The U.S. Open tennis tournament is currently going on but many casual and frequent tennis players alike are turning in their rackets for paddles in order to play a sport of smaller proportions: pickleball. According to the USA Pickleball Association (USAP), this low-stakes game is one of the fastest-growing sports in the country, with a reported 4.8 million new players since 2021.
Pickleball has caught on for a number of reasons, but mostly for the fact that it’s a fun way to exercise and easier to play than tennis because it requires less court space. There’s even evidence to indicate that playing pickleball can increase muscle strength and hand-eye coordination.
If you want to try it out for yourself, it’s fairly inexpensive to do so. Gameplay only requires a paddle and a ball, and you can make a court just about anywhere (including on a public tennis court). Before you pick up the paddle, download the official rulebook from the USAP site and take a look at some pickleball gear and accessories that you might need once you hit the court.
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