Halloween is just around the corner, so there’s no better time to look back at some of pickleball’s spookiest moments.

Long before the PPA and MLP came along, there was no "proper" professional pickleball. Only amateur pickleball existed, and that was a frightening time. The best players were simply deemed "the best" by results from local tournaments with no real race or rank. Old-school legends didn’t have the luxury of calling themselves No. 1 in the world back then.

On that note, pickleball was once an "old people's sport," and it still battles that terrifying stereotype to this day. Old-school pickleball meant you were practically playing with ghosts. 

Did you ever hear about the Cincinnati Streaker? In 2022 and 2023, the Cincinnati stop on the PPA Tour saw a man hit Championship Court in nothing but a black speedo, black tennis shoes, an army hat, and an American flag face mask. The streaker likely would’ve made another run in 2024 if the event hadn't been moved because of venue renovations. He’s pickleball’s headless horseman. 

There was also a time before state-of-the-art cameras were installed for close call replay. And that was truly horrifying. Line calls were left up to the discretion of the human eye, and we all know that can be troublesome. Once cameras were introduced, they produced ominous blurred images that the poor refs needed to examine closely in order to make game-changing decisions. Those cameras certainly haunt a lot of the pros. 

I’m shaking in my court shoes.  

Tyson McGuffin used to have a mullet. That one gets me every time. Sure, mullets were a trending hairstyle a few years ago, but that was one of the spookiest times to be alive (especially as a single woman who was looking for her future doubles partner). Whoever deemed that mullets were cool genuinely haunts me. Thank goodness the mullet has faded away. 

And worst of all, there used to be a time before we all played pickleball. Imagine how much gloomier our lives would be if we didn’t have pickleball? No tournaments to look forward to, no after-work drill sessions, no pros to look up to, and no fun outfits to wear.

Thank goodness we’ve found the light. 

What are the moments in pickleball that give you the spooks? Let us know on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter).