Any time pickleball makes an appearance on reality TV… it’s never good. 

I don’t think I’ve seen a reality TV episode yet where the people who go play pickleball are actually any good. Every single time pickleball gets introduced on a show, the contestants are terrible, they don’t know the rules, and they talk about it like it’s an old people’s sport. 

My hope was even lost when the Golden Bachelor contestants kept hitting bad overheads over the net while wearing their ball gowns and suits.

I digress.

If you haven’t heard of Temptation Island – it’s a certified trash TV show that I love. Couples who are in long-term, committed relationships get separated into two different villas, one with the boyfriends and the other with the girlfriends. 

Over a course of three weeks, the show brings in dozens of scantily clad people of the opposite sex to “tempt” those who are in relationships… What could possibly go wrong?

Classic reality TV mess follows, including (but certainly not limited to) cheating, epic fights, breakups, makeups, and jaw-dropping scandals.

And this season… pickleball.

Yes, pickleball makes an appearance on Episode 6 entitled “Guessing Games” where the men’s villa is down and out over all the drama from the show and decides to blow off some steam at the nearby courts. 

At least the courts are in good condition and they’re not playing with wooden paddles. The girls are also somewhat decently clothed since they spend the overwhelming majority of their time on the island wearing the least amount of fabric possible. If they were actually playing a competitive game, there would absolutely be a major wardrobe malfunction with those micro shorts and bra tops. 

“If we still lose, at least we look really hot,” said Natalie.

I couldn’t agree more. That’s my motto, too. You’ve got to look your best because if you can't win the match, at least you can win best dressed. 

At this point in the show, some of the men have partnered up with new girls on the island (because they fell to temptation and basically cheated on their girlfriends… I told you, it’s a mess). 

So it was no surprise when Brion partnered up with Amiah and Grant partnered up with Natalie, because these were the women the men were pursuing in the house. They already had great chemistry and mediocre communication off the court, so that could easily translate into a decent doubles partnership on the court. 

But things took a turn. Tyler and Kay were a pretty established couple on the island, before Tyler decided to shake things up and partner with Liv. 

“Tyler can’t pick Kay, the communication is too good,” said Brion. 

Tyler and Kay were the strongest couple, and the other men found that connection to be a disadvantage on the court. So to even the playing field, they had to separate the couple with the strongest chemistry.

Brion and Amiah won the championship match, but I can’t help but wonder if Tyler was easily tempted by Liv to be his new right-side player? 

Sigh. There’s just no loyalty on the court anymore. 

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