Hollywood’s Most In-Demand Pickleball Game

On a recent Saturday afternoon, some 400 tan and toned Hollywood types trekked out to Jamie Foxx's L.A. estate to attend a pickleball party. The gathering came complete with influencer-led cardio classes, swimming, a taco truck, a full bar and a DJ. As pickleball has matured during the past few years from a craze to an entrenched pastime, various games around Los Angeles jockey for top honors as the favored spot to play and be seen. And Foxx's game is serving up both great play and the Hollywood sport of great networking.

"If you get good at pickleball, you never know who you might meet," explains Taylor Chien, a producer who has partnered with Foxx in the gear company The Best Paddle. "I tell young people it's the greatest way to network. Doors open up quickly on the pickleball courts."

Two years ago, Chien and Foxx started a brand that designs and manufactures paddles for pickleball. (Their top-of-the-line carbon fiber paddles retail for $120, at thebestpaddle.com.)

Foxx's estate undoubtedly is one of the best paddle compounds ever built, sporting three courts on the property. And getting on the list for the Oscar-winning actor's pickleball parties is not easy.

"People are sending us DMs to get into the events," says Chien of the bigger tournaments they put on. "It started with 50 people and has grown to 400."

One of the guests who always makes the cut is Matt Manasse. When he recently stepped onto the court, he received the star treatment. The 36-year-old pro pickleball player is often described as the Ryan Seacrest of the sport. The onetime Purdue tennis player turned pickleball guru wears a lot of hats, from brand ambassador to the go-to guy for organizing tournaments. He's also known as the pickleball coach to the stars. Clients have included Foxx, Matthew McConaughey and Emma Watson.

"You never know when the Jamie Foxx pickleball party is gonna happen, but when you get the DM or texts, you know you're in for a special treat," says Manasse of the exclusive event. "It's that unassuming party that starts at 3 p.m. and the next thing you know, you're dancing and it's 11 p.m."

The sport — whose Hollywood fans have included everyone from Selena Gomez, Leonardo DiCaprio and the Clooneys to Ari Emanuel and Brian Grazer — was played by nearly 50 million Americans in the past year, according to the Association of Pickleball Players.

Pickleball is becoming a part of popular culture as well. When McConaughey and his wife, Camila, launched Pantalones Organic Tequila earlier this year, the pair declared it the "official tequila of pickleball." They displayed their true love of the sport in ads playing pickleball — without pants. The sport also was name-checked by Larry David in the last season of Curb Your Enthusiasm, which aired this past spring. And David's spouse, filmmaker Ashley Underwood, directed a documentary on the subject. In Dreambreaker: A Pickleball Story, she examines the fast and furious way people are capitalizing on the popularity of the game. "What we uncovered was a story about the birth of a pro sport. It's a mad gold rush with an influx of money," she explains of the 90-minute doc (which is in negotiations for distribution). "It's celebrity, and the egos and personalities that go along with the race to the top."

With Mark Williams, who works with Foxx's gear company The Best Paddle Courtesy of Subject

And now a sport that originally gained ground with the over-50 crowd is also getting a big bounce with the younger generation, including the progeny of the rich and famous. Jamie Grinberg is known for curating the perfect pickleball party for the younger generation. Recently, the 29-year-old former college tennis star put on a 16th birthday party with 60 teens for the daughter of a major Hollywood executive. After the party, a couple of real estate agents known for high-end Hollywood listings approached Grinberg about hosting pickleball events at their open houses, as a way of showing off their luxury listings. The real estate tournament is in the works.

But at the moment, Grinberg's calendar is filled with private lessons and pickleball parties. "It's a great, clean way for kids to get exercise and socialize," she says. "Parents can be with their kids and network at the same time."

This story first appeared in the August 21 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.