A company offering a pickleball environment for all skill levels is on its way to Johnson County.
Ace Pickleball Club will open a new facility in Olathe later this year, with construction aiming to kick off in the next month or two.
Alexander McCarty and Mitch Morse, co-franchisees of the new Olathe facility, say they hope the new club will open by late summer or early fall — likely in August or September.
Ace Pickleball is coming to 1445 S. Mahaffie Cir.
- The pickleball club is moving into a space just off 151st Street and Mahaffie Circle, near the Kansas Rush Soccer Club.
- Natural Baseball Academy previously occupied that space.
- Hours have yet to be finalized for the Olathe club, but Ace Pickleball clubs are typically open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday.
Ace Pickleball will offer courts for all skill levels
The Olathe facility will have 11 full-sized courts, in addition to a smaller “dinking” court (a non-volley zone meant just for warming up and practicing).
Courts will be divided by skill level, with designated courts for beginners, intermediate and advanced players.
The facility will also have a stretching area and a space for private events.
Ace Pickleball is primarily membership-based, but the club is also open to walk-ins when space is available.
Members can also bring non-member guests with them.
“What we’re offering is indoor courts that are climate-controlled, that have 10-layer court surfaces that are designed to be a little bit easier on your knees,” McCarty said. “If you want to come in and play, you’re not worried about if it’s too hot, too cold, too windy, or too late. You’re in a climate controlled space, and you’re in courts that are divided from each other.”
This will be Ace Pickleball’s first JoCo club
Ace Pickleball Club’s first location opened in Roswell, Georgia, in 2023.
The new Olathe location will be the first local club, but it isn’t the first joint business venture for McCarty and Morse.
The duo also owns Premium Outdoor Grills, a Kansas City-based online business that sells a variety of grills and grilling equipment, which launched in 2018.
The two picked up pickleball as an interest themselves not long after that, getting involved in local leagues and tournaments.
As players themselves, they’d been looking for something in the local market that offered athletes a chance to hone their skills without the food and drink aspect that comes with venues like TopGolf and Chicken N Pickle.
McCarty and Morse also have roughly 10 investors in their new club as well — including lead investor and adviser Brian DeFrain, who has been active in the Kansas City pickleball community for more than a decade.
“We had always talked about how it’d be nice to have just a dedicated indoor area to play,” McCarty said. “We were looking for that pure golf course type aspect for pickleball, and not really finding it in this market.”
Eventually, the duo hopes to expand their reach with four or five locations across the Kansas City metro area.
“I think (I’m most excited about) being able to create a community of Olathe pickleball players that are all really excited about the sport and dedicated to it, and looking for that premier pickleball space,” McCarty said. “I think (Morse) and I for the last few years have wanted that to exist here, and to be able to go and play games and play tournaments and leagues in that community really excites me.”
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