The Hawaii Pacific Health ESPN Honolulu Open starts on Thursday.

An estimated 1,000 players are scheduled to compete in the sold-out event, which will be hosted at the Hawaii Convention Center.

One of those players is renowned ukulele performer Jody Kamisato, whose passion for pickleball and music runs deep.

How deep? Well, hitting the 20x44 with family and friends over the last two years motivated him to write a song about America's fastest-growing sport called "Pickleball Jam."

Kamisato recently shared the tune with viewers on local TV station KHON2.

"I have a school called Ukulele Hale, so I teach ukulele, but I also love playing ukulele and writing music, and so I wrote a pickleball song," explained Kamisato. "Pickleball inspired me to write this song."

Kamisato has been eagerly anticipating the start of the Honolulu Open.

He's primed to compete and learn over the next few days.

"I'm looking forward to seeing the pros perform. You've got my friend Keven Wong, who's probably one of Hawaii's premier pickleball players," said Kamisato. "I'm also signed up for a clinic with Max Freeman. I've also participated in a pickleball tournament in Japan. That was back in December, so I'm really looking forward to the convention center, 38 indoor courts, the entire ground floor. It's going to be a lot of fun."

Learning from Freeman will obviously be a blast.

The rising star should pass along valuable lessons to everyone in attendance.

"How's your pickleball game coming along?" KHON2 sportscaster Sam Spangler asked Kamisato during the interview segment.

"You know, it's a work in progress. I'm a 3.5 level," he confirmed. "But, I always remind myself that it's the journey, not the destination."

Spoken like a true pickleball enthusiast.