Pickleball is popular in Hays County

HAYS COUNTY — The sport of pickleball is becoming more popular in communities across the nation, including those in Hays County.

More than 36 million or 14% of adult Americans played pickleball at least once in the last year, according to the Association of Pickleball Professionals (APP), and 8.5 million people played pickleball eight times or more in 2022. There are 616 pickleball courts in Texas, with the state having the third most pickleball courts in the U.S.

The growth in popularity of the sport corresponds with the COVID-19 pandemic, said Brandon Mackie, co-founder of Pickleheads — a website that helps players find all of the information they need for pickleball.

“The pandemic is closely associated with the crazy growth of the sport. If you think about that time period, all the gyms were shut down, people were locked indoors and everybody wanted an outlet,” Mackie said. “Pickleball, for a lot of people, was that [outlet]. [It] was a way to get outside, socialize responsibly and get exercise.”

Pickleball has been played mostly by older generations, but because the sport is easy to learn, younger people have started to pick it up, too.

“I think they used a lot of social media [to] invite their friends and that really helped grow the sport virally. The reason why I think it's stuck and continued to grow is because the sport’s just so easy to learn and it’s enjoyable,” Mackie said. “People go out, they don't think they're gonna be any good at it, they pick it up, they even win games the first time and they just want to come back and try it again. It's created a snowballing effect, which is why I think we just continue to see it grow and grow.”

“The data a year ago, which would have been for the period of two years ago, said the average age dropped below 40 for the first time. Then in just one year, now it's at 35 and 10 years ago, it was probably 50,” he continued. “So, it's kind of middle age [at] 35. But what’s interesting is the 18 to 24 segment is growing the fastest; they're growing about twice the rate of the 55-age segment.”

Austin is one of the top cities in Texas to have seen growth in pickleball, but cities in Hays County are starting to see more courts and games popping up.

“It’s a national phenomenon, but there are hotspots and one of the biggest hotspots is the Greater Austin Area. I think what's happened there is some of the largest entrepreneurs in the space that have kind of created Major League Pickleball that has grown the pro tour, a lot of pros are living there [and there is] an explosion of courts and interest,” Mackie explained. “What we're seeing in our data is that it is starting to now spread into the surrounding areas that are in proximity to Austin. We're seeing Facebook groups pop up, new courts being added, new facilities and just an overall growth in the sport really every month.”

Courts can be found all across Hays County including the Central Texas Fieldhouse in Buda (indoors), Hays Communities YMCA in Buda (indoors), Plum Creek in Kyle (private; outdoors), Sage Hill Inn & Spa in Kyle (outdoors), Springs Family YMCA in Dripping Springs (indoors) and Dreamland in Dripping Springs (outdoors).

To learn more about pickleball in your community, visit www.pickleheads.com.