(Editor’s Note: Padel + Pickleball Club of St. Louis announced its grand opening will take place Feb. 24 and 25 at its flagship location in Olivette.)
Racket, set, go! Come next month, our fair city will be home to the Padel + Pickleball Club of St. Louis, which combines two popular racket sports in a full-service club setting.
“We are excited to bring our vision to a reality and share both fantastic sports and our facility with the community,” said founder Mike Puertas.
Padel + Pickleball Club’s flagship location in Olivette will open its doors next month, with plans to eventually expand to other cities.
“The concept behind Padel + Pickleball Club was to combine two of the fastest-growing, fun social racket sports,” Puertas said.
Puertas, a former professional squash player who competed at the international level, served as head coach for the Washington University Squash Club.
Just like squash, pickleball can be played with two or four players. But while squash is played by hitting a ball with a racket against a wall, pickleball has been described as a combination of ping-pong, badminton and tennis, and uses a paddle to hit the ball over a net.
“Pickleball is a very social sport that has a low barrier to entry, but still caters to high-skilled racket players,” Puertas notes. “That combination allows for a very large segment of the population to play and have fun with the game.”
Pickleball’s popularity in the St. Louis area skyrocketed during the pandemic, when people were looking for ways to have fun and exercise while staying socially distant outdoors.
Puertas hopes that padel, a racket sport that originated in Mexico and is quickly becoming popular around the world, will catch on in St. Louis, just as pickleball did. Usually played in doubles, the game is said to be a cross between tennis and squash.
“I do think that padel has a very similar appeal to pickleball,” Puertas said. “The game is visually very appealing and is easy to learn. It is the fastest-growing racket sport in the rest of the world for a reason.”
Padel + Pickleball Club’s will feature six panoramic padel courts and eight advanced Cushionmaster II pickleball courts in more than 41,000 square feet of space. The club will also have locker rooms and shower facilities, as well as a pro shop, an in-house bar serving snacks, sports drinks, and alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. The club plans to host a number of activities, including open plays, tournaments, clinics and leagues for players of all ages and skill levels.
Next month’s opening date is expected to be announced soon. The Padel + Pickleball Club of St. Louis will be located at 1220 N. Price Road (Olive Boulevard and I-170) in Olivette.
