We proudly “soft launched” Pepper Pong June 1-4, 2023 at the “Pickleball Tournament With the Pros” fittingly in the nation’s Pepper Capital of Albuquerque, New Mexico 😊 [pepper].
The journey to this exciting milestone is perhaps as fascinating as the game itself.
Over the course of decades, our founder & his paddle-wielding pals tinkered with a mishmash of oddball components to invent a homegrown pong-reminiscent concoction as playable & nearly as portable as a deck of cards.
The game was intentionally crafted to ensure longer, more competitive rallies & closer matches across varied skill levels than the 1-2 shot blowouts that often plague ping pong. And custom scoring & rules had been refined over decades to facilitate tight matches and simplified gameplay.
But what WASN’T intended was for Pepper Pong to be dubbed the “pickleball version of ping pong” or “tabletop pickleball.” After all, its journey began long before pickleball went mainstream.
However, in early 2023 as we were field-testing prototypes at a Denver-area pickleball facility, one player was astonished by the game's uncanny similarities to pickleball in terms of pace, rules, strategy, and overall "feel"…only in a scaled-down form…and now infamously exclaimed, “this is like mini f%#king pickleball in my ACTUAL KITCHEN!"
The accidental resemblance to pickleball was confirmed and the pepper-pickle bond *officially* sealed during our Albuquerque debut, when some of the world’s most revered professional pickleball players were introduced to Pepper Pong for the first time.
We’ll never forget Zane Navartil – former world #1 and current Top 5 pickleball pro – strolling by our booth on his way to a match when he couldn’t resist grabbing a paddle and challenging our founder.
No surprise, Zane was an instant Pepper Pong phenom and his excitement and captivation with his newly discovered game was evident as he marveled at how closely the timing of shots & rules aligned with pickleball.
Zane’s enthusiasm soared when he discovered that volleying the ball out of the air, a move forbidden in traditional ping pong, was encouraged in Pepper Pong leading him to flawlessly execute a pickleball “Erne-like” shot which he subsequently requested be named "The Zane" in homage to his discovery and mastery of Pepper Pong's volleying technique.
Zane's fast mastery of the game and invention of “The Zane” solidified his mark on Pepper Pong's legacy.
With Zane’s contagious encouragement, professional pickleball players Simone Jardim, Parris Todd, and Kamryn Blackwood were next to step up to the Pepper Pong table. Simone and Parris, undefeated doubles partners in the world of pickleball in 2023, faced off against Kamryn and Pepper Pong's founder and inventor, Tom Filippini.
The match was intense, with long rallies and strategic shots that showcased the game's unique qualities. In the end, Simone and Parris emerged victorious, solidifying their unbeaten streak in both pickleball and Pepper Pong.
All four professionals were astonished by the resemblance between Pepper Pong and pickleball. They recognized the immense value of Pepper Pong as a training tool to improve their skills. The game's versatility allowed them to play on any surface, making it the perfect pre-match routine. They declared that Pepper Pong would become an integral part of their preparation for important professional pickleball matches.
versatility and portability.
So, while Pepper Pong was never intentionally designed as a miniature version of pickleball, the endorsement from both amateur and professional players has sealed its fate. We are thrilled to see Pepper Pong being hailed as an invaluable training tool and a fun, engaging game in its own right.
