Pro Pickleball’s Woes Won’t Dent the Sport
Like ping pong, the pastime may not make the leap from popularity to profitability, but it will still be a thorn for tennis players.
Here to stay!
Photographer: Emilee Chinn/Getty ImagesIn the great national divide over pickleball, one side is enjoying a serving of schadenfreude over the news that the sport’s professional league is in trouble. Those who view the sport as an abomination — and they are legion — will take heart from the fact that Major League Pickleball, facing severe economic headwinds, is struggling to pay its players.
But those on the other side of the net — and they, too, make up a sizable cohort — needn’t be alarmed. Pickleball didn’t become America’s fastest-growing sport because of some hyped-up league, and its annexation of tennis courts across the country will not be impeded by the problems of the MLP. (And not just tennis courts, either.)