In Chicago, an indoor pickleball club competes against everything outside as soon as summer hits: the lakefront, a rooftop, the free park district court down the block. For any indoor owner in a seasonal market, the question is simple: what can you offer inside to make the experience just as compelling as everything outside?
SPF Lincoln Park opened in 2024 inside a former climbing gym whose property line touches founder Richard Green's literal backyard. That idea shaped the club's strategy.
For Green, Volley wasn't just another amenity. It was a way to offer something other courts weren't offering: structured practice, instant feedback, and a premium training experience members couldn't get elsewhere.
The trial period
In summer 2025, SPF trialed Volley during the slowest stretch of the year, when empty courts become hardest to monetize. The timing was intentional. If players booked Volley during Chicago's toughest season, Green figured, it would work year-round.
The trial cleared the bar, and SPF chose to make Volley part of the membership experience. Rather than charging players separately to access the trainer, SPF included it as part of the club membership: players simply book a court and reserve Volley at no extra cost. (Non-members pay a small additional fee to use the trainer.)
A second location and a very different model
A year later, when Green opened a second SPF location called All Day, offering the Volley trainer at that facility felt like an easy decision. While SPF Lincoln Park was built around hospitality and ambiance, All Day runs on a completely different model. It's Chicago's first 24/7 autonomous facility: light on staff and open to players at any hour.
But that meant Volley would need to work without anyone there to onboard a first-time user. A concern that evaporated quickly:
Across both SPF clubs, court hours that used to sit empty now have a clear use case. Solo players who can't find a partner book Volley on random summer afternoons. Night owls use Volley to play at 1 a.m. SPF's kids programming runs on Volley too: the Volley trainer leads drills, runs skill games, tracks points, and the kids love it.
The verdict
For Green, the test of any new club investment is simple: does it improve the player experience, and does it justify itself financially? Volley checked both boxes.
