How Pickleball Facilities are Evolving as Players Demand More Places to Play

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Arslan Guney, a 71-year-old grandfather (also known to friends as the Mayor of Pickleball), was arrested in March after he used a permanent marker to draw small lines on a gymnasium floor to indicate where workers at Denver’s Central Park Recreation Center should place yellow boundaries for pickleball matches. The story drew national attention, with a community of pickleball players rallying for the charges against Guney to be dropped. After months of legal drama, the Denver district attorney declined to press charges, and Guney was absolved of any crime.

The quirky story highlights not only the strength of the pickleball community but the need for more courts and facilities to accommodate the sport’s growing popularity. According to the 2022 Sports & Fitness Industry Association Single Sport Report on Pickleball, the sport grew in 2021 to 4.8 million players in the United States. That’s 14.8 percent growth from 2020 to 2021 and follows 21.3 percent growth the previous year.

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