One of the reasons many people join tennis and pickleball is to get a great workout, play a fun and challenging game all while being social. Both tennis and pickleball are very social, but in slightly different ways. I fell in love with both games and have made so many great friends and met people from all walks of life. Below is my personal opinion of the social perspective on both games.
How social is Tennis?
Tennis is great if you like social structure
Tennis has a defined start time. You usually know who will play in advance. If you play a match, the breaks are structured into it, which makes for a great time to chat. Many times, you can join a tennis club or a league to play where games are scheduled and you can know who are the members. This is great if you like a lot of social and time structure and want to generally know ‘what you are in for’ in advance.
The learning curve is steeper, but also social in and of itself
I spent years taking lessons, then clinics, than classes like cardio tennis. However, all of these activities were social themselves. Since it takes time, I met so many people in lessons and clinics. Many of them I have stayed connected to and are great friends and people to go hit the ball with.
Great for one-on-one interactions
Tennis is a great game to connect with whomever you are hitting with. My husband and I love to spend a few hours on Sunday playing singles. My friend and I met in cardio tennis and now we just hit together on occasion. We have become good friends, and have been known to solve all of our personal problems (work, relationships, etc) on the courts.
I occasionally sub for a ladies doubles tennis group. It is a nice way to get to know a small group of people. We play a match, and the breaks are built into the structure. We usually chat on the breaks.
Tennis groups often socialize after playing
You can join USTA leagues or other play groups. I once belonged to an interclub group where we met with another tennis club to play. In all of these cases, after playing, there is usually a potluck where everyone brings food and stays to chat. Some teams will have offsite parties or gatherings.
How social is Pickleball?
Easy to get into the game due to the shorter learning curve
Pickleball also has a learning curve and requires lessons. However, it is usually not as long of a process making it easier for players to start playing games quicker. Since you can join games faster you start meeting people right away.
I met some ladies my first week of Pickleball. Since we were newbies, we started playing games together our first week, as we were shy to join more experienced players. We grew in pickleball together as we continued to play. We have stayed close friends and now organize a ladies pickleball group.
“Open Play” makes pickleball naturally a social game
Pickleball clubs usually have a time designated for ‘open play’. This means any player can drop-in and join a game. This makes it naturally social and easy to meet others as long as you are willing to join a game. It is actually possible to meet new people every time you play. Or you can join an ‘open play’ where your pickleball buddies are already playing.
Open play is wonderful if you are traveling to a new city or just moved somewhere. You can easily join an open play and meet people to play with while you are there or at your new home city.
Pickleball is great if you like social flexibility
Do you like to ‘pop’ into games here and there? Do you want to be able to join a game whenever you are ready. Do you tend to run a little late? Do you want to play with a variety of different players. While Pickleball certainly can have set start times and players, generally it offers more flexibility in terms of player variety and start and play times.
I work from home, but have limited time during the week for playing and socializing. Pickleball is perfect for me, because I can join for a short time, and I can leave when I need to get back to work. I usually play for 45 min or an hour during the week, and in that time, see my buddies, get a workout and meet a few new folks. During the breaks between games, I make an effort to talk with people.
Pickleball can also be great to connect with people in small groups
Doubles is a great game for a group of 4. If you prefer to play with a group of friends you know you can prearrange a game. We have a group of 15 women where we arrange games for. We chat after our games, and have done social events like parties and round robin tournaments. Pickleball also does have singles, though I and most of my friends prefer doubles.
Social Swaps and Challenges
The observations I make above can be swapped for either sport. For instance, we add more structure to our pickbleball games by using an app for sign-ups and asking everyone to come at a specific time. Tennis can be made more unstructured such as in Cardio Tennis where we play for an hour with different drills. So in certain circumstances, either game can be modified for social preferences.
However, like in any social situation, its not always roses for either sport. It took me a long time to develop a minimum play level to join a tennis club. Once joined, it took awhile to get integrated in with members and get invited to games. Sometimes, in Pickleball open play, people don’t show up and you have limited people to play with. Sadly, there are always some unfriendly people or people that you don’t ‘jive’ with.
In either sport, people can be snobbish about levels of play and who they want to play with. However, I find, just like in any social situation, consistency is the key. Just keep showing up at either sport. Make an effort to find the nice people that enjoy playing with you. Eventually you will find your people.
Being social in both games is what you make of it
Both tennis and pickleball can be very social, but just like any life activity, ultimately it is up to you. You have to put in the effort to introduce yourself to players, be a friendly, reliable, and fair player, and make an effort to learn, play, and attend offsite and after-game socials. If you do, I imagine you can’t help but end up with a lot of laughs, good times, great fitness, and ultimately joy.
