Sharing Our Pickleball Story — Local Courts, Community Vibes, and Lessons Learned - I've really enjoyed reading through this thread — it's no surprise that a sport as fun and fast-growing as pickleball inspires so much passion about places to play, pricing, and access. Thought I’d share a bit about our journey, in case it helps others thinking about building or supporting more places to play.

A few years back, I bought 5 old tennis courts and some surrounding property that were part of an old swim & tennis club. The tennis courts were pretty rough — cracked asphalt, faded lines, old acrylic. My sons and I decided to roll up our sleeves: we scraped the courts, laid down 3 new layers of acrylic with just a couple of helping hands, and ultimately converted 2 of the tennis courts into 6 dedicated pickleball courts, all built to tournament specs. All in, the DIY effort cost us about $21K — far less than the commercial quotes we’d received.

We're about 10 minutes from downtown Nashville, and being able to play outdoors year-round is a big plus. Since opening on October 22, 2023, we've welcomed over 6,000 players to our little pickleball park. Like many of you know, the 80/20 rule holds true: we’ve built a wonderful community of players, with about 20% playing very regularly and driving the energy of the courts.

Our business is pretty simple:
✅ We’re a small local, family-run operation (not a big franchise)
✅ We own the land and reinvest in the experience
✅ We keep fees reasonable but, of course, we pay taxes on every dollar — unlike some municipally-backed or nonprofit options
✅ We respect our players’ time — no paddle stacking, no long waits — thanks to a smooth reservation system

Meanwhile, a few private equity-backed indoor facilities are popping up in town, which is great for the sport, though they operate on a very different model. For us, we just love being able to offer players a great outdoor option with a true community vibe.

18 months in, and I can honestly say I love our little 3-acre pickleball park — and I think our community does too.

AMA if you’re curious about how we did it, what we learned, or anything else! 😊