Pickleball is wreaking havoc across the US — and it’s only going to get worse

Image source: New York Post.

From the New York Post:

There’s a sour side to pickleball.

The game’s rapid rise — between 2020 and 2022, it saw a 113% increase in participation, according to a 2023 Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA) report — has made for ugly turf wars, furious noise complaints, violence, lawsuits and even potential criminal charges.

“I’ve had to go over to our recreational sports center and tell 70-year-old men: ‘If you threaten to hit our sports center director with the paddle again, I’m going kick you out,’” said Chuck Line, the city manager in Glendale, Colorado.

He never anticipated his job might include lecturing senior citizens about how to play nicely.

But nothing has been off limits since the picklers — short for pickleball players — began showing up in earnest in the Denver enclave.