'Play With The Pros' Pickleball Hosted By Bethesda-Chevy Chase YMCA

BETHESDA, MD — YMCA Bethesda-Chevy Chase is hosting a Play with the Pros pickleball event on Tuesday where the public will get a chance to play with a pickleball pro.

The event will celebrate National Pickleball Day with an open-play format that will take place across all 14 pickleball courts at YMCA Bethesda-Chevy Chase on Tuesday from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Play with the Pros will feature instructors from ProsToYou, including world-ranked senior pickleball pros Forrest Bankston and Scott Nilsen followed by touring pros, including Riley Newman, and Jade and Jackie Kawamoto.

The first National Pickleball Day occurred on Aug. 8, 2021. The idea was to get the message out about pickleball and encourage new players. Pickleball was invented nearly 60 years ago, but started to take off as a sport during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In recent years, professional pickleball circuits have popped up across the United States, mainly filled with competitive tennis players.

Events at YMCA Bethesda-Chevy Chase on Tuesday will also include a pro-am exhibition from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m., where top-ranked pro players will play against the YMCA’s top pickleball coaches on the YMCA’s center court.

For players, the entry fee in the Play with the Pros event is $199. The spectator fee is $100, which includes a commemorative YMCA pickleball or tennis founder paddle cover.

Proceeds from the event will go toward the YMCA’s court renovation project.