Known as the “Badger,” Wisconsin native Dave Weinbach is one of the most celebrated players in the sport of pickleball.
Holder of an incredible 148 medals since he started playing the sport nearly ten years ago, Dave is also one of the game’s leading ambassadors as he travels throughout the country, sharing his passion for pickleball through his clinics and lessons. “I was first introduced to pickleball in Surprise, Arizona at Sun City Grand when my parents moved there from Wisconsin in 2008,” recalled Weinbach. I was hooked immediately as I enjoy outdoor racquet sports and the socialness along with the entertainment value was extremely appealing.” Dave grew up playing tennis and table tennis so his foray into pickleball was seamless. “You could not invent a more perfect game for that skill set.”
So far, 2019 has been very good to the resident of Madison, Wisconsin. At the US Open, Dave, along with partner Leigh Waters captured gold in Mixed Doubles 35+. He also teamed with Matt Wright to win a silver medal in Men’s Pro Open Doubles. So far this year, Dave has collected an astonishing 16 gold medals.
A graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Dave is currently President & CEO of Weinbach Investment Management LLC. Dave’s family are also avid pickleball players, so much so that he built a court in their backyard three years ago so wife Dina and their boys, Jake, Ryan and Sam can dink and volley till all hours of the night. “We just all love this sport so much and I really enjoy teaching the game to so many who want to pick up a paddle and start playing. So far, I have conducted clinics in 20 of our states and hope to eventually reach all 50.”
Weinbach is a 10-time US Open Champion, nine-time USAPA Nationals Champion and winner of a remarkable 112 gold medals in official competition. His unparalleled enthusiasm for the sport is contagious. “The amazing growth of our sport is only going to accelerate as people get introduced to the game. Pickleball is unique in that anybody can play and it’s very easy to get started as you don’t have barriers to entry. There are new courts going up every month all over the USA. Playing Nationals at a world-renowned venue like Indian Wells shows how far we have come as a sport. A year from now, we are going to have 10 million players in the great game of PICKLEBALL!”
