A comprehensive look at the growth of pickleball in Arizona

SCOTTSDALE – Missy Lagomarsino has a dream. She wants Arizona lawmakers to name pickleball the state’s official sport.

“The biggest indoor pickleball facility in the world is being constructed in Scottsdale right now because there are so many players that are coming here,” the Scottsdale resident said. “Many of our national tournaments are held in Arizona so Arizona has a lot going on with pickleball.”

Racket sports have been around a long time. With origins in the 12th century, tennis has grown to be one of the most popular sports in the world. 

Other racket sports such as badminton and table tennis have been a part of the Summer Olympics for more than 30 years. The racket sport that has gained the most traction among the people of Arizona in the 2020s, however, is pickleball.

The growth can be seen throughout the state, with cities such as Goodyear and Surprise offering 6.45 and 5.90 courts per 10,000 people, which rank second and third nationally among cities with a population more than 100,000, according to Pickleball Magazine.

“I’m a grandma,” Lagomarsino said. “I’ve never played sports in high school or anything like that. And I started playing pickleball, and I was hooked and I play every single day.

“I love the sport, and I want to share it with everybody.”

Pickleball can best be described as a mix of tennis and table tennis, using plastic balls and paddles on a 20-by-44 foot court. Since 2020, pickleball’s American participation has grown to 24.3 million players, an increase of 20 million over a five-year span, according to the Sports & Fitness Industry Association. 

Lagomarsino is an ambassador for USA Pickleball, a member of the steering committee for the Blue Zones Project representing the pickleball community. She helped start an initiative with the Arizona Senate. On Jan. 29, Senator Frank Carroll introduced Senate Concurrent Resolution 1021 (SCR 1021) to designate pickleball as the official state sport of Arizona. The resolution has been tabled until next year. 

“For the state of Arizona and for the people of Arizona, it’s really valuable because it’s a marketing tool. It’s a great way to shine a light on Arizona’s great environment, how welcoming we are to winter visitors,” Lagomarsino said. “Our lifestyle is very outdoorsy and active in Arizona, all the way through your senior years, a great way to highlight our awesome weather 90% of the year.”

Lagomarsino believes that making pickleball the state sport of Arizona would be significant for both the sport and the state.

“That will drive tourism,” she said. “It will drive rental properties when people come in from out of town. It will put money in hotels when major tournaments come in. 

“We have quite a few manufacturers of pickleball equipment, for example, Proton, which is a huge pickleball company. It’s based in Scottsdale. Their paddles are super popular. So for the state of Arizona, it’s an economic boom if we name pickleball the state sport of Arizona.”

PURE Pickleball and Padel will be the largest indoor pickleball facility in the world once its construction is completed. PURE, which plans to open in mid-to-late 2027, will be home to 40 pickleball courts, eight padel courts, a restaurant and bar partnership with Wolfgang Puck Catering, spa amenities and a sports performance and recovery center. 

“We want to create a place where people want to hang out,” Kevin J. Berk, the co-founder and CEO of PURE, said. “One of the things that I think is probably the greatest thing that we’ll offer to anybody is that eight of our 40 courts are open-play slash challenge courts, and they’re free to the public. So this is no different than going to Cholla Park or Horizon, except for you’d be playing indoors on the best courts ever built.”

Berk said PURE will give local residents the opportunity to dodge the brutal summer heat that the Phoenix area experiences, all while maintaining an inclusive environment that does not put a financial strain on anyone who wishes to visit.

“The market at some point in time may get saturated with facilities with options for people. We’ve got to make something that they, when they have a choice, they’re going to choose PURE. And that’s where we started,” Berk said. 

Lagomarsino and Berk are among many Arizonans who have found community as pickleball players. 

“To me, it’s like a second family,” Berk said. “I’m 58 years old. It’s kind of difficult to meet people at this age, make new friends, but I’ve made, I don’t know how many new friends, 100, like serious people who I could call, go play, hang out with or whatever.”

In addition to the adult population, pickleball’s growth can also be seen among Arizona’s youth, especially from a competitive point of view. Scottsdale’s JZ Holmes and Andre Mercado are among the most successful pickleball players for their age in the entire world. Holmes, who is 12 years old, is currently ranked No. 1 in the Professional Pickleball Association’s 12U boys doubles division, while Mercado plays professionally on tour as a 16-year-old.

“Right now, I’m just trying to focus on getting better every day, just staying consistent, putting in my hours every day,” Mercado said. Mercado is ranked No. 97 in doubles, No. 93 in mixed doubles and No. 123 in singles in his age division.

With the success and dedication to the sport, there are challenges that come with being top pickleball players at such a young age.

“There are mental challenges, when I’m down, say 0-10 it’s hard to come back and have that mentally strong attitude. And I try to work on that,” Holmes said.

For Mercado, the biggest challenge comes with the time that is dedicated to either traveling, training or playing.

“I’m gone usually anywhere from one to three times a month and those trips usually range from four days to six days so I’m gone for a good chunk of the year,” he said. “That’s pretty tough like being away from family and just the mental toll of always being on the road. 

“I feel like for most people it would be tough because having such a busy schedule can be pretty stressful. It’s like I’m pretty much doing at least three hours of court time a day, getting a good workout for an hour, watching film every day for at least an hour. Getting good high quality meals, high quality sleep.”

In addition to his success on the court, JZ Holmes has a parent-managed Instagram account, @slamdinkjz.pb, that has amassed more than 800 followers and various sponsorships from pickleball brands. 

“I understand how important branding is with my background and marketing and PR. So I was like, if we’re gonna do this, we want sponsors to help offset some of these costs, and the way we’re gonna do that is establishing a brand for him and making brands want to work with him, not necessarily because he’s the number one kid, but because he’s a good human. He represents brands well,” Mandy Holmes, JZ’s mother, said. “A lot of that is because of his Instagram presence, and his influence in the junior pickleball world.”

With bright futures ahead of them, JZ Holmes and Mercado are paving the way for competitive pickleball to become a popular sport for youth players all over the world.

Along the way, they may just do their part to make Arizona the unofficial (or official) pickleball capital of the world.

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