Why Is It Called Pickleball? The Name's Origin

The other familiar explanation involves the family's dog, Pickles. It is a memorable story, but USA Pickleball dates the dog's arrival to 1968, three years after the game began and received its name.

What is a pickle boat?

In the naming story, a pickle boat was made up of rowers who were not selected for the main crews. Joan Pritchard saw a parallel in a family game that brought together a badminton court, table-tennis paddles, and a perforated plastic ball.

Joel Pritchard, Bill Bell, and Barney McCallum developed that game on Bainbridge Island, Washington, beginning in the summer of 1965. The borrowed equipment became the starting point for something with its own rules.

Was pickleball named after a dog?

The Pritchards did have a dog named Pickles. The disagreement concerns which name came first. USA Pickleball's investigation of the naming story places the game in 1965 and the dog in 1968, supporting the pickle-boat explanation.

Both versions have circulated for years, which is why you may hear a different answer from a friend at the court. When someone asks, an easy response is: “The name is linked to a rowing pickle boat. The family's dog came later.”

Who named pickleball?

USA Pickleball credits Joan Pritchard with naming the game during its first summer in 1965. Pickleball now has purpose-built paddles, balls, and courts, but it kept that name from its improvised beginning. No rowing experience is needed to play: today's game uses a 20-by-44-foot court, a diagonal serve, and a seven-foot kitchen on each side of the net.

Read the 1965 origin story for the wider history, or the first-game guide if you are ready to try a rally.