The Tyler’s Travels Team learned all about the fast paced game of Pickleball
LEXINGTON SC (WOLO) – The Tyler’s Travels Team was off to Lexington to learn about the slow or fast place game of pickleball. The sport has become one of the fastest growing sports in the world, with nearly 37 million people playing in the United States alone. In fact, the growth over the last three years is an estimated 223.5%, with a compounded rate of 7.7% through 2028.
Those numbers are part of what drove Dan Handford and his wife to create a 30,000 square foot Pickleball facility, taking a piece of what has become at $153 million industry. Of note, although the sport has exploded since 2017, it has been around since the 1960’s, and now has professional athletes leaving sports like tennis to become pros in it.
24 Hour Pickleball, as it is appropriately name, as it is open…well…24 hours, opened in March on Augusta Road in Lexington, and has continued to see membership soar.
“My wife and I saw all the tennis county tennis courts full with a four hour wait to get on a court and thought there has to be a better way,” he says.
The Handford’s purchased a plot of land near the Lizard’s Thicket near I20, leveled the house that had been on the property, and began to clear the space for the giant facility.
24 Pickleball offers monthly memberships, summer camps, social activities and more, all related to everyone’s favorite paddle sport.
You can learn more about 24 Hour Pickleball and the sport itself, HERE.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Tyler Ryan is an award winning television and radio personality, weather forecaster, writer, investigative journalist, and professional emcee. He appears daily on ABC Columbia’s Good Morning Columbia, as well as hosting the syndicated radio program Carolina Cares on the South Carolina Radio Network, and the iHeart Radio Network. Tyler also regularly appears as a criminal expert and journalist on regional and national crime based programs like Snapped and Killer Couples. You can contact him directly via EMAIL Or on the socials: Tyler’s Instagram // Tyler’s Facebook