Pickleball Club expands to seven locations with $4.55M in land purchases

Two more pickleball facilities have been added to the docket for a Lakewood Ranch-based company that's leading the way creating spaces and places across the region for people to play the rapidly growing sport.

The company, The Pickleball Club, purchased a 5.5-acre parcel for $2.8 million in Venice and is under contract for a $1.75 million parcel in Pinellas Park, according to a statement. The two new clubs bring the firm’s total to seven.

The Pickleball Club, a membership-based club that was incorporated in 2019 with operations beginning in 2021, has a goal of bringing 15 pickleball facilities across Florida. 

In November, the club had over 200 members signed up for its facilities before the first one, just outside of Lakewood Ranch at 1300 Sarasota Center Blvd., was even open. That location, according to a company spokesperson, is expected to open in May. 

The club’s other locations currently under development include ones in Port St. Lucie, Bonita Springs, Fort Myers and The Villages. 

The 40,000-square-foot Venice facility, according to the statement, is located at the intersection of Crestview and Jacaranda boulevards. It will hold 14 indoor and two outdoor pickleball courts, an outdoor activity area and two bocce ball courts. A players lounge will overlook the indoor courts. The club, along with its restaurant Pickle’s Café and Dink’s Pro Shop, is expected to open in July 2024.

The Pinellas Park club, located on an 8.07-acre parcel, will be developed at the Gateway Centre Business Park. The 40,000 square foot facility, the release states, will have 16 indoor pickleball courts and similar features to the other facilities. The land purchase is expected to close in December for an expected opening in early 2025. 

“Our goal is to be the leading social club focused on pickleball in Florida, followed by an expansion throughout America,” Brian McCarthy, founder and CEO of The Pickleball Club, says in the press release.“Our concept will give members an upscale country club atmosphere to play and socialize year-round, no matter what the weather is like outside. 

“The team has worked for years to make our vision a reality. Everyone is overflowing with excitement to start our next chapter with the opening of the first club in Lakewood Ranch next week.”

McCarthy, with a background in commercial real estate and engineering, founded the club alongside his wife, Valerie McCarthy, who is the COO, and Matthew Gordon, the CFO and general counsel according to the website. The founders, relying on a growing interest in the sport, put about $10 million to 12 million into each indoor facility.

While accruing some debt (building the first facility and acquiring the first four properties cost the company over $4 million in equity and $13 million in debt), they’ve been able to generate quite a bit of interest from investors.

“The Pickleball Club is far and away the market leader in the development of indoor club facilities in the United States,” Gordon says in the release. “Pickleball is the sport of the people, and we are proud that we have more than 100 individual equity investors who have joined us on this amazing journey.”