Pickleball club chain, including debut Lakewood Ranch location, shutters

A Sarasota company that at as recently as 2022 said it planned to invest $180 million into opening 15 high-end pickleball centers across Florida has closed.

The company, The Pickleball Club, announced the decision in a LinkedIn post. The closure means the two locations already open, in Lakewood Ranch and Port St. Lucie, are shut down as of Tuesday. The parking lot at the 33,000-square-foot, 12-court Lakewood Ranch location, at 1300 Sarasota Center Blvd., was empty Tuesday afternoon. A sign on the door said it was closed — though as recently as Dec. 16, an Instagram post promoted a six-week elite pickleball player league starting Jan. 9. 

The Pickleball Club Founder and CEO Brian McCarthy didn’t return calls or texts for comment Tuesday afternoon. Calls to the Lakewood Ranch location, with a still-active customer service line, went to voicemail.