Pickleball was named after a "pickle boat" because it was created from the leftovers of other sports, similar to how the team of a pickle boat is selected.
There has long and friendly debate about how pickleball got its name. Some say it was named after the Pritchard family dog. Others suggest it was named after a "pickle boat".
"Pickleball"?
The Dog "Pickles" Theory
One theory proposed that pickleball was named after the Prichard family dog, "Pickles". This theory has since been debunked, as it was found that the dog hadn't yet been born in 1965 when pickleball was invented.
The "Pickle Boat" Theory
According to Wikipedia, "In the sport of rowing, or crew, a pickle boat is a team of rowers made up of leftover rowers that were not selected to compete as principal rowers." Joel Pritchard's wife, Joan, started calling it "pickleball" because it was a sport created from the leftovers of other sports, similar to how a pickle boat is manned - from the leftovers.
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Asked on
Dec 17th, 2022