“Because you play in a doubles format, there’s a nice mix of being able to champion someone else, relax, have fun and meet people that you may not otherwise spend time with,” she said.
Sporting events are particularly popular at destination or multiday weddings, Ms. Krug added, because “couples are always interested in providing optional activities.” Instead of an afternoon of golf or tennis, her clients Madison Snider, 30, and Richard Podpirka, 28, are hosting a pickleball tournament for guests as part of their wedding, which is set to take place over four days in September at High Hampton, a resort in Cashiers, N.C.
Participants will have the chance to receive a lesson before the two-hour tournament, which will be led by one of the venue’s tennis pros and played by mixed doubles teams on four courts. Winners will receive trophies, but every player will be treated to a catered lunch and, when the tournament ends, cocktails.
Arranging the lesson and tournament cost $300, according to Natasha Kittrell, a representative for High Hampton; the lunch, drinks and trophies are extra. Regardless of whether or not their 140 expected guests actually take part in the activity, the couple, who live in Queens, plan to send all of them home from their wedding with gift bags that include bandannas featuring a customized pickleball print.
Though Ms. Snider, the founder of fine jewelry brand Fewer Finer, and Mr. Podpirka, a property manager, are more casual players than fanatics, the sport is “the perfect activity to include in a leisurely weekend,” she said. For their wedding invitations, the couple worked with Ms. Krug, their planner, to create specific invitations to the pickleball tournament, which included details and a dress code (formal tennis whites, of course).
