Recommended Video
Despite facing rejection at first, Mike Johnson passionately championed pickleball in the Philippines. Today, he’s witnessing the result of his efforts.
Even before it blew up, Mike Johnson already knew that pickleball would be the next big thing among Filipinos.
A former badminton player, Mike quickly saw the appeal behind the sport eight years ago, when it was already picking up steam in the United States. Long before everyone wanted to try it out, Mike had already noticed the sport’s accessibility along with the potential to thrive as both a competitive and recreational activity.
“As you know, Pinoys love everything American so I just knew,” Mike tells The GAME half-jokingly in an exclusive interview.
“And it’s a fun game, it’s easy to play. The barrier to entry is not high, and most people can at least hit the ball across the net. And like some sports, you can play soft and easy or you can play hard.”
Mike’s involvement with pickleball dates back to 2016. At the time, professional pickleball player Sara Ash led a clinic in Cebu — an effort that “didn’t go very” well according to the eventual Philippine Pickleball Federation chair.
One of the camp leads eventually turned over their equipment to Mike, who then brought it to Manila a year later.
“This was like early 2017, and then we started playing in a church in Makati for around six months, around once a month or something,” Mike, recalling their days at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints near Gil Puyat Avenue.
Still, the early days weren’t without challenges. Up to today, racket sport players still look down on pickleball, something that Mike experienced when he tried introducing it to his peers in badminton.
“I played badminton at the Upper Deck Sports Club in Pasig, I played there and I immediately took ths sport there, I took the sport there and I rented a badminton court and I invited all my friends to play [pickleball],” Mike recalls.
“They just walked by and I said, ‘Hey! Let’s try this new sport’, and they were like no thanks, we have our badminton. So I was like, ‘Oh, you guys are so boring!’”
Though demoralizing, Mike found a glimmer of hope through badminton coaches, who eventually gave into their curiosity.
“I remember sitting there two or three different times really embarrassed in front of all my friends — sitting there renting the court and not one person wants to play,” he said. “And then eventually the badminton coaches came over and they were curious.”
“Of course, they were coaches, right? So for them, it’s an opportunity to train in something new. They came over to try it and they loved it! They were hitting the ball crazy in just two minutes, they were like tennis players out there whacking the ball around!”
Establishing structure
By 2018, Mike continued his drive to promote pickleball in Manila, taking advantage of Ortigas’ car-free weekends in Emerald Avenue. This initiative became the foundation for what we now know as Ortigas Street Pickleball, which started with Mike inviting some friends to try out the sport.
At the time, there was only one net Mike and his friends could use, before they added two or three more makeshift nets to expand their playing court.
“The very first time I was out there, I invited a lady that I know that I played badminton with. She came out, and just her and I dinked the ball a few times. For the next couple of weeks, I invited three or four of my buddies to come over and join,” he said.
As Mike and his friends began to grow Ortigas Street Pickleball, curious onlookers would stop by and watch them play. Naturally, Mike invited them to try their hand at a swing or two.
“That’s how we kind of got the ball rolling, just people off the street watching, stopping, and curiously asking ‘What the heck is this?’ And if they had rubber shoes on, I’d put a paddle in their hand if I could and we got out there and got them playing,” he said.
Ultimately, Mike’s long-term vision for Philippine pickleball was to be an organized one. To it into into reality, he then established what would be the governing body for the sport in 2019.
This led to the creation of the Philippine Pickleball Sports Association (PPSA), which we know now as the Philippine Pickleball Federation (PPF).
“I can say it was my idea,” Mike confidently says. “I’ve got a local business and I asked my attorney ‘Hey, let’s set up an organization here for this new sport called pickleball. So we did and we registered with the [Securities and Exchanges Commission].”
“Initially, the name we wanted wasn’t available. We wanted the Philippine Pickleball Association, but apparently, somebody was using that on Facebook, so they didn’t let us have that, so we just temporarily called it the Philippine Pickleball Sports Association, or PPSA.
“I never really liked that name, but we wanted to change it into a federation, because my idea was let’s have members be clubs, not individual members, so we needed to be a federation.”
Today, the PPF boasts 419 clubs under its jurisdiction, along with nearly 40,000 players, and over a thousand courts recognized by the federation. But when exactly did pickleball explode nationwide?
‘Pretty exciting time’
As Mike Johnson recalls, Philippine pickleball’s “hockey stick phase” began three years ago, thanks to a major development chain buying into the hype.
“I would say around 2023 when Ayala started promoting it in media, in the malls…we got into this ‘hockey stick phase’ where for years, we’re just slowly growing and all of a sudden, it just takes right off,” Mike shares.
“When Ayala did it, SM followed suit and Robinson’s followed suit. So now, all the malls either have, or will soon have pickleball courts. And if they have temporary courts, they’re already thinking about how to make permanent courts, so it’s crazy.”
Being a pioneer of Philippine pickleball, Mike is hardly surprised by this growth, which mirrors developments internationally. For instance, Pickleball Canada recorded over 90,000 members last year, while the United States continues to grow their own market.
In the Philippines, Mike believes that pickleball will become a national pastime in the long run, given its accessibility across all ages and genders.
“I think there will come a day, and I don’t know when, that pickleball will be more popular than basketball in the Philippines. I think that sounds kind of ridiculous to many people, but I think that makes sense when you consider that basketball appeals to young males primarily,” Mike said.
“Pickleball appeals to males and females from eight years old to 80 years old, and the entire demographic is already enjoying the sport. So we’ll see how it develops as far as professional leagues…but I think there will be a pickleball court in every town instead of a basketball court; the basketball court will still be there, but there’ll be a pickleball court as well.”
The PPF also continues to grow the competitive scene, introducing the National Championship in 2025, which was followed by the Amateur Nationals held last March in Las Pinas. Along with the amateur nationals, the PPF introduced a ranking system, which will be used to determine prospects for the national team.
Mike believes that the new PPF president, Shawy Cu, has what it takes to build on the foundation he established eight years ago.
“You know, she’s very talented. She’s got a team of supporters behind her that are working with her, and so she’s going to do well to carry the baton forward,” Mike, who remains as PPF chairman, shared.
“And I confide with Shawy on a regular basis. But yeah, we’re very excited about the course we’re on and the direction that the sport’s going in general. I’m very proud of the PPF and this has been a long journey from us.”
To think that Philippine pickleball traces its roots to a modest camp all the way in Cebu. Yet through the drive of Mike Johnson and his peers, it’s blossomed into one of the country’s fastest-growing sports today.
From being rejected at badminton courts, Mike has also witnessed its growth from a ragtag bunch of players to a full-blown community. And if the past few years are any indication, it’s that Philippine pickleball’s rise is far from over.
“It’s growing so fast now that we just can’t keep up with the documentation side! And there’s still more courts that are opening up. People ask us, ‘We’re building a court, where do I get my materials? What are the dimensions? How do I do it?’,” Mike shares.
“It’s absolutely exploding and it’s a pretty exciting time for a guy like me that’s been in the trenches slugging it out for years.”
Banner images from Street Pickleball Ortigas on Facebook.
Related Stories
