COLUMBIA, S.C. — Pickleball, a combination of tennis, badminton, and ping-pong, continues to take the country by storm. It is played on a court about half the size of a regular tennis court.
According to the Association of Pickleball Professionals, over 48.3 million people have tried pickleball.
In response, communities nationwide are building new courts, including a new facility coming to Cayce.
Brian Clary with the Lexington County Recreation and Aging Commission described the new facility.
“So, we have a 16-court new pickleball facility opening up in Cayce, hopefully by the end of the year sometime, and it’s at the Henry C. Moore Park,” Clary said.
Clary said the new courts will allow the county to host larger events.
“We have signed a letter of intent with the PPA, which is the Professional Pickleball Association, to bring a challenger-level pro tournament to the area sometime at the end of March," Clary said.
Clary said it’s estimated that the March event could bring 1,000 people to the area and have an economic impact of nearly $3.5 million.
He confirmed the county is spending close to $1.3 million on the new facility but said a portion of that money comes from a federal grant.
Not everyone shares the same level of excitement about building new pickleball facilities.
John Cherry grew up in Lexington County and had an issue with the project.
“It’s a waste of money for them to spend $1.3 million on pickleball when the average person doesn’t know what a pickleball is," Cherry said. "I spoke about it at a city council meeting, and I still don’t know what a pickleball is.”
Cherry said the area needs a community center focused on keeping youth off the streets.
"We need a community center for the kids because we have a lot of unnecessary violence because kids have nothing to do in the Cayce/West Columbia area," Cherry said. "And if we had a community center, I do believe that we could curtail some of the violence and help some people out.”
Cherry said he’s seen plenty of land that would be ideal for a Cayce/West Columbia center. He’s vowed to continue pursuing funding from Lexington County and the City of Cayce.