Into the kitchen of Des Moines pickleball scene
3/4/2026
Curry (second from right) and coaches assist with the Club’s Skills & Drills that are held several times through the year to help level up members.
The pickleball craze is no secret. It has been the fastest-growing sport in the country for the past four years, according to the 2025 Sports and Fitness Industry Association (SFIA) Participation Report. It makes sense that the craze has hit the Des Moines metro. After all, gyms and parks alike have built pickleball courts to meet the growing demand. One benefactor of that demand is Golda Curry.
Curry began playing pickleball toward the tail end of the COVID-19 pandemic when outdoor restrictions began to loosen up. A friend’s daughter needed a teammate, and in stepped Curry, completely unfamiliar to the sport. With an athletic background in martial arts, she jumped in.
“I showed up and had no idea what was going on. I had to be talked through it — it was kind of like trial by fire. We did well, actually. I think we came in second or third place. I would say the league got me hooked. It was fun and incredibly social,” Curry said.
That initial experience was at Smash Park. Eight months later, she started playing at the Valley Community Center in the Des Moines Metro Pickleball Club.
“It was just a fun learning environment. I fell in love with pickleball even more. I took a couple of lessons here and there, and then the next thing I knew, I was on the board,” Curry said.
Curry (right) at PicklePalooza 2025
Pickleball from the outside looks like the in-between of table tennis and regular tennis. It is a back-and-forth sport, played with a paddle. Curry made sure to walk us through the basics.
“It is played, like on a tennis court, right? That’s asphalt, but it’s smaller. It measures 40 by 22 if I remember the measurements correctly, and it’s often played as doubles,” Curry said. “The one big difference is what we call the kitchen, or the non-volley zone. That is an area where points live and die primarily. In tennis, a lot of it is played on the baseline. Pickleball is mainly played within 14 feet.”
Seven feet on both sides determine the kitchen and non-volley zone. Curry says tennis is played in transition with constant movement. Pickleball becomes more strategic than trying to outpower or catch your opponent on a bad angle like in tennis.
“That is the beauty and the uniqueness about this sport. It’s truly like chess,” Curry said. “You have to be incredibly strategic. Because the court is so much smaller, everything is more precise. If you’re going to try to out-angle someone, it’s really hard to do, especially if they’re long and ranging, or they’re quick.”
Curry made sure to say that it is not necessarily more strategic than tennis, just that it’s a different type of strategy that is applied. The result won’t always come down to who is the most athletic.
Plenty of places exist around the metro to get started with pickleball. Curry has frequented Smash Park and the Valley Community Center, but there are more facilities like Dink’s at Merle Hay, various courts in Ankeny, and others throughout Des Moines.
“In the Des Moines area, we use an app called Playtime Scheduler. The majority of us use Playtime to see where everybody is playing at, which outdoor courts, where people are going to be playing and at what time,” Curry said.
Those new to the scene can find places to play, as well as what skill level of people are playing. The community and social aspect is also big for Curry. It has led to hanging out at basketball and hockey games, and the group has done several fundraisers, too.
“Meals for the Heartland. We raise funds for our annual gala, our group. We just did the Heroes Foundation. We raised money for first responders. In the past, we’ve done diaper drives, we’ve done food drives, and raised funds for animal shelters,” Curry said.
With such a welcoming and volunteer-friendly community, Curry says the people within the pickleball family in the metro are always welcoming new members, and newcomers should not be shy about giving the game a chance.
“I always say, you’ve got to try it, right? You’re just on this rock once, so you might as well try and see if you like it,” Curry said. “My favorite thing is when, whether I’m drilling by myself or I’m with a fairly competitive group, but on the court next to me, I can hear the beginners just giggling and laughing. That is the most joyful noise ever on those pickleball courts. You remember the moments when you first discovered pickleball, and you just see how much joy it brings them.”
Those looking to learn more about the club can visit www.dmmp.club. ♦
