Life Time Group Holdings, Inc. has filed a patent for The Ultimate Pickleball, which is designed to address common issues of inconsistent speed, bounce, and durability in pickleball products.
Life Time will release the patent-pending ball on August 19 with Andre Agassi, the winner of eight Grand Slam tennis titles and an Olympic gold medalist. Agassi is also chair of Life Time’s Pickleball and Tennis Board.
Life Time, which boasts over 700 pickleball courts nationwide, said that pickleballs available on the market “often play too slow and the faster balls preferred by pros and higher-end players are inconsistent in bounce and have significant issues with durability.”
As an avid pickleball player and engineer, Life Time Founder, CEO and Chairman Bahram Akradi collaborated with his team to create the ball’s design that includes features to address these issues.
“Life Time has elevated the game of pickleball since 2021 and rapidly grown the number of courts we offer across North America, along with the best lessons, leagues, tournaments, and coaches,” said Akradi. “A clear opportunity that emerged was to advance the quality of gameplay and participants’ experiences with a vastly improved pickleball. I always welcome the opportunity to solve challenges and am excited to launch our Ultimate Pickleball as a solution to offer the combination of improved weight, speed, hole distribution, and material to support consistent play and durability.”
LT—The Ultimate Pickleball underwent trials by some of the best players within and outside Life Time. It will debut exclusively in Life Time clubs later this month and be used at all Pickleball Classic tournaments. Later, the ball will be available through Life Time’s racquet sports pro shops and online at LT Shop.
Image courtesy Life Time Group Holdings, Inc.
