New padel facility in Tucker aims to attract racket sport enthusiasts

Even with all the heat around racket sports in Tucker, Armando and Caitlin Suarez are hoping to court new fans to padel, a sport with similarities to pickleball with a fraction of the noise.

“It’s kind of like if tennis and squash had a baby,” said Armando Suarez, owner of Padel Highway. You have a net and you’re playing against your opponent via the net, but there’s also glass [behind players] that you can play off.”

The couple and their family will open Padel Highway, a state-of-the art, panoramic, four-court recreation center, on Lawrenceville Highway, in April. Players of all skill levels and ages are invited to enjoy tournaments, free play, and other events centered around padel, a sport originated in Acapulco, Mexico, in 1969.  

Armando Suarez has played padel, since he was a child in Puebla, Mexico. His family has always been fans of racket-based sports, with his brother, Santiago, playing tennis at Georgia Southern University, and his dad, Armando Sr., once serving as vice president of the Mexican Tennis Federation. 

Racket sport craze

The couple met while students at the University of Mississippi. They moved to Tucker in 2020 when Caitlin Suarez started at Emory University School of Law. As they fell in love with the city, they also resonated with residents’ passion for recreational sports. 

“So many people from the faculty at Emory live here. I feel like we found community so easily here, and we’ve loved how it feels like a small town, but we still have access to the big, metropolitan city,” Caitlin Suarez said. 

The couple was soon able to convince the rest of the Suarezes, Armando’s parents and brother, to call Tucker home. Eventually, the family began to ponder starting a business together that would highlight one of their favorite sports, which was quickly gaining prominence in Europe and Latin America. The 2023 rezoning change on Lawrenceville Highway, which allowed for outdoor recreation, was the last nudge the family needed to pursue Padel Highway.

“We’ve seen firsthand the racket sport craze that is here in Tucker, and we’ve participated, so we’re excited to bring that here,” Caitlin Suarez said.

The courts, surrounded by 12-millimeter tempered glass, have been installed, and the final steps are finishing the parking lot and obtaining permits. Armando Suarez said he’s not concerned about having the challenges that pickleball has faced in Tucker, since the courts and balls are different.

Padel’s balls are specialized, yellow or white, pressurized rubber balls similar to tennis balls that have less bounce and noise as compared to pickleballs. Additionally, Padel Highway sits in an isolated area with no residential areas nearby. The couple said they’re eager to open their first business together, and they hope Tucker responds well to padel.

“We chose Tucker mostly, because we love the community, and obviously we’re here in the community, so we wanted to run this business near to us,” Caitlin Suarez said. “The good thing is our family shows that you can play at all ages. I picked it up in my 20s, and his parents are closer to their 60s, and they love it.”

For more information on Padel Highway, visit www.padelhwy.com

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