The Australian Open will embrace one of the fastest growing sports in the world when it hosts the inaugural AO Pickleball Slam on the final weekend of next month's tennis major with $100,000 in prize money.
Invented in 1965 by a group of American friends, pickleball is a fast-paced paddle sport similar to tennis and badminton played on smaller courts using a perforated plastic ball. Interest has skyrocketed in recent years.
Melbourne Park's Court 3 will transform into pickleball central from Jan. 24-26 next year, as an international field of players compete for top honors.
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