A Couple of Dads, Some Bored Children, and the Creation of a Billion Dollar Industry

In honor of Fathers Day, we give you the origin story of the fastest growing sport in America - you guessed it... Pickleball. Way before it became the drinking game of choice for Floridians everywhere, it started with some great dads solving the universal challenge of bored children. Here's FIVE facts about Pickleball to celebrate all you great dads out there:

1. "Necessity is the Mother (or Father) of invention" – During the summer of 1965 in Washington state, three fathers returned home after their Saturday morning round of golf to find their children lying around the house (well before they had an iPhone to stare at). With the wisdom of age and despite the apprehensive pre-teen facial expressions, Joel, Bill, and Barney invented what has come to be Pickleball to stimulate some much needed activity and Vitamin D for their children.
2. Three Sports in One – On a nearby unused badminton court the dads scrounged up what equipment they did have - a few ping-pong paddles and a whiffle ball, because who actually has badminton equipment? - they combined the rules of badminton, tennis and ping-pong and played the first game of Pickleball that summer afternoon in 1965.
3. No, There are No Pickles Involved – Joel may have co-invented the sport, but his better half made it memorable. Joann Pritchard's first reaction to the game reminded her of the hodge-podge boat of dysfunctional rowers every team had during her college crew career - ‘The Pickle Boat'. And with that, the Pickleball name stuck... I do wonder though, how many people have not played because they are misled by the name?
4. A Game for Young and Old – Though invented for children, if the dads were still around they might be surprised at just how popular it is with the AARP crowd... a recent survey found 68% of people who play Pickleball on a regular basis in the US are over the age of 60. The Villages, a Florida retirement community, has over 300 Pickleball courts on-property! Acceptance into the community comes with a scooter and a monogrammed Pickleball paddle.
5. An industry worth over $1 billion – In the past year, LRMR Ventures, the family office for a little-known basketball player named Lebron James, bought a professional Pickleball team; Two CRE investors put up $180 million to build 15 indoor pickleball clubs in Sarasota, Florida; National chains combining food, alcohol and pickleball are the next trend to charge a country club initiation fee (looking at you, golf simulators). Next time your kids are bored, don't wait, your parenting is the next billion dollar idea.

Happy Anniversary

Happy two-year work anniversary to Senior Associate, Drew Minner! After closing his first platform transaction in his first week on the job, Drew has continued the blistering pace tallying up an inaugural fund closing, three platform acquisitions, three add-on acquisitions, and two NCAA football National Championships in his first two years. In case that's not impressive enough, Drew finds time to maintain his status as a scratch golfer and can tell you all the best restaurant spots in the Atlanta area. Okay fine, he didn't play football, but still... Go Dawgs!

PortCo Spotlight

Earlier this month our portfolio company, Seneca Resources, launched a new webinar series called, "Cloudy with a chance of Hybrid", focusing on providing helpful insights into hybrid cloud adoption for businesses of all sizes. The next webinar will be next month - check it out by clicking the link below and share it with someone who may be technically challenged like we are.

As Basic as Human Nature

"How many times, how many decades are we going to learn this lesson?... Whether it was the 1970s, the 1980s and 90s." - Michael Milken, May 2023

As the reshuffling in the banking sector continues to unfold, perhaps one of the most stark reminders throughout the saga has been that despite all the effort, oversight, regulation, and other that has gone into improving banking throughout human history, the rise and fall of banking is a direct and unavoidable result of the basic nature of human cyclicality.

The clearest example throughout this saga will turn out to be one of the great ironic moments in recent history: After the last great crisis of confidence in the late-2000s, K-Street curbed excessive risk-taking in the banking sector once and for all, passing the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Less than 48 hours after the swift collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, the second domino to fall was Signature Bank, who's board of directors overseeing the bank's operations included none other than the co-author of the Dodd-Frank Act, Barney Frank himself.

Its easy to be swept up in the snowball effect during a confidence crisis, but remember that the next decade of growth, production, and confidence creation is just around the curve. Its as basic as human nature.

-Chris Faux