Pickleball is somewhat of a peculiar name. It is so unique that anyone who hears it is expected to wonder why pickleball is called pickleball.

Several stories revolve around the origin of the name of the sport. Some believe that the name came from a dog, while others believe it came from a boat. But who calls their boat a pickle?

There are two theories revolving around how pickleball got its name. Some say that the game was named after the dog. But Joel Pritchard, the founder of the game, says that the sport was named after a pickle boat by his wife because the game was improvised from leftovers of other racket sports.

The game has received immense popularity over the past few years. Back in the days, if you told someone you were playing pickleball, they would laugh and think you were joking. We think they must have imagined you taking pickles from a jar and hitting them around the house with a bat or a stick.

Even pickleball enthusiasts are divided when it comes to the story behind the name of the sport. Most senior players believe that the name came from a pickle boat. However, younger players prefer to stick to the story that says the game was named after the founders' dog.

Pickleball is Born

During the summer of 1965, Joel Pritchard, a US Congressman, and his friend Bill Bell were out playing golf on the weekend. These friends lived in the same neighborhood, and their families often got together over the weekends.

Upon returning from a wonderful game of golf, they found their children being bored out of their skins. Frank, who was the son of Joel, still remembers complaining to his father about having nothing to do while living on Bainbridge Island in Washington.

They were all sportspeople, and the Pritchards happened to have a badminton court in their backyard, which Joel's parents designed. The family and friends decided to play badminton together. They began to look for the equipment, such as the rackets and the birdies. But like every other household, you just cannot find what you are looking for when you need it the most.

However, Joel and Bill were not about to let the missing equipment get in the way of their fun. They decided to improvise. They went into the back shed and found a few Wiffle balls and some broken ping pong paddles. Why not play badminton with paddles and a Wiffle ball instead? They thought.

They tried to mend the paddles but could not come up with the proper shape. "I know who we need here," said Joel, "Barney ought to fix these in no time." Barney McCallum used to live a few houses down the street and was very handy and fond of DIY projects. As soon as he heard of DIY work, he was on the court in no time and mended the paddles but ended up making them bigger.

The net on the court was at the height of 60 inches, and they proceeded to play their game like badminton by volleying the Wiffle ball over the net to each other. However, they soon discovered that the Wiffle ball was bouncing quite well on the asphalt, unlike the birdie. * TA DA! *

Over the following weekend, they decided to add some bounce rules to the game and lowered the net to a height similar to tennis. As the game developed and progressed, other neighbors, including the Barneys and the Bells, decided to join in and play the game.  

Over the next few weeks, the Pritchads, Bells, and McCallums sat down to define the game's rules. They ensured that the rules were not too strict and suited all members of the family who were playing the game just to have a good time. The game was named pickleball. Even though it sounded ridiculous, they all thought it was catchy and would surely attract attention.

In 1967, the first Pickleball court was constructed in a neighbor's backyard. Friends from all over the place would come and be fascinated by the game and try to play it. In 1972, the game had become so popular that a corporation had to be established to protect it.

In 1975, pickleball made its first appearance in the media and was called the newest racket game in America by the Tennis magazine in 1976. In 1984, the first rule book was released by the US Amateur Pickleball Association (USAPA), and by 1990, the game was being played in all states of the US.

Since then, the game has only increased in popularity across the US. Nearly everyone has heard of it or seen it being played. Today, the game has over four million players who play the game at least once every year.

Where Did Pickleball Get Its Name?

Since its improvised incarnation back in 1965, pickleball has only gained popularity. Over the six decades of its existence, it has acquired over four million players in the US alone - it is becoming a household name.

Even people who have not tried it know that it has become well-known and quickly developed to become a professional sport. However, the name of the game still raises concerns and questions in their heads. We can't really blame them. After all, pickleball does sound a little goofy when you hear it.

When trying to get to the root of the name, we came across two strong viewpoints. Both seem to be poles apart from each other, yet they have been reiterated so many times throughout history that we find it difficult to tell which one is true. The two viewpoints are backed by an adequate number of advocates and documentation.

Going over the history of pickleball, we find that it was improvised and invented by Joel Pritchard, Barney McCallum, Bill Bell, and a few more of their friends and neighbors. According to the McCallums, the Pritchards' a dog is responsible for the name pickleball. But according to the Pritchards, the name had more to do with some sort of a boat.

So, where did pickleball get its name?

It Was the Dog

Legend has it that Joel Pritchard's daughter, Peggy, decided to get a Cockapoo puppy from a neighbor who was apparently giving them away for free. The puppy soon became a beloved member of their family, and they gave it a name. They called it Pickles.

The story goes on to say that when the new racket game was invented, Pickles decided to take part in it. He would chase the ball, pick it up and often run away with it. The players, who were friends and neighbors of the Pritchard family, would often shout at Pickles to return the ball. They would often run after the dog, shouting, "Pickles! Ball!" whenever the dog ran away with the ball. You get where this is heading from here.

According to the McCallums (and other friends and neighbors), the new racket sport was named after the dog and the overused slogan, "Pickles! Ball!" They claim to remember the night when Pickles was sitting in the living room of the Pritchards and also remember cheering in excitement to approve the funny name for the game they had all invented.

Several people have been interviewed, including Barney McCallum, his son David, and even the neighbors, and they all swear by this story.

It Was the Boat

The other story states that the origin of the name was a boat. Joan, Joel's wife, was a huge fan of rowing during her younger days. She came up with the name pickleball as the game reminded her of a pickle boat.

What… is a pickle boat?

Joan was a fan of the Marietta rowing tea since her college days. She would often go to rowing competitions and cheer for her team during the tournaments. Many people participated in the event, but each team only needed eight rowers. The teams participating in the tournament would select the best rowers.

As is typical with college events, when the official teams for each boat were finalized, the people left behind often made a team by themselves and hopped onto a boat to compete. This boat, which mainly comprised the "leftovers," was referred to as the pickle boat.

Being a huge fan of rowing, she recalled the pickle boat when she saw her family make a game out of the "leftovers" from multiple sports. The court was from badminton, the net was from tennis, the paddles were something similar to ping pong, and the ball was a Wiffle ball. The "leftovers" rang a bell in her head, and she decided to call it pickleball.

The Pritchard Family

In several interviews, Joel Pritchard claimed that the family did not even have a dog when the sport was initiated, and the dog Pickles did not appear in the scene until two years after the game was developed. The Pritchards named their dog after the game rather than the other way around.

"If only we had named the dog something else, there would have been no confusion," says Joel Pritchard. "But I think that the dog story is far more interesting than the actual reason we named the game, and that is the reason for its popularity," he says.

Joel's daughter, Peggy, confirmed in 2005 that the game was not named after Pickles because the family did not have a dog until years after the start of the game. The dog was named after the game.  

Who Let the Dog In?

The story has it that a national magazine once interviewed Joel in hopes of attaining national publicity for the game. When asked about the name pickleball, he narrated the true story about his wife getting the name from a pickle boat. However, for the fun of it, he shared his idea of naming the game after his dog.

The journalist preferred the idea over the true story and thought that the true story was complex and boring, while the dog story would catch attention. When the neighbors heard of the story, they were not happy. But Joel convinced them that it was just a funny story and would probably fade away soon.