Pickleball was invented in 1965 on Bainbridge Island, near Seattle, Washington, by three fathers: Joel Pritchard, Bill Bell, and Barney McCallum. The story goes that their families were bored one summer afternoon, so they improvised a game using some ping pong paddles, a perforated plastic ball, and a lowered badminton net. They named the game after the Pritchard family dog, Pickles, who would chase after the ball and run off with it. (We realize naming part about the family dog is urban legend, but it is a good legend for the history of the game!)

The game quickly gained popularity and spread across the United in the 1970s, it started to be played in other countries as well. The first pickleball court was built in the backyard of Joel Pritchard's friend, Bob O'Brian, in Seattle. As the sport grew, official rules were developed, and dedicated pickleball courts began to appear in parks and recreational centers.

Today, pickleball is one of the fastest-growing sports in Canada, the United States and around the world. It is played by people of all ages and skill levels, from recreational players to competitive athletes. The USA Pickleball Association (USAPA) was founded in 2005, and the Canadian National Pickleball Association was founded in 2009 to promote pickleball in Canada. It became known as the Pickleball Canada Organization to promote the growth and development of Pickleball, and it now oversees the sport's rules, equipment standards, and tournaments.

The History of Pickleball