Pickleball: A popular sport from the USA is now also in Newmarket.

Two years ago, friends Moritz and René traveled together to the USA. There they accidentally came into contact with a pickleball. Some 40 million players already play in the USA – including celebrities such as Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf. Moritz and René’s passion for the sport was ignited. However, back in Neumarkt in the Upper Palatinate, the two realized that pickleball had not yet crossed the ocean to Germany.

A mix of tennis, table tennis and badminton.

“We asked ourselves why doesn’t anyone here know about this? And then the idea of ​​building it here was born.” The boys put their heads together and thought about how to bring the sport to Newmarket.

Pickleball is a combination of different racquetball sports: it is played on courts about the size of badminton courts, the rackets are reminiscent of square beach ball rackets, and the ball is an oversized ping-pong ball, but with holes. The rules? Controllable: At the start of each rally, the ball must land once in the opponent's court. A set is won once one team reaches eleven points. However, only the side currently serving can score points.

Old tennis court turns into pickleball court

The general conditions are favorable: Moritz's grandparents built their own sand court in front of their house during the tennis boom of the 1980s. At one point the space was no longer used and was covered in tar. “Last summer, when it was 36 degrees, we removed all the moss with a snow shovel.” They mark the first fields on the course with tape and play the first rounds. Moritz and René's circle of friends quickly become enthusiastic about the dynamic ball sport.

The players start bringing other acquaintances and friends with them. The WhatsApp group they created grows to 70 new baseball players. But the makeshift field is uneven. The two figured out how to professionally renovate their place. To do this, they used around €30,000 of their own savings and built baseball fields suitable for tournaments.