World’s largest indoor pickleball facility opens in Macon

It's Dec. 16 and the parking lot of the Macon Mall has not been this full for years. But it's not because of holiday shoppers — people have come from as far away as Wisconsin for Southern Pickleball’s Candy Cane Classic.

They’ve also come to play in the world’s largest indoor pickleball facility.

John Roberts was recently hired to manage the new facility, called Rhythm and Rally. 

“You know, 650 players are here, and it stretches the gamut of certainly the Southeast," Roberts said. "But we probably have 30 to 40 of that number that are your quintessential snowbirds on their way south.”

Inside the mall, competitors battle it out on 32 courts covering two floors of an old Belk department store. The pickleball facility is just part of an overall plan to bring new life to an old mall and establish the city as a destination for the growing sport.

When the Macon Mall opened in 1975, it was a million square feet — at the time, the largest in Georgia. But years later, as indoor malls fell out of favor, Macon’s development shifted to the northern suburbs and most retailers moved out, hurting an already struggling neighborhood.