Tama Shimabukuro: The 15-Year-Old Who Is Rewriting What Is Possible in Pickleball

There is no standard path to the top of professional pickleball. Ben Johns came from competitive ping pong. Anna Leigh Waters started at 12 with her father. And Tama Shimabukuro — currently one of the most exciting young players on the PPA Tour — got there via a skateboarding trip to California.

How It Started

In 2023, Tama Shimabukuro was a sponsored skateboarder from Honolulu, Hawaii, competing across the country and working toward a professional career in the sport. On a trip to California for a skateboarding tournament, his family noticed some people playing pickleball nearby.

"We saw people playing. My family thought it looked fun. Went back home, went to Target, got some wooden paddles and a net, put in the garage, and just started hitting around. And eventually now we're here."

That casual garage start turned serious quickly. With no formal coach and no structured programme — just his family, a local court in Kakaʻako, and a natural athletic instinct honed by years of skateboarding — Tama began entering local tournaments, then national events. His goal was to earn a PPA Tour contract by the time he turned fifteen.

He did it a year early.

Turning Pro at 14

By late August 2025, at just 14 years old, Tama had qualified for the PPA Asia Fukuoka event. He battled through qualifiers, earned main-draw appearances in both singles and mixed doubles, and promptly upset PPA veteran Tyler Loong in both divisions — the kind of result that makes the wider pickleball world take notice.

Shortly after, he signed a three-year PPA Tour contract — one of the youngest players to ever do so. He was still 14.

What Makes His Game Different

Tama's game is built on instinct rather than coaching. His deceptive shot-making — the kind that makes opponents misread the ball before it even leaves his paddle — is something he himself finds difficult to explain.

"I don't even feel like I'm hitting deception like that. It almost kind of feels natural at this point. When I see it on video, it just looks crazy."

As 2026 has progressed, he has added tactical sophistication to go alongside that natural ability. The switch to a one-handed backhand volley — while maintaining two hands on dinks — mirrors the approach used by Ben Johns and JW Johnson, and reflects a maturing game intelligence beyond his years.

He plays with the Selkirk Project Boomstik Elongated — an interesting choice for a player whose game is built on feel and deception, given the elongated shape's reputation for power over touch.

Atlanta: The Breakthrough

The moment that announced Tama to a wider audience came at the Veolia Atlanta Pickleball Championships in April 2026. Entering as the 22nd seed in singles, he produced one of the most remarkable runs in recent PPA Tour history.

Round of 32 — beat 13th seed Jaume Martinez Vich. Round of 16 — beat 2nd seed Federico Staksrud in three games, 6-11, 11-8, 11-9, after trailing in the deciding game and holding his nerve at 9-9. Quarterfinals — beat 11th seed Noe Khlif. Semifinals — beat 3rd seed Hunter Johnson 11-1 in the deciding game. The crowd dubbed the week "Tama Town."

He fell in the final to world number one Chris Haworth, 11-5, 11-1 — a scoreline that flatters Haworth given how Tama had played all week. Silver medal at 15 years old, as the 22nd seed.

In doubles alongside Yuta Funemizu, he reached the semifinals — beating the 2nd and 9th seeds along the way — before finishing fourth overall.

Haworth, to his credit, acknowledged what everyone in the arena already knew: "I knew most people would be rooting for him, and you can't blame them. I mean, I would honestly be cheering for him if he wasn't playing me."

What Happened Next

Atlanta was not a one-off. Since that run, Tama has been seeded in the top 3 in multiple PPA Tour Asia events — entering Kuala Lumpur as the top seed in both men's doubles and mixed doubles, and 3rd seed in singles. He is now one of the most talked-about players in the sport, with a target on his back rather than an underdog story to hide behind.

His career record across 19 professional tournaments stands at 54% — a winning record at professional level before most players his age have even discovered the sport.

Why This Matters for UK Players

Tama Shimabukuro's story carries a specific relevance for pickleball in the UK, and in Nottinghamshire in particular.

Pickleball here is still largely perceived as a sport for older players — a gentler alternative to tennis, better suited to 50+ players looking for something social. Tama is proof of the opposite. He represents a generation that grew up picking up sports instinctively, without formal pathways, and excelling at the highest level.

The young players already competing in Nottinghamshire — Molly Geary (18, rated 4.147), Francesca Gill (14, rated 3.357), Alfie Scott (17, rated 3.400) — are developing in a sport that is still finding its feet in this country. The infrastructure, coaching, and competitive pathways that could take a young Nottinghamshire player somewhere significant simply do not exist yet.

Tama's rise happened without those things too. That is either a challenge or an opportunity, depending on how you look at it.

What He Is Aiming For

When asked about the future, Tama keeps it simple.

"I haven't really thought about it like 20 years ahead, but right now I'm trying to be one of the top players in the world. I'm just going to keep pushing towards it."

He is 15. He already has a three-year pro contract, a winning record on the PPA Tour, and a Championship Sunday appearance to his name. The ceiling is genuinely unknown.

Inspired to start playing? Find clubs and sessions across Nottinghamshire on our courts page.