Fifteen-year-old Tama Shimabukuro has quickly emerged as one of the brightest young talents on the Carvana PPA Tour, but the Hawaiian says his journey into pickleball began almost by accident.
Speaking to broadcaster Dave Fleming on the Fans Want To Know YouTube series, as reported by pickleball.com, Shimabukuro revealed that he was originally chasing a professional skateboarding career before discovering pickleball during a family trip.
“We were on a trip. I used to be a skateboarder. I was doing tournaments for that and trying to go pro in that at first. We saw people playing. My family thought it looked fun. We went back home, got some wooden paddles and a net from Target, set it up in the garage and just started hitting around. Eventually, now we’re here.”
His early introduction to the sport was anything but smooth. “I was actually getting destroyed. I was pretty bad.”
Rather than walking away, Shimabukuro kept returning to the courts. “It kind of went in phases. We eventually were able to play with them and it just kept moving up. Then I just kept getting better and better and better.”
Unlike many leading professionals, Shimabukuro never had a tennis background. Instead, he developed his own techniques, including an unconventional grip that many advised him to change. “I started like that. People were telling me it was a bad habit and I tried taking it off for a little bit. It didn’t work for me, so I just put it back on. I honestly don’t know why it works. It just felt the most comfortable, and I wasn’t going to change it.”
His unusual two-handed backhand also developed naturally. “When I first started, it was zero fingers on the paddle. Eventually it went from one and then two. I don’t know how the second one got there. It’s just there now.”
One of the biggest talking points about Shimabukuro’s game is his ability to disguise shots, although he says it isn’t something he deliberately practises. “I don’t even feel like I’m hitting deception like that. It almost feels natural now. When I watch it back on video, it just looks crazy.”
Before pickleball became his full-time focus, skateboarding consumed most of his time. “I was skateboarding a lot. I loved skateboarding so much. I would do it every day for a couple of hours.”
That changed quickly. “I was spending way more time on the pickleball courts. Sometimes I was there for 10 hours. I just thought pickleball was way more fun.”
His recent performances on the PPA Tour have brought growing attention from fans, something he says has only motivated him further. “The support I got there was insane. It was just something else.”
Shimabukuro believes growing up in Hawaii has helped him remain composed despite the growing spotlight. “I think coming from Hawaii, we’re already a little bit laid-back. It’s more chill there, so I was just trying to stay calm on the court. I think the fans are probably making me play better.”
Despite already being viewed as one of pickleball’s brightest prospects, the teenager says he is focused only on the next step. “I haven’t really thought about it 20 years ahead. Right now I’m trying to become one of the top players in the world. I’m just going to keep pushing towards it.”
At just 15, Shimabukuro’s rise is already turning heads across professional pickleball. If his progress continues at the same pace, the sport may have found one of its next global stars.