Soft Dink Pickleball Club, a player-run community founded in June 2026 in Balanga, Bataan, is building a beginner-friendly pickleball scene around weekly Open Play sessions at the Balanga Badminton Center. Started by a group of friends, the club centers on affordable, welcoming games designed to bring newcomers into the sport rather than intimidate them.
A Player-Run Club Founded on Welcoming New Players
Soft Dink Pickleball Club was founded by Ryan Christian Maglaque alongside a group of friends who now run its sessions: John Andre Manabat, Cammile Castel, Irizlly Padilla, Jan Micole Navarro, Allan Christian Gandia, Christian Delos Trinos, and Bob Salenga. The idea grew out of their own time on the court. After joining other clubs and rotating through open play sessions elsewhere, the friends decided to stop being guests and start hosting their own games. The name nods to the soft dink, the finesse shot played gently near the net that rewards control over power.
The club’s founding philosophy traces back to how its organizers felt when they first picked up a paddle. Maglaque has said the group remembers being overlooked as beginners, when more experienced players were reluctant to share a court with newcomers. That memory shaped the club’s central message. “We want everyone to feel welcome,” Maglaque said, describing a deliberate effort to spare new players the discouragement the founders once experienced.
How Soft Dink Pickleball Club’s Open Play Works
Photo Courtesy: DG Productions
Soft Dink Pickleball Club held its first Open Play on June 20, 2026, drawing 45 players, five of them walk-ins. The sessions now run on Sunday mornings from 8 a.m. to 12 noon at the Balanga Badminton Center, with a weekday night session planned as the club expands. Each session uses four courts and caps attendance at roughly 40 players, or about ten per court, a ratio that keeps games moving and wait times short.
A session costs ₱220, or around $4, and the fee covers more than court time. It includes the use of balls, snacks, water, and ice, with pizza occasionally added for the group. That bundle reflects the club’s framing of Open Play as a social gathering as much as a competitive one.
Skill level is not a barrier to entry. Soft Dink Pickleball Club welcomes all levels and sorts players through observation rather than self-reported ratings. During registration, organizers color-code paddles to mark beginner and intermediate players, then refine matchups after watching how each person plays. The system lets newcomers find comparable games quickly without having to prove themselves first.
A Loyalty Card That Rewards Regulars
The club also runs an Open Play loyalty card built around attendance. On a player’s fourth session, the card earns one entry into a raffle, with rewards that include stickers, keychains, a 50 percent discount voucher for a future session, and a pickleball. The prizes are modest by design, meant to encourage repeat visits and reinforce the sense of a returning community rather than to drive one-off sign-ups.
A Community Built on Fast Rotation and Repeat Players
Since its launch, Soft Dink Pickleball Club has leaned on repeat players who come back for the people and the format. Organizers point to the club’s quick rotation as the feature players mention most, along with the mix of familiar faces and the structure that keeps sessions running smoothly. Event photography, credited to DG Productions, has documented the early sessions, and the club shares recaps and schedules through its official Facebook page and Instagram account.
The approach fits a broader moment for the sport in the Philippines, where pickleball has drawn rising interest through community clubs and open play groups. Soft Dink Pickleball Club positions itself within that wave as a local entry point in Bataan, using low costs and an open-door policy to turn curious first-timers into regulars.
What’s Next for Soft Dink Pickleball Club
Soft Dink Pickleball Club has outlined several plans for the rest of 2026. The organizers intend to host tournaments, add a second venue to support weekday night Open Play, and eventually offer lessons aimed at helping beginners learn the game. Branded merchandise, including shirts and polos carrying the Soft Dink logo, is also under consideration as the club builds its identity. Each step points back to the goal the founders started with: growing a space where new players feel they belong.
For a club barely a month old, Soft Dink Pickleball Club has turned a simple idea, making new players feel welcome, into a growing Sunday-morning fixture in Balanga.
