Dallas

Pickleball Takes North Texas, and One of Its Largest Employers, by Storm

Employees with Dallas-based Southwest Airlines are building community through the sport of pickleball

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Just before the sun set on the workday, Southwest Airlines employees gathered with rackets in hand to belly up to one of three newly added pickleball nets.

“Two or three times a week we've been doing it,” said dispatcher Dave Malin.

Malin first rallied his coworkers around the game of pickleball after learning how to play at his brother’s home in Kansas City.

“We were having a hard time finding a place to play. I think the last time we played offsite, we had about 40 people show up and we didn’t have enough courts. And they had to drive like 20 miles away to play,” said Malin.

So Malin, and a team including Lasi Manu, went to the airline, asking to convert an old basketball court into three regulation pickleball courts.

"I was really trying to push for it. I'm glad we did because I know what pickleball can do for a community, especially Southwest,” said Manu.

Today, watching all three courts full of teams playing until the sun sets, both men say they never imagined the addition would take off as it did.

It’s a phenomenon happening all over North Texas.

In Rockwall, a former tennis facility is now Oasis Pickleball Club where 42 courts fill up each evening with young and old, experienced and brand new, a good representation of the sport's growing popularity according to USA Pickleball’s Midsouth Regional Director Jason Otts.

“It’s like tennis, ping pong and badminton all got together and formed pickleball,” said Otts.

WHAT IS PICKLEBALL?

According to the Sports and Fitness Industry Association, this game involving a wooden paddle, a small plastic whiffle ball and net shorter than the one used in tennis has grown in popularity by 40% over the last couple of years. It’s currently played by 4.8 million people nationwide.

“I think you're going to see a lot of people that have a pretty competitive nature that want to pick something up fast and start playing quickly and this sport really allows you to do it,” said Otts.

In addition to businesses, Otts said everyone from cities to churches, even fire departments have added courts for those looking to burn some calories, socialize and to simply have fun.

“It allows us to kind of feel like a kid again,” said Otts.

BUILDING COMMUNITY THROUGH PICKLEBALL

Back at Southwest, employees are calling the addition a community-building endeavor, a sentiment echoed by their employer.

“We recently had the opportunity to incorporate Employees’ requests to enhance campus. We converted a basketball court into three pickleball courts – a growing request by Employees over the past few years. Our Employees work hard, so having a few outdoor spaces (basketball, volleyball, and now pickleball courts) available on campus is a win-win,” said Vice President of Facilities John Zuzu.  

According to USA Pickleball, the game first originated in the summer of 1965 when friends in Washington, looking for something to do, improvised on a badminton court with ping-pong paddles and a perforated plastic ball.

Today, there are nearly 8,500 locations to play that are recognized by USA Pickleball.

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