As one of, if not the fastest growing sport in the United States, pickleball seems to be played in every city and the sport is on everyone’s lips. Membership clubs and recreational leagues have all realized players love to compete through league play, round robins and tournaments. But what is the next step? Triple Team Pickleball League, formerly known as NTPL, has an answer to that question.
Based on the framework of USTA Tennis, Triple Team is building a national framework for clubs to compete against each other locally, statewide, and even nationally in a head-to-head format that combines competitive matches and the open camaraderie of a team sport.
This two-part series will introduce clubs to the Triple Team Pickleball League and then provide information on how your club can be part of this exciting and rapidly growing movement.
Laurie Lambert, National Program Manager for Triple Team Pickleball League, grew up playing tennis and transitioned from a teaching pro to eventually the Executive Director of Utah Tennis Association (UTA), the state office for the United States Tennis Association (USTA) in 2012. There, she focused on running outreach programs, tennis tournaments, leagues etc. with a mission to grow the game of tennis in Utah. In response to the rise of pickleball in 2020, the UTA decided to add pickleball to its offerings.
As the country emerged from COVID in 2023, the first team-based pickleball league was launched.
“Our first season we had 18 teams total,” says Laurie. “In that short timeframe, we have grown to over 10,000 players in close to 20 states. The league is clearly filling a need!”
The Triple Team leagues are based on the camaraderie and team play of USTA leagues. As players grow in the sport, many crave more competition. Through Triple Team, players can explore other clubs, meet new people and experience different players while growing their skills and pickleball circle.
Laurie says in tennis, every club in America plays in a league. While members enjoy the matches, clubs also enjoy a growth in business as players step outside their usual circle of competition.
“When playing the same people, members might overemphasize their abilities since the competition is so familiar,” Laurie says. “Playing outside of their facility grows lessons, paddle sales, and practice time as members realize they might be a small fish in a big pond.” Laurie added that the league play also instills club pride for the members, which in turn grows merch sales as well as court time and court fees, since members want to improve and become more skilled for the pride of the club.
National Tournament Director Jeremy Horner said the growth of the league has been very grassroots with people reaching out to them to join.
“When speaking with new clubs, we continually hear that a big reason for joining is to connect with new players and they also enjoy consistent playing times,” Jeremy says. “People’s lifestyles are based on having something regular, and that’s exactly what Triple Team offers players and clubs.”
The league play is based on a team-based structure of three pairs per team who compete in three rounds per match – hence the Triple Team name! All teams play by DUPR rating 3.0 – 4.5 and 18+ or 50+ with two team formats – gender and combo. Gender matches consist of 3 pairs of players who play 2 games to 11 against each of the other three pairs for 3 rounds of play. Six people play in each match for a total of 18 games played (3 rounds with 6 games total per round), and only 3 courts are needed for 2 hours of play. For combo playing, round one is by gender and rounds two and three are mixed, meaning only two courts are required for two hours of play.
Laurie and Jeremy want the focus of Triple Team to be camaraderie and a team atmosphere, whether players are in a private club, recreation league, or a member-based public playing center.
Triple Team is already looking forward to the 2025 National Championships in Richmond, VA and Dallas, TX this September and October, respectively.
Through Triple Team, clubs can provide a way for players to grow their skills and represent their club locally and beyond. With structured divisions and a rock-solid competitive tournament system, Triple Team is on track to expand to all fifty states, providing structured play, healthy competition and a ton of fun for all involved.
Next up in this two-part series, we’ll break down how your club can join the Triple Team Pickleball League, what to expect from tournaments, and why this team-based format is transforming the future of pickleball.
