Pickleball; the new cheap & addictive sport

Many active, senior women can't get enough of Pickleball. The pickleball trend is sweeping the nation, with more than 400,000 players, and growing fast, especially among aging baby boomers.

Jennifer Hill from the Robson Ranch Pickleball Club in Texas told us, "Oh it's a movement, it 100% is a movement. We all the time travel, when we travel on vacations now, we take our paddle."

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Part ping pong, badminton, and tennis, pickleball is played on a small court with a paddle and a whiffle ball. The game was invented in Seattle about 50 years ago, and was either named after the pickle boat in crew or the family dog Pickles.

"You're competing. There's competition, whether they say it is or not, there's competition, you want to get better," pickleball player, Joanie Price said.

These women are having fun, getting better and achieving their goals. 61-year-old Saundra Gaylord even lost 45 pounds.

Gaylord said, "I have more energy now than my kids do, and they can't believe it."

The benefits of pickleball include aerobic exercise, weight loss, hand eye coordination and camaraderie.

"It's great. We get out here with our friends. Sometimes, we get out here with our husbands," Gaylord said.

"Just the people that you meet, I mean your circle of friendships just grows enormously," pickleball player Char Thompson explained.

And that sounds good for any age! Cheap, addictive and legal, what's not to like? By the way tennis courts are being converted to pickleball courts all over the country.

There are a couple of local pickleball clubs. To find them, check out this website.