Inaugural Las Vegas Pickleball Open will crown a champ, and you can watch mostly for free

The inaugural Las Vegas Pickleball Open is set for Sept. 25-29 at the Plaza Hotel & Casino. Fans will be able to watch most of the action for free.

About 800 competitors will come to the city to play pickleball, a game most people know from P.E. classes at school. For the uninitiated, the game uses a perforated ball similar to a Wiffle ball and wooden paddles about twice the size of those used in ping-pong, according to the USA Pickleball Assn.

The Plaza resort has 12 pickleball courts on the hotel’s pool deck. Hundreds of players, amateurs and professionals, are to play daily from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. in singles and doubles categories. There’s also a division for players 65 and older.

A purse of $25,000 will be shared by the winning pros.

A grandstand will be erected to seat fans, with six VIP boxes that offer food and wine packages.

Admission fees will be charged only for the semifinal and championship matches. Times and ticket prices will be posted on the tournament’s website.

The Sports & Fitness Industry Assn. reported that in 2017, 2.8 million Americans were pickleball players. That number was an increase of more than 12% over the previous year.

Info: Plaza Hotel & Casino, (800) 634-6575