HAMPDEN, Maine — Pickleball is providing competition, conditioning and social interaction for about 40 participants at the Armstrong Tennis Center.
And it has Tony Cerbone of Bangor a bit reluctantly recalling some words he used to frequently hear.
“I hate to say this because I sound a lot like my father, but at my age, if you don’t keep moving, things rust up,” the 70-year-old said with a grin before a pickleball session Wednesday at the Armstrong Tennis Center. “So by playing this, it’s been great because my back hasn’t bothered me, my legs feel better, [and] I’ve lost some weight. It’s been a win-win.”
The sport is popular with older people as 70 percent who participate are age 60 and over, according to the USA Pickleball Association, and 24 percent are ages 40-59.
“The game is attractive to people wanting some fun while exercising and is very good for social interaction and bringing people together with a common interest,” said Armstrong Tennis Center owner Dean Armstrong, who is pleased with the sport’s popularity after first offering it at his facility several months ago.
The game combines some aspects of tennis, ping-pong and badminton on a hard-surfaced court that is 20 feet by 44 feet. The court fits within the single lines of one side of a tennis court where players hit wiffle balls with paddles a little bigger than a ping-pong paddle.
Cerbone was drawn to the sport after years of playing tennis, and he said he likes the diversity it provides.
“This seemed better for someone my age. It’s a great workout,” he said.
“The thing I like about it is I can play with my wife. This morning for example, I’m playing with three ladies. The way this sport is, you can do that and that’s not a problem. But on Saturday, I’m playing with three guys in their 30s. I still have to be competitive. Everyone can be competitive in this sport,” he added.
Players serve underhand, but other strokes are similar to tennis with forehand and backhand shots over a lightweight, three-foot high net. Singles play can be held, but doubles play is more popular for participants. The first player or team to reach 11 points wins, and points can only be earned by the serving side.
Armstrong offers clinics to teach the sport, and players also learn the sport’s origin and the reason for its name. The game started in the mid-1960s when the late Joel Pritchard, a congressman from Washington state, and his friend returned from a golf outing to Pritchard’s home on Brainbridge Island, which is near Seattle, looking for some activity for their families to do.
The home had an old badminton court, but they couldn’t find any rackets, so they started playing with ping-pong paddles and a perforated plastic ball. Popular lore says a family dog, Pickles, kept running away with the ball and that’s how the name originated, although Pritchard said in a later interview that they got the dog a few years afterwards and that led to the name.
Betty Jamison of Holden chuckles when she recalls that story and admits she has become hooked on the sport after a friend suggested she try it a few months ago.
“I said I’d play once a week. I’ve been coming three times a week,” said the 63-year-old Jamison, who also plays golf, hikes and does cross-country skiing.
“I like that [pickleball] is competitive — a lot of the things I do aren’t competitive,” said Jamison, who added that pickleball reminds her of some fun days playing college tennis.
Armstrong expects the sport to keep growing in the Bangor area and hopes to start some leagues, possibly by this fall.
Other tennis clubs in Brunswick and Augusta have started offering pickleball, according to Armstrong. He added that several facilities in Portland offer the sport and hold tourneys.
Both Cerbone and Jamison recommend the sport for others to try.
It’s just a lot of fun, and it’s not difficult. I think you can have a good time regardless of the level,” Jamison said.
