When CBS’s Big Brother revealed a pickleball coach in the cast, I was ready. Finally, an excuse to cover pickleball through the lens of a major reality TV show. It felt like a guaranteed crossover moment, the kind that could bring the sport to an entirely new audience.

Well… that didn’t last long.

Rome Seymore was voted out in week two.

So much for weeks of pickleball chatter, inside jokes, or even a casual mention of the game. Instead, just 42 hours into his time in the house, Rome took a hard pivot—from pickleball coach to full-blown romantic. And not just casually interested—“fell in love” with someone he had known for, quite literally, two days.

I wish I were exaggerating.

Any hope of pickleball making even a cameo disappeared as Rome’s storyline turned into a steady stream of love-struck monologues. The paddle got dropped, and suddenly it was all poetry, feelings, and declarations. Pickleball? Completely sidelined.

Not exactly the storyline I signed up for.

Anyway, Seymore was gone by week two. That’s right. The guy I had pegged as a potential winner became the second houseguest evicted, all because of his showmance. A true tragedy.

But somehow, the pickleball storyline didn’t end with his exit.

In week three, Big Brother rolled out a pickleball-themed competition.

Dubbed the “Pickle Ball,” the challenge had contestants spinning around on a giant pickle before sprinting down a track, grabbing oversized paddle props, and launching pickleballs into a skeeball-style target. Rack up the most points, move on to the next round.

Now… I have absolutely no idea what the producers think pickleball is, because this wasn’t even remotely close.

And yet, the entire premise of the competition leaned into one thing: pickleball as the next big thing in American sports.

So while the execution missed the mark, the message was loud and clear: the hype is very real.

“Welcome to 2051 where pickleball has become the most popular sport in America,” said Big Brother contestant Angela, the host for the competition. 

If this is the future Big Brother producers envision for the sport, I honestly hope they’re onto something.

“Pickleball is the ultimate combination of dance and sport,” added Angela.

Though the dance element doesn’t exactly track, unless you’re celebrating like Hayden Patriquin after catching a net cord.

One of the competitors, Lyric Medeiros, also happened to be Rome’s showmance. Naturally, she couldn’t resist giving a shoutout to her man watching from home. 

“I play pickleball every Sunday with my family and my mom is kind of a beast, but boy do I wish Rome was here to see this,” said Lyric. “He’d be like, ‘That’s my girl!’ But I know he’s cheering me on from home.” 

And Rome definitely was. He even shared his live reaction while watching the nail-biting pickleball competition unfold.

While his enthusiasm might be a bit much, you have to give him credit—he’s clearly a supportive partner. You can only imagine how fired up he’d be if she entered a real pickleball tournament, sitting courtside while she battles it out in singles. That would be great TV.

And as luck would have it, Lyric went on to win the pickleball competition.

“I won the pickleball veto, and to my lovely pickleball family—and Rome, my pickleball lover—this one is for you,” she said.

It’s moments like these in reality TV where the script practically writes itself. Of course the contestant dating the pickleball coach wins the “Pickle Ball” competition the very next week after he’s sent home. It’s reality competition TV at its finest and, honestly, its most ridiculous.

Still, I’m not convinced the Big Brother producers have any real idea what pickleball actually looks like. Might be time they tune into The Dink for a refresher.

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