At Fort Wayne Country Club, Brock Orlowski is betting on padel, a new generation of members, and a different approach to racquets leadership.

When pickleball swept across the American private club landscape, many clubs found themselves playing catch-up. Members were asking for courts, neighboring clubs were adding facilities, and racquets directors were scrambling to respond. But not in Indiana.

At Fort Wayne Country Club in Indiana, Director of Racquets Brock Orlowski remembers that experience. His club had been a follower in pickleball. When the opportunity to introduce padel presented itself, he was determined to take a different approach.

This time, he wanted Fort Wayne Country Club to lead, not follow. And he staked his professional reputation behind that decision. The members were going to either love it or hate it when the board wanted to “call” his hand.

In our latest Beyond The Baselines podcast, Brock discusses how he brought padel to a private club in the middle of Indiana, completed the court project for under $100,000, and began changing the way members experience racquet sports.

But this conversation is about considerably more than a new court.

It’s about the changing role of the Director of Racquets, the importance of understanding a younger membership, and why tomorrow’s successful private club leaders may be those willing to take calculated risks today.