The 24,000 square-foot facility has 10 pickleball courts. Additionally, it has an event room and concession stand.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Dill Dinkers, in St. Petersburg, opened Dec. 14. Photo provided.<\/p>\n
For Lisa, entering the industry spurred from a passion. She was in the process of retiring from her job and saw an opportunity to create a facility in the community.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI loved going to play at Crescent Lake Park, but it was getting too crowded,\u201d Goettel explained. \u201cThe heat, the winds \u2013 you never knew what the external weather was going to be like. I wanted to be able to provide something for people to come and play at all levels and get what I got out of it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Dill Dinkers website\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n St. Pete Athletic\u00a0<\/p>\n St. Pete Athletic <\/a>opened earlier this month at The Factory in the Warehouse Arts District. Currently, the 50,000-square-foot facility is home to eight indoor pickleball courts, but six more are scheduled to open in January.\u00a0<\/p>\n However, the venture is far more than just a place to play pickleball. It has six table tennis and two indoor padel courts.\u00a0<\/p>\n St. Pete Athletic opened earlier this month. Photo by Bill DeYoung.<\/p>\n Additionally, the facility features a restaurant, three bars and a members-only area with a fitness center, saunas and a locker room. It also has a co-working space with a podcast studio, conference room and a members-only lounge. \u00a0<\/p>\n While there are certainly membership perks, a majority of the club is open to the public \u2013 including the pickleball courts, restaurant and bars.\u00a0<\/p>\n Currently, membership is full. However, individuals can join a waitlist as the facility\u2019s owners plan to expand capacity.\u00a0<\/p>\n St. Pete Athletic website<\/a><\/p>\n Pickle & Pint\u00a0<\/p>\n Largo\u2019s Pickle & Pint<\/a>, which opened in May, is a facility that features 12 indoor pickleball courts. It additionally has a gaming area for cornhole and ping-pong (table tennis), a bar and kitchen.\u00a0<\/p>\n Zachary Weir co-owns the facility with his wife and father-in-law, Roth Block.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe people that come in are basically like our family too,\u201d he explained. \u201cWe all treat each other with respect. It\u2019s all for fun.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Pickle & Pint has 12 indoor pickleball courts. Photo by Bill DeYoung.<\/p>\n Weir believes the pickleball boom is due to changing health trends. Particularly, an emerging focus on exercise.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI just think it\u2019s a better sport that\u2019s out there for all ages,\u201d he said. \u201cThe average age group is now like in the mid 30s. So, you\u2019re seeing people from four year olds all the way up to 90 year olds. It\u2019s a sport for everyone to take over.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Weir added that the social component of the game could help it retain popularity.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cPickleball is like the new business meeting place. Companies are stopping doing golf outings and doing corporate events at pickleball facilities because you can engage more. It\u2019s good team building.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Pickle & Pint website\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n Dink House\u00a0<\/p>\n Brandon Anandan, a former professional tennis player, has taken a liking to pickleball. For the past few years, he has been playing and coaching the sport.\u00a0<\/p>\n Anandan has also created his own facility.\u00a0<\/p>\n Dink House has four indoor pickleball courts. Photo provided.<\/p>\n In January, he held a grand opening ceremony for Dink House \u2013 also in Largo. The 10,400 square-foot club, which has been welcoming guests since 2024, has four indoor courts. Additionally, it has a cold plunge, sauna and fitness equipment.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI think that a big thing that helped was honestly the Covid-19 pandemic. People needed to get outside,\u201d Anandan said. \u201cIt\u2019s easy to get involved. You can be across a bunch of different skill levels and still play with each other. There\u2019s never been a game or sport where you can play competitively with your grandparents and your friends.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Athletic-club-pickleball-courts-1024x768.jpg\")
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