Sinclair Ventures backs Crush Yard’s Nashville pickleball eatertainment push

Sinclair Ventures’ backing gives Crush Yard a much better chance of becoming the kind of Nashville-area stop players can actually plan around, not just another court opening. The brand’s first franchise in the region points to a bigger shift in pickleball: the money is chasing places that can hold a group for an entire night, with courts, food, drinks and programming under one roof.

Crush Yard, founded in 2023, has been pitching that formula from the start. The company combines professional-grade pickleball courts with chef-driven food, craft beverages and a social setup built for repeat visits. RBR described Sinclair’s move as a commitment to pickleball and eatertainment, and that is the right lens here. Sinclair Ventures says it invests at the intersection of media, technology and infrastructure, which helps explain why a venue like Crush Yard fits so neatly into a broader audience-building strategy.

The Nashville-area location is in Brentwood at 330 Franklin Rd., Brentwood, TN 37027. Crush Yard’s Nashville site lists indoor pickleball courts, a full-service restaurant and bar, arcade space, event areas, lessons, leagues, memberships, golf simulators, TV and sports viewing, a self-serve tap wall and a pro shop. Daily pickleball hours run from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., while the kitchen and bar are open noon to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and noon to 9 p.m. Sunday.

That matters because the venue is being built for more than local drop-in play. Local reporting described the Brentwood project as a 33,400-square-foot indoor pickleball and dining space with eight indoor courts, a restaurant, bar, private event space and an arcade. It was first announced in late 2024, and the drawn-out timeline only reinforces how much demand there is for a polished, all-in-one destination rather than a bare-bones court rental.

Crush Yard’s locations page already lists Charleston, South Carolina and Orlando, Florida, with Nashville open for pickleball and Conway, Arkansas and Buffalo, New York coming soon. The company’s franchising pitch calls it one of the fastest-growing eatertainment franchises in the country, and the timing lines up with a broader market that is still expanding fast. USA Pickleball’s 2025 annual growth report says the Pickleheads database now includes 82,613 courts nationwide and 18,258 locations, with 14,155 new courts added in 2024.

For pickleball travelers, the signal is simple. Brentwood is no longer just a suburb with a new court build. With franchise backing, food service, event space and all-day hours, it is looking more like a reliable stop for social-play trips, group outings and retreat add-ons, the kind of place that can keep people there well past the last dink.