Feature
A
$ 35 MEMBERSHIP FEE GETS YOU ‘ THE BEST DEAL IN SPORTS ’
Membership in USA Pickleball has tripled since 2018 .
By Alex Abrams
RED LINE EDITORIAL
Araceli Woo Baker , like thousands of other pickleball players , became a member of USA Pickleball in 2021 , just as the sport was enjoying a major spike in popularity nationwide .
Araceli Woo Baker was introduced to pickleball during her sophomore year of high school in 1976 .
Her physical education teacher wanted to try something different , so she passed out paddles that were square instead of round like a tennis racket . She then told her students the story about how pickleball was invented . Baker and her classmates had never heard of the sport , but they enjoyed playing it — except when they were getting splinters in their hands from the wooden paddles .
Baker certainly didn ’ t expect the sport she tried over four decades ago to explode in popularity years later , becoming America ’ s fastest-growing sport for three consecutive years and a fixture in the mainstream sports conversation in recent years .
“ The whole pickleball world pretty much has taken over , right ? It ’ s all over the world now ,” said Baker , a retired paralegal who lives in Tuscaloosa , Alabama . “ Back then , when my PE teacher handed us all those wooden paddles , [ it was ] just to improve our tennis .”
Baker , 63 , signed up as a member of USA Pickleball two years ago — just as the sport was enjoying a major spike in popularity nationwide . She encouraged her women ’ s doubles partner to become a member as well .
There are now thousands of players like Baker who are helping USA Pickleball invest in the future of the sport .
Since USA Pickleball is a nonprofit organization , the National Governing Body uses the revenue it generates from membership fees to host events , run youth programs , grow the sport and maintain the integrity of the game . Of course , players directly benefit from being USA Pickleball members as well . It ’ s a symbiotic relationship , and the membership has grown to where it ’ s now on pace to reach nearly 100,000 by next year .
62 TO SUBSCRIBE , CALL 412.914.8294 OR GO TO PICKLEBALLMAGAZINE . COM