Pickleball for many people might conjure an image of mild-mannered elderly players or smiling younger participants, but in reality these matches can get quite intense. One player in a tournament over the weekend realized just how high-strung emotions can be on the court.
According to pickleball source The Kitchen, it all happened after player Peter Shonk seemingly celebrated a little too hard after securing victory in a tense championship point. Video shared by Shonk's wife on Instagram showed just what happened and explained how the moment quickly turned violent.
The players tapped paddles over the net, as is typical after every game as a show of good sportsmanship, but Shonk appeared to be so excited he knocked the opposing player's paddle out of his hands. Shonk bent over the net to pick up the paddle for the man, and while he was down there, the unidentified opponent kicked Shonk square in the face.
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It was quite a gnarly injury on Shonk's part. He told The Kitchen he needed to go to the hospital after he went unconscious for three hours and suffered memory loss as a result of the whack.
Needless to say it was an unexpected reaction from the opposing player.
"I was just fired up after the win," Shonk explained. "I went to tap his paddle, and it fell out of his hand. I immediately bent to pick it up [for him]—no bad intentions—but what happened next shocked everyone."
Like Shonk, it's probably best to maintain peace on the court even if tensions start to boil over.
