Total Light Fixtures Supplied:
158Average Foot Candles Achieved:
98 fcThe Backstory of Our Relationship With Match Point Pickleball Club
Bill Taylor spent 10 years as a professional pickleball player before he became a facility builder. That background shaped every decision behind Match Point Pickleball Club. As Head Pro and Founder, he set out to build the world's largest indoor pickleball facility. This project was a new construction build across a 125,000-square-foot space in Columbus, Ohio. Today, Match Point ranks Number 7 on the Top 100 Pickleball Clubs in the US, the highest-ranked club in Ohio, with a perfect 5.0 out of 5 rating. The facility has 38 championship-level courts, 5 golf simulators, and table tennis all under one roof.
Bill reached out to LED Lighting Supply for guidance on lighting the new courts. He sought support from various suppliers before connecting with LED Lighting Supply. The alternative companies offered to run a full photometric plan at a premium price. We custom-tailored a lighting plan at no cost with product recommendations and responsive support before Bill committed to purchasing the lights from our company.
Bill had already seen what happens when lighting gets treated as an afterthought for indoor pickleball. "I built another club that didn't do the lighting really well," Bill said. "It was a contention spot for the players, for the tournaments, even though that club is at the so-called competitive minimum. As we dealt with the older players, I mean, it was difficult to follow the ball."
That experience became the standard Match Point was built against.
The Challenge of Lighting a Tournament-Grade Pickleball Facility
The lighting solution needed to support the tournament, broadcast-level pickleball play that Match Point wanted to host. Bill needed a partner that could offer professional support on indoor pickleball lighting.
Potential Risks of Inconsistent Court Lighting
- Under-lit courts slow player reaction time, affecting how well someone tracks a fast-moving ball
- Uneven contrast makes it harder to follow play, an issue for older or highly competitive players
- A facility with only a few well-lit courts creates friction among members competing for the best amenities
- Falling short of broadcast-ready light levels would put Professional Pickleball Association (PPA) and televised tournament play out of reach
- Courts lit to the bare minimum tend to generate ongoing member complaints rather than a one-time fix
Lighting Plan We Created for Match Point
Lighting Plan Metrics
- Mounting Height: 35 feet (ft)
- Average Foot Candles (fc): 98 fc
- Maximum Foot Candles: 134 fc
- Uniformity (Max/Min fc): 2.76
- Product(s) Used: LLS-X-HB9-320A-CC-[C]
Completed Match Point Pickleball Club Courts with Our LED Lighting Solution Installed
The Strategy and Solution Behind a Custom Court Lighting Plan
LED Lighting Supply’s Product Specialist, Tyler Greene, worked directly with Bill from a new-build perspective. Bill shared the court layout, the facility’s planned 35-foot mounting height, and the white wall and ceiling finishes.
Match Point’s broadcast and television partners require a minimum light level of 85 foot candles (fc) for tournament use. “Working with television crews and broadcasting, if you’re not a minimum of 85 foot candles, then you’re not in the ballpark for long-term use of the club,” Bill said.
LED Lighting Supply used that benchmark along with the court layout to build a full photometric lighting plan. Our team recommended wattage-adjustable UFO high bay LED lights, set to 240 watts with white housing to match the walls and ceiling. In total, 158 lights were installed above the courts.
Installation Note: As with any new-construction electrical project, a qualified, licensed electrician should always confirm final fixture placement, mounting hardware, and wiring against local building and electrical codes.
Bill said the plan itself, not just the product, was what set LED Lighting Supply apart. “I would have spent probably what I spent on the lighting just to get that photo plan, to make sure we had the coverage that we ended up getting. Having that included was worth the entire price of the lights.”
The Results of a Custom Lighting Recommendation
The finished facility reaches a 98 average foot-candle reading across all 38 courts. This matches what the lighting plan predicted before construction began. The maximum light level on the courts measures up to 134 foot-candles, with an overall uniformity ratio of 2.76. That range keeps play consistent from one court to the next.
Player feedback backs that up. “The response has been, every place should do this,” Bill said. One member wrote in a Google Review after their first visit at Match Point: “I just played my first games at Match Point Pickleball Club this past weekend, and the experience was absolutely wonderful! The lighting was fantastic… bright, consistent, and made it easy to track every shot without any glare.”
Immediate Advantages of the Recommended Solution
- Every court plays to the same lighting standard, allowing Match Point to sell long-term memberships without players competing over well-lit space
- The lighting exceeded what touring pros expect, leading to Match Point hosting major tournaments every month
- There have been no light fixture failures roughly a year after they went in, with no maintenance required to date
- The facility supported a Guinness World Records attempt tied to its size and court count
Bill described how the lighting translated directly into new business. “We have every major pro tour, including now a PPA Open, scheduled here for 2027. A big portion of that was the fact that our lighting is above what they expected. We have a major tournament every single month. The lighting is a huge factor in landing those.”
The same consistency shows up in day-to-day membership decisions. “When you do it across and invest in the entire club, being at that top end of the scale, not the minimums, it definitely has allowed us to sell memberships because no one’s fighting for only two or three courts that are properly lit,” Bill said.
That trust has carried into Bill’s next venture. He has since founded Domus Court Systems to help other operators plan and build pickleball facilities. LED Lighting Supply is positioned as its broadcast-grade lighting partner. “Everything we’ve dealt with made us feel like we were an important customer to you guys,” Bill said. “Not just, hey, you’re just selling us some lights, and we’re never going to see you again.”
