s probably more important — for all the people that you meet,” Clubb says. “Friends, the social relationships — that’s why I have fun knowing the sport is taking off. Because there’s such a social aspect to it. … It’s good for your body, it’s good for your health. It’s good for everything.”

For Charlie Cai, pickleball is good for all of those benefits and more. As what he refers to as his “last sport,” when he first started playing through the invitation of a friend in 2019, he decided he wanted to become formally trained and involved in every aspect of the game. He took lessons with Callahan of Callahan Pickleball Academy in St. Louis. He told Callahan he needed to write a book about pickleball, and when Callahan did, Cai acted as the agent for the book, editing it, writing a foreword for it and finding a publisher. The book, “Pickleball: Tips, Strategies, Lessons and Myths from a certified pickleball professional and U.S. Open gold medal winner,” was on the Amazon Bestseller Report in 2020.

Jolie Kidd and Ella Vogelsang hug as they celebrate serving and returning the ball during a game of pickleball at Litz Park in Jackson. Many players' favorite part of the game is the welcoming community of people at all skill levels who play the sport.Photo by Jennifer Goodman

Jolie Kidd and Ella Vogelsang hug as they celebrate serving and returning the ball during a game of pickleball at Litz Park in Jackson. Many players' favorite part of the game is the welcoming community of people at all skill levels who play the sport.Photo by Jennifer Goodman

After taking lessons and participating in tournaments such as the U.S. Open, Cai began coaching people as a certified coach through the Professional Pickleball Registry and organizing games and tournaments. He founded the organization Pickleball Lovers, whose mission is to “connect the world through pickleball.” The organization provides lessons and open group play in Sunset Hills, Mo., and also encourages people to “play with purpose:” Through the organization, Cai traveled to Poland to meet Ukrainian refugees and key business leaders, to donate food to refugees and bring pickleball to the country. The organization also sponsors professional pickleball players Sarah Ansboury and Riley Newman.

Cai says pickleball is a sport about love; this is one of the reasons he enjoys playing it so much.

“When you play pickleball, most of the time, you love your partner, because together, you’re going to win. If your partner [is] not very good, you still have reason to love, because you can hit more balls and help him; he appreciate[s] you,” Cai says. “And then also, you love your opponent. If your opponent’s good, you get trained, you get good. If your opponent’s bad, you can beat them.”

Justin Litzfelner looks off the court as Gwen Essner waits for her opponent to serve the ball during a game of pickleball. The game incorporates side-to-side movement, hand-eye coordination and strategy, with a social component.Photo by Jennifer Goodman

This love is what keeps Dena Zoellner coming back to the game: She began playing pickleball two years ago and plays a couple of times a week at the Osage Centre. For her, pickleball has never been about getting good enough to play in tournaments; rather, it’s a way to meet new people and have fun recreationally.

“It’s very addictive once you get started,” Zoellner says. “I don’t like to get on machines and work out and stuff. And this is a workout for me, and I don’t have to run laps or anything — all I have to do is get out here and have fun and laugh — and I’m the biggest laugher. And so I just enjoy it.”

That enjoyment is the whole point of the game, Clubb says, and he wants to help people find that kind of fulfillment in their lives.

“If you want to play, get out there, ‘cause we want you to come out and play,” Clubb says. “We want new people to play. We want beginners — we were all beginners at one time. So, if you want to play and have any inclination to play, get out there and play, and we’ll help you.”

__Want to play?__

Members of the pickleball community love to teach new players the skills of the game. If you’re interested in playing, check out the SEMO Pickleball Facebook page to connect with other pickleball players in the area. You can find people to play with throughout the community at these places and times:

__Jackson Civic Center in Jackson:__ Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, 9 a.m. to Noon; Mondays and Tuesdays, 6 to 9 p.m.

__Litz Park in Jackson:__ During park hours

__Osage Centre in Cape Girardeau:__ Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Sundays, 12:30 to 2:30 p.m.

__Shawnee Park Center in Cape Girardeau:__ Tuesdays and Thursdays, 9 a.m. to Noon

__Arena Park in Cape Girardeau:__ During park hours

__3 Tips for beginning pickleball players__

__From J.P. Clubb, SEMO Pickleball Club president__

__1. Get a beginner’s paddle.__

When players show up to play the game, they need to bring a paddle. Clubb says entry-level paddles cost $20 to $30 and will help new players get a feel for what they like and what they don’t. He says many experienced players are often willing to lend out extra paddles they have, which can also help new players discover what works best for them.

__2. Wear comfortable clothes.__

Players move around a lot during the game — up and down and left to right — so it’s best to wear tennis shoes and loose athletic clothing that moves easily.

__3. Enjoy yourself.__

It’s important to keep the game in perspective, Clubb says: At the end of the day, it’s about hitting a Wiffle ball with a wooden paddle, and the point is to have fun. The key to that, Clubb says, is to take the first step and start playing. After that, players can start focusing on not hitting the ball too hard and putting it in specific locations around the court.