There are many great spots to play the beloved game of pickle ball in Columbus. Credit: Sheron Colbert
The pickleball wave is here.
After a rise in popularity during the pandemic in 2020, pickleball has soared to over five million players across the U.S., according to USA Pickleball. Luckily for Ohio State students, many parks, clubs and facilities around Columbus are open to those looking to play.
Susan Weil, a general manager at Pickle & Chill — a local indoor and outdoor pickleball club located just 3.6 miles from Ohio State’s campus on Henderson Road.— said she took notice of the rise in pickleball’s popularity during the pandemic.
The current facility was once home to Ohio State varsity tennis and was leased out to Pickle & Chill, which opened in November 2022.
Weil said there are many benefits to going to Pickle & Chill compared to a park.
“Our courts are dedicated pickleball courts, which isn’t always the case at a park,” Weil said. “The majority of park-play situations is an open-play style, whereas that is our No. 1 advantage. You can reserve a court for you and your group and play exclusively.”
The indoor facility is open from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. every day and has low-rate hours. The cost for a college student decreases from $14 to $8 per hour on the court.
Pickle & Chill also has many pickleball beginner classes located on their website.
For those wanting to stay on campus, there is a club dedicated to pickleball, called Buckeye Pickleball Club, led by Brady Terrell.
Terrell, like Weil, said he started playing the sport in 2020 with his entire family and enjoyed getting involved.
The pickleball club saw an increase of new players in the last two years, Terrell said.
“Last year we went to the involvement fair, and at the time we had 20 to 30 members, and after the involvement fair, we had over 300 in our GroupMe,” Terrell said. “It’s kind of exploded to the point where I say that I play pickleball, everyone knows what it is and has played it before.”
Terrell said the club has two different types of memberships. The first is an open membership with a $50 annual due that goes into equipment, practice time and potential merchandise. The second is a competitive membership, which requires a $120 annual due and is earned via tryouts, putting a player on the competitive team for future events.
The club practices five times a week. Terrell said it practices on the Lincoln Tower Park tennis courts during the warm-weather days. However, when the weather gets colder, practice moves inside to the RPAC basketball courts.
Hoff Woods Park in Westerville, Coffman Park in Dublin and Olentangy Parklands in Worthington are a few other places near campus with designated pickleball courts. The RPAC also has scheduled pickleball events that can be found on the Ohio State recreational sports website.
