Business Owner Surfaces $1 Million Reality to Prove America’s Fastest Growing Racket Sport’s Skyrocketing Popularity as Tennis Takes a Beating

The war between tennis and pickleball is escalating on and off the court! While there is a storm brewing on the tennis courts of America, pickleball has started to rule among the oldest sports. And now, not only on the athletic front, the rising racket sport is also ready to take center stage, even from a business perspective.

Recently, a tennis center owner changed his entire business to focus on the pickleball surge. But that’s not the major highlight; he also revealed the skyrocketing change in revenue that he got to see with this huge change.

Pickleball tries to trump tennis in business

Back in 2010,  a former collegiate coach Jon Neeter bought a tennis court in Santa Monica for around $40,000. After running a successful tennis business for years, he barely survived the pandemic and then changed his business to pickleball. According to Business Insider, last year, in the fall of 2022, he decided to go all in on pickleball.

The development of pickleball didn’t cost him much, as he started by simply adding some paddles to his retail shop. Paddle sales have remained strong, which Neeter couldn’t possibly expect from what he saw with tennis. He said, “Retail has done things I never thought it would. I knew it would be good, but we’re talking about having six-figure retail months.”  

That too in such a way, that till now since the beginning of this year, he has arranged to do well and has earned around $1 million in sales by combining his retail and on-court services. After running a hybrid shop for a while, he officially rebranded the tennis court into a Santa Monica Pickleball Center earlier this year. While he is still playing tennis on the outside, his revenue numbers have looked amazing since the time pickleball entered the scene.

While pickleball is advancing with the help of people, at the same time, the rising racket ball sport has also seen the consequences of its popularity. A few months back, Vandals tried to destroy a pickleball court after getting anxious over seeing the sport skyrocketing in the eyes of the public.

READ MORE: Pickleball Faces Massive Roadblock in Addition to Tennis after Eye Injuries Spike

When pickleball became a target against tennis

A few months ago, according to a report from CBS News, a group of people witnessed the tennis nets in Needham slashed and disassembled. It became a matter of vandalism, as a few days before the incident, there was a verbal feud between some tennis and pickleball players.

Some players revealed that the dispute between the two groups may have led to the situation that caused instructions to the pickleball courts. While a lot of pickleball players believe that they are ready to coexist, tennis players, on the other hand, have not spoken about making peace with pickleball players.

What do you think about the war between both racket ball sports? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

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