Pickleball4America, a newly formed company focused on developing businesses around pickleball, made a series of announcements highlighted by its merger with the US Open Pickleball Championships, launching a Ballpark Festival Series and the closure of its initial round of funding.
The US Open Pickleball Championships draws more players and spectators than any other event in the sport. This year, “The Biggest Pickleball Party in the World” will be held April 15-22 in Naples, FL, with a record number of pro and amateur participants expected to participate.
The Ballpark Festival Series will launch later this year at Fenway Park in Boston and Oracle Park in San Francisco as headliners, featuring pro and amateur tournament competitions and open play. Fenway Sports Management is the strategic advisor to Pickleball4America on the series and national sponsorship.
Funding for Pickleball4America is led by sports and technology investors, including Boston Seed Capital LLC, Drive by DraftKings, RA Bowman LLC, Adam, Larry and Jared Franklin, Cowboy Up Investments, Checketts Partners, and Knudsen Capital LLC.
The US Open Pickleball Championships was founded in 2015 by Terri Graham and Chris Evon, who joined Pickleball4America as part of the merger and will continue to operate the event. The tournament is held in April in partnership with Collier County at the 65-court pickleball facility at East Naples Community Park.
