On a windy Tuesday night in late January, the “pop-pop-pop” reverberates across a cavernous space just off Cumberland Road in Noblesville. It may not be prime weather outside, but the indoor courts at the newly-opened Picklr facility are hot with athletes of all ages and skill levels playing the world’s fastest-growing sport.
Many club members sport black and gold on this particular night, the color combination best associated with the Purdue Boilermakers and, coincidentally – the New Orleans Saints.
It’s quite easy to understand why before even entering the building. Outside, the man on the window smiling at clubgoers is a familiar face – former Purdue and Saints quarterback Drew Brees is a co-owner of what is now the largest Picklr location in the country.
The football legend stopped in Noblesville recently to see the new digs and play a bit.
Pickleball Bringing People Together
The new, 58,000-square-foot club features 19 fully fenced indoor courts with patent-pending, outdoor-style court surfacing; three championship-sized courts with permanent grandstands; a mezzanine viewing and lounge area; a full pro shop; and private event space. The courts are marked based on experience, from beginner to advanced.
Franchise partner Aaron Scholl says their calendar for tournaments and charity events is already filling up. The Hamilton County Humane Society is hosting the “Furry Fracas” at the start of the month at the Picklr, with hundreds already registered to play pickleball for a good cause.
For Scholl, helping oversee the development of the location and opening its doors has been a labor of love. He, his wife, and three sons took up pickleball during the COVID pandemic lockdowns.
“We’d tape off our cul de sac and play with our neighbors,” he says. Since then, Scholl has watched the sport expand to all ages, with the average player age dropping from the 60s to the early 30s.
“Our junior academy clinics run 12 weeks,” says Scholl. “While we’d love to see pickleball eventually become sanctioned by the Indiana High School Athletic Association, our focus right now is building the sport at the club level.” The Picklr offers Junior Membership at all locations, giving kids unique programming targeted to grow their skillset, starting at age 8.
“At the end of the day, it’s about putting a paddle in their hands to get the phone out of it,” Scholl says.
From TDs to Volleys
Since hanging up his cleats in 2021, Brees has embraced both entrepreneurship and pickleball, with the latter coming during his final season in the NFL. “People could literally just go out onto their street and tape off a 20’ x 44’ space and all of a sudden they had a pickleball court,” he says.
Since then, the sport and its enthusiasts have exploded in popularity. Brees says the appeal is anyone at any age and skill level can pick up a racket and play. “It’s competitive – it’s something that can be easily picked up,” he says. “I had a tennis background when I was a kid. Being able to pick up a racket. It’s a lot more accessible than tennis because you don’t need the same size and scope of a tennis court. You can play this on a much smaller court.”
Brees will host the third annual NOLA Pickle Fest to benefit the Brees Dream Foundation in early August. “We’ve had athletes as young as 9 and as old as 92 enter that tournament, showing the wide range of the people who can play this sport,” he says. “I could grab three of you right now and we could step on the court and have fun playing.”
A Sort-of Homecoming
Brees graduated from Purdue in 2001 with a degree in Industrial Management from the Krannert School of Business before being drafted by the then-San Diego Chargers as the first pick in the second round of the NFL Draft. “I always hoped my degree would allow me to give back and invest in the communities that meant so much to me,” he says. Making investments locally was a natural fit, as Brees has many close friends and former teammates living in Central Indiana and visits frequently, including occasional appearances on the sidelines at Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette each fall.
As for the Picklr, the team has already secured a third Central Indiana location in Westfield, slated to open later this year. The goal is also to open a club in Merrillville to cater to Northwest Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan.
Brees says the clubs build a sense of community – anywhere. “We’re integrating ourselves into different communities in the Midwest and Southeast.,” he explains. “Nationwide, when you’re a member at one Picklr facility, you can access all of them. It promotes the sport and gets more people playing.”
As demand for pickleball grows, the Picklr locations are being built to meet that need. “There are not enough outdoor courts,” Brees says. “It’s getting harder to find spaces outside to build because I think communities are beginning to push back on building pickleball courts close to residential spaces. Here you are, at an indoor facility, where the weather is never a factor and people can congregate and create a great social atmosphere.”
For Brees, it’s been just over 15 years since he hoisted the Vince Lombardi trophy after leading the New Orleans Saints to their first and only Super Bowl victory over the Indianapolis Colts in rain-soaked Miami. While Brees admits it doesn’t feel like that long ago, his priorities of faith, family, and giving back have not changed.
“We have an opportunity to be pillars in our community,” he says. “Opportunities to take the talents and the abilities that God has given us to do great things. I think we’re designed to pursue our passions and try to find ways to make impacts as a result of that. I always tried to do that through sports because that was my opportunity and now, beyond that, I coach my kids, I coach at the local high school, and I coach a lot of youth sports teams. I invest in businesses in the communities that have made a big impact in my life.”
