HomeMy WebLinkAbout3/4/2020 Item 4, Moore
Wilbanks, Megan
From:Dixon Moore <
To:Advisory Bodies
Subject:Pickleball vs.Tennis
Advisory Bodies,
Are you telling me that the voices of 3 or 4 tennis enthusiasts are louder & more meaningful than 150-200
pickleball enthusiasts?
I love tennis. It's a great game. Been around for decades & decades. I've played it for over forty years. I
still religiously watch the major tournaments on TV. I've enjoyed watching the ladies circuit that comes
through Templeton Tennis Ranch for 3 years now. I've attended several live professional tennis
tournaments at Indian Wells, La Costa & Las Vegas. But even to the casual observer, one can see that
tennis participation on the Central Coast has taken a back seat to the pickleball mania that has seized
this county & thousands of locales throughout the nation. Many pickleball players have come from the
tennis ranks. It's easier to learn, it's very inexpensive to get equipped, it's a whole lot of fun & it's a hugely
social interaction. I've personally played in Cambria, Morro Bay, Pismo Beach, Shell Beach, Arroyo
Grande, Paso Robles, Atascadero & of course, San Luis Obispo. And when I travel, I bring my
racket. I've played in Santa Cruz, Santa Barbara, Buellton, San Diego, Pacific Beach and several cities in
Oregon & Washington. There's always a game going on.
With Sinshiemer, SLO High School, Islay Park & French Park, there are I believe at least 12 permanent
tennis courts, with SLO High also having lights. How many active tennis players are there? Do they have
an organized club? Do they have a board of directors? Do they meet on a regular basis? Do they have
a sign-in sheet that they deliver to the Parks & Rec Dept. on a weekly basis that monitors how often they
play?
If you put a video camera at the various courts, you would see first hand how popular pickleball has
become. Unfortunately, if you put a video camera at the tennis courts, you would see a lot of inactivity.
The simple truth is, at this moment in time, pickleball participation is 10 to 20 times more than tennis in
SLO City & surrounding areas. It's just a fact.
Dixon Moore
Local Business owner & resident for over 30 years.
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