Pickleball Court Shade: Custom Tents for Outdoor Sun Protection

Pickleball is the hottest sport in America — figuratively and literally. That's why your courts need heavy-duty, moveable tents to act as both a shade structure and a branded presence at your next tournament or open play session.

TentCraft proudly manufactures its custom shade structures for pickleball courts in the USA — Traverse City, Michigan, to be exact (where we have some pretty talented pickleballers). Because we control the design and quality of our tents, we are able to engineer a solution that comes with certified wind ratings, and manufacture something that lasts a really long time. To back up those claims, our heavy-duty tents include a lifetime frame warranty.

Whether you need a single cover for a weekly open play session, or need to add a multiple shade solution system for a dedicated pickleball court location, TentCraft's team can help find you a professional structure for your outdoor sports courts.

Tents vs. Fabric Structures: Pros & Cons

Tents and fabric shade structures shield you from the sun and heat, but they're very different solutions.

There are three big advantages of investing in a custom pop-up tent for your pickleball court shade structures versus a stabilized fabric structure:

One, a tent is a moveable shade structure which, in return, makes it significantly more versatile than a stabilized fabric structure. As the sun moves throughout the day, you can also move your tent to provide maximum protection.

Two, professional pop-up tents are designed to be custom-printed with your branding. This is important for pickleball facilities that are trying to build their brand and want a cohesive look and feel on the court.

And three, your tent can be used for more than just keeping cool on the court. If you're a new pickleball facility, your tent also doubles as a community outreach structure.

Fabric structures are more affordable, but also more limiting. They typically aren't offered with custom printing options, and you can't easily move them to different locations to protect players and spectators.

Fromuth Pickleball & TentCraft

Fromuth Pickleball launched in 2021 as a direct-to-consumer e-commerce website. The West Lawn, Pennsylvania-based business quickly realized its home community didn't have a local facility to actually use the paddles, shoes, and apparel it sold online. So, later that year, the 12-court Fromuth Pickleball facility opened to the public.

The company invested in two 10x20 mightyTENTs and one 10x10 mightyTENT, both of which are fully printed with the Fromuth branding.

The tents provide shade for players, a seat for coaches and spectators, and a covered area for equipment. Fromuth uses TentCraft's proprietary 50-pound footplates to anchor the tents on the court.

Pickleball Community Engagement: Tidewater Pickleball Park

The Tidewater Pickleball Park, a 23-court facility with a restaurant, pro shop, and locker rooms, has been met with great anticipation in Wilmington, N.C. As construction continues, stakeholders realized the importance of engaging the commnunity about the facility. Tidewater Investment Group, the developer, invested in a TentCraft custom mightyTENT tent to promote the project at pickleball tournaments and community events.

The 10x10 mightyTENT features a custom-printed back wall with a high-resolution rendering of the state-of-the-art project.

The group can use the tents as check-ins for tournaments, or simply set up at community events to educate the public about the project.

The upcoming pickleball park pledges to deliver a recreational and social experience of the highest caliber, aiming to bridge the current gap in market offerings that fails to meet the existing demand.