by Kelly Campbell
It’s been a busy few months for professional pickleball publicity with the MLP-PPA merger controversy and reunion. Now, the Professional Pickleball Association (PPA) is making headlines for another partnership––one that will finally bring sports betting to the pickleball world.
On August 24th, PPA announced that it would be the first professional pickleball association in the sports betting market. The move allows sportsbooks to offer official-data-powered markets and live video feeds for the PPA tour.
Whether you love or hate gambling, there’s no denying that pickleball betting is an important first step to putting pickleball on the same level as other professional sports, and will likely encourage even further pickleball growth for years to come. Read on for more details about the partnership and what it could mean for pickleball.
FanDuel + PPA – More on the Partnership
The PPA announced that beginning with the August 24-27 Vulcan Kansas City Open, the partnership would allow pickleball fans across 10 legalized betting states and one Canadian province to bet on match winners, correct match scores, total points (over/under), and head-to-head, on FanDuel Sportsbook. Since the announcement, more states have been added. There are currently 34 US states that have legalized sports betting.
“This is a monumental moment for the PPA Tour and the game of pickleball as a whole,” said PPA Founder and CEO Connor Pardoe in a press release. “We are excited to be paving the way in the pickleball sports betting space, and we couldn’t be prouder to lead the sport’s leap into such an innovative industry. The immense growth of pickleball over the past few years has driven widespread interest in all aspects of the game, including playing as amateurs and watching the professionals in person at events and from home. Our venture into sports betting will bring a whole new level of engagement from current and new fans, and we continue to be excited for what the future holds for our sport.”
The FanDuel-PPA partnership is made possible by PPA’s pre-existing partnership with Genius Sports, their official data and broadcast partner, in conjunction with their partner Sportsradar, which has created an integrity program for players and tour officials. In 2021, Genius Sports was granted the exclusive rights to capture and distribute live data and video broadcasts from over 1,200 PPA matches per year. Genius Sports will provide data and live video across sportsbooks in real-time.
“Creating an official data-powered betting product for pickleball, the fastest-growing sport in America, is a crucial platform for the PPA Tour to engage new and existing fans,” Sean Conroy, Executive Vice President at Genius Sports, said in the press release. “We’re excited to offer sportsbooks with valuable new content including low latency video feeds on PPA Tour events, starting with this weekend’s Vulcan Kansas City Open.”
A Few Notes on Pickleball Betting
Since this is the first official pickleball sports betting partner, there are some details to iron out. Here are some important notes regarding FanDuel-pickleball offerings and pickleball betting for the foreseeable future:
- Here are the pickleball betting opportunities:
- Over/Under Total Match Points – based on points, can bet on whether a match will have more or fewer points than the stated O/U line.
- Parlays – bet combinations that allow you to risk more and win more by connecting multiple individual bets
- Money Line Betting – bet on who you think will win for any given match
- Dynamic Betting – can bet during a game in real-time with constantly changing betting options
- Points – bet on how many points a player will win by
- Sports betting is not allowed for matches that involve a minor. Some of the best pickleball players, including Anna Leigh Waters, are underage currently.
- Betting is only offered on streamed Championship and Grandstand courts (because sports betting matches have to be publicly viewable).
- Being “in the know” will play a big role in gambling success. Many pickleball experts have been testing out different betting combinations to find the most success. Scott Mendelssohn, from DUPR, suggested that following his methodology would increase winnings compared to FanDuel’s predictive model.
Pickleball Betting will Bring Pickleball to New Heights
Some have denounced the introduction of sports betting to pickleball, but that likely stems from overall anti-sports betting sentiments in general. Whether you support gambling or not, sports betting has dominated other professional sports. Allowing fans to be more active non-athlete participants in their favorite sports Improved technology plays a crucial role in the success of pickleball betting. In August, we discussed how introducing Hawk-Eye instant replay to pickleball could finally be the key to bringing sports betting to pickleball, but that pickleball wasn’t on any official sportsbook yet. Now, with the FanDuel and PPA partnership, we’re excited to see how professional pickleball (and its technology) will evolve, and all of the benefits that pickleball betting could bring to pickleball.
If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call 1-800-GAMBLER.
Sources –
FanDuel Sports
Genius Sports
Sportsradar
We recently did a deep dive into HawkEye Production’s introduction to pickleball and how that could lead to sports betting.
Pickleball Becoming a Betting Sport
There’s a large market in the US for sports gambling, and as pickleball remains the fastest-growing sport, many have wondered when they can get some dough from dinking. Luckily, introducing instant replay through Hawk-Eye could increase the odds that pickleball betting happens sooner than later.
At least 34 states have legalized sports betting. As more states make moves to legalize, and with the growth of sports betting companies like DraftKings and BetMGM, it’s clear that the popularity of sports gambling is on the rise; yet, pickleball is not an offering on sportsbooks.
Although demand hasn’t been deemed high enough for pickleball betting, that could likely change with the introduction of Hawk-Eye. Instant replay eliminates common cases of human error and makes pickleball less risky to bettors. The chances of a ref making a bad call can easily be rectified by having access to instant replay technology, so many might feel more secure in making bets.
Joining the world of sports betting is another stepping stone for pickleball legitimacy in general –– if all other major sports can have their moment in this space, why not pickleball? When done responsibly, sports gambling invites non-athlete spectators to engage with professional pickleball, widening the sport’s audience overall.
We can’t wait to see how pickleball evolves with the prospects of instant replay, a partnership with Hawk-Eye, and its potential spot in sports betting.
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