Steve Deakin has known he was hooked on pickleball since the very first time he picked up a paddle.

That moment came in 2016, when he reluctantly went with his father to play while rehabbing from a tennis injury.

It wasn’t like the world-class buildouts of today—just some temporary nets on a wooden floor in a local gymnasium—but it was enough for Deakin to see the potential for something special.

“Everybody was laughing and having a good time,” he recalls. “I stepped on court, it was super fun, and honestly, I never looked back. I never had the urge to continue playing tennis.”

And over the course of the next nine years, the 51-year-old from just outside Vancouver has become one of the most well-respected figures in the sport, through competing at the highest level, coaching the next generation, and experiencing the roller coaster that is the emergence of professional pickleball.

On Friday morning, an important chapter in Deakin’s career came to a close when he played his final pro match on the Carvana PPA Tour at the Veolia Lakeland Open.

Deakin—who has pro medals dating back to before the PPA Tour’s inception in 2020—took some time earlier this week to reflect on just how far pickleball has come in six years.

“There are obviously some things that still need to be done, but the evolution of the sport from February 2020 to November 2025 has been incredible, and what the PPA Tour and UPA have done to grow the sport has been amazing,” he said. “We play in top-tier venues a majority of the time, the production is getting better and better, and the number of players who want to play on the PPA Tour has gone through the roof. I used to be playing in these public parks in suburbs of the big cities in the U.S. and have now played in amazing venues like San Clemente, Atlanta, and Dallas. It’s been unbelievable to see the evolution of the sport in such a short period of time.”

Deakin’s career hasn’t come without its challenges, however; he made the tough decision to leave a stable job with his uncle’s company to pursue full-time pickleball and even overcame a severe wrist injury that nearly ended his career in 2021.

But he says that, through everything, it’s the people he’s met and shared the court with—as both partners and opponents—who have made the experience so rewarding.

“I think being involved with the overall development of the sport and meeting a very unique group of people has been special. You know, we probably spend more time with these people than we do our families at this particular stage, and I’ve really cultivated great friendships with a lot of the old-school players that came in around my time,” he mentioned. “There are just so many of them that I’ve gone through the good times with, but we’ve also gone through some bad times in our careers. Just having a really soft place to land with friends that can pick you up when you’re feeling down is important.”

Even though he’ll no longer be competing against the likes of Ben Johns and Anna leigh Waters, Deakin’s story in pickleball is far from over.

He will next join The Nest, a large-scale indoor facility based in Vancouver set to open in April of 2026, as their Director of Pickleball.

“We have this amazing blank canvas. We have an evolving and growing pickleball community that just craves professionally spaced and lit indoor courts, and I’m excited to be a part of that,” he mentioned. “I’m hoping it’s a massive success, but with the way that pickleball is growing, there’s no other way but up for this club.”

Deakin will also continue in his role as the head coach of the Las Vegas Night Owls in Major League Pickleball. He helped lead the Night Owls to a Challenger level title in 2025, which earned the squad promotion to the Premier level in 2026.

And, of course, he will continue competing on the PPA Senior Pro Tour, which he has been doing since turning 50 in 2024.

“Being able to compete on both tours was a blessing, but I’m looking forward to competing on the one now where I’m playing against players of the same age and, more importantly, playing with partners that I truly enjoy as people on and off the court,” he noted.

Deakin and his Senior Pro men’s doubles partner, Altaf Merchant, have yet to lose a match in the division and boast a 64-0 record together.

Despite that impressive statistic, Deakin knows that winning isn’t the only thing as he transitions to the next part of his career.

"Win or lose, at the end of the day, we always say, ‘Hey, we’re really winning at life when you think about it. We’re gonna go out for dinner after, we’re gonna enjoy the camaraderie, and we’re gonna have a lot of laughs,’” he explained. “It’s not always about putting the win next to your name at the end of the day. Of course, it always tastes good, but at the stage of the game I’m in right now, it’s not as important to me as the relationships that I’ve cultivated.”

As Steve Deakin puts the finishing touches on one chapter of his career, it’s clear that he still has plenty to write in his story, as well as much to offer to the pickleball community at large.