More pickleball courts opening in New Jersey

As often as we hear about pickleball being such a new, trendy sport, you might think it was only invented in the 2000s.

The truth is pickleball has been around since 1965. It was invented on Bainbridge Island in Washington state that year as a children’s backyard game.

Fifty-seven years later, and with 8.9 million people now taking it far too seriously, it was named the official state sport of Washington. In those years, it grew slowly across the country until the 2020s, when it now seems to explode exponentially.

As popular as it is, there’s no sign of slowing down, considering it's expanding in Monmouth and Ocean Counties. Pickleball Kingdom is coming to Marlboro and Toms River.

The franchise company offers state-of-the-art amenities at indoor pickleball courts. There’s already one in Hamilton.

Ved Mishra is a franchisee who is opening somewhere in Marlboro without an exact location being named.

"We are thrilled to bring Pickleball Kingdom to the Marlboro Township community," said Ace Rodriguez, CEO of Pickleball Kingdom, in a statement. "Ved has a deep passion for the sport and an exceptional understanding of how to build strong community-driven spaces."

The other Pickleball Kingdom opening in Toms River is also at a location so far unknown.

It won’t be the only pickleball in town, though. Supreme Courts have signed a lease for a 15,000-square-foot club on Fischer Boulevard.

Picklr, a nationwide indoor pickleball franchise, is coming to Manahawkin. The spread continues.

Back to the Pickleball Kingdom. Their ultimate plan is to have 20 New Jersey locations.

No word on grand opening dates for Marlboro and Toms River locations.

Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Jeff Deminski only.

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