Since opening its doors in November of 2024, TapNPaddles in Wichita, Kansas, has grown into a thriving club. The 36,000 sq. ft. facility houses 12 pro-level courts, 22 ft. ceilings, fully separated courts for a premium play experience, along with a restaurant and lounge that is home to players of all levels, ages and abilities.
Vice President of TapNPaddles, Cameron Ventling, credits the club’s growth to many factors, including flexibility, intentionality, and the great community within.
“We’ve learned a lot during these past two years and continue to modify and adjust as we go,” Cameron says.
One such learning and modification was the club’s membership structure. After experimenting with different models and listening to members, they now offer a tiered membership that provides court time for members and day players alike. From pay-per-play to free private court rentals, TapNPaddles believes this structure best suits its players and its goal of growing the sport of pickleball.
The club has also placed a focus on programming quality and consistency. Cameron says they pride themselves on fixed weekly schedules members can rely on, such as fixed senior play every morning from 8:00-10:30 AM. The club keeps at least three courts available Monday through Friday for these players. This reliability builds a solid membership base that doesn’t have to worry about showing up 15 minutes before open play only to hear there was a surge of players and the courts are gone.
TapNPaddles also makes it easier for players to participate in point plays or round robins. Once players sign up through an app, a preprogrammed iPad is available and has names already entered to manage their scoring. After the play, TapNPaddles sends the scores to DUPR, taking that off the players’ plates as well. Doing this work on the back end helps to set them apart from other clubs and keep members coming back.
Like many clubs, there is a wide range of skill levels, and keeping everyone happy and comfortable on the courts is a top priority. TapNPaddles works to allow experienced players a higher level of competition and help new players find their people and return to improve their skills.
Cameron says they have programming from high levels down to training academies and all are well-defined.
“We have learned that typically 4.0 and above really want to book private courts, so we have made that easier to do in our membership structure and it has been very well received,” says Cameron.
The club is also intentional with its beginner play offerings.
“We have beginner drop-in time, and it is really popular because it is a ‘safe space’ for those learning the game,” says Cameron. “These players don’t want a ball driven at them to win a point. They are learning and want to have a good time and feel good about their play. And we want them to come back for more experiences like that.”
Another fun event is Girls Growing the Game, where more experienced players pair with a beginner or a friend who is nervous to try the sport, to have a chance to learn in a welcoming environment. Being intentional with welcoming beginners helps grow the sport and encourages players to return for more.
With over 300 members, TapNPaddles has found success with an ambassador program. These handpicked members serve as connectors to the community and epitomize what the club is all about and helped grow the club when it was new.
TapNPaddles ambassadors are friendly liaisons who help build mini tournaments or fill training academies. While all ambassadors now are members, when they weren’t, their “payment” was free play. The biggest bonus for ambassadors is working closely with the club on days and events meaning they get first pick of play they are most interested in and available. They also take some of the pressure off club management, filling spots. A win-win.
A new focus for the club is building a youth pipeline.
The club recently started a Sunday afternoon youth play that has been routinely filling up with 15-20 kids. After observing the variety of players, the club decided to group by skill level instead of age.
After a 15-minute warm-up, the club sets up the courts with equally skilled players to start playing. They are also running a Saturday junior academy training group that is also going well and picking up. The club hopes to host a youth league and tournament after a few more months of growth.
As for marketing, the club has some great advice to help make your first year more successful.
“Before we opened, we had focus groups with 10-15 key pickleball folks in town that we found through Facebook pages and word of mouth. Meeting with them allowed us to get members engaged on the ground floor and take pride in the club, as well as give us some great ideas and feedback directly from the community.”
The club also offered Foundational Memberships to a select group that played and provided feedback before officially opening to the public. He called these community connections vital to their success, and these founding members critical in providing feedback and direction.
“Most of our advertising is through word of mouth and community pickleball Facebook pages,” Cameron says. He adds they have found these methods more successful than directed, paid advertising.
TapNPaddles is a great example of how to thrive in a market of any size. Listening to your community, being flexible and responsive to their needs, and intentionally creating a country club experience at affordable membership prices led to their success. And many of these ideas can work for your club too.
