New indoor pickleball club opens in Warren

Pickleball is one of the fastest growing sports in the U.S., with many people picking it up during the pandemic and continuing to stick with it.

The racquet sport has grown 51.8% from 2022 to 2023, and approximately 223.5% over the past three years, according to the Sports & Fitness Industry Association.

Locally, the sport has taken over many metro Detroit parks, and now there’s a new complex dedicated solely to pickleball in Warren, the Bash Pickleball Club. 

Co-owner Sam Briko picked up pickleball about nine months ago, he told WDET’s Nick Austin and Tia Graham on The Metro. Pickleball is a social sport, and he started asking people where they play in the winter. 

“And the answer I would get was like, nowhere, nothing dedicated. Maybe we’ll find a empty hall and put up a net and you know, make some lines with tape,” Briko said, “And so I took a few videos every time at the park and I’d send it to my brother. I’m like, this would be a great business idea. We need a dedicated facility for pickleball organized play. And that’s how we got started.”

One of the reasons the sport is so popular is because it’s easy to learn, said Nick Hernandez, head coach at the club.

“And a lot of people do like it because it is easy to pick up. It is easy to learn, all age ranges, as you mentioned, can play the game,” Hernandez said. “A lot of people learn the game, then they go out [with] their friends, [it’s] kind of [a] backyard activity. And it’s really fun.”

Use the video player below to hear the full interview with Briko and Hernandez at the 0:42 mark.