Lauren Halpern
•9/2/2026
FORT MYERS, Fla. (WINK) — A Fort Myers pickleball player helped the Miami Pickleball Club win the inaugural Junior Major League Pickleball championship.
Grayer Crump was drafted this summer and competed with players from across the country. The 18-year-old's journey to the top of the junior game started five years ago when his grandmother introduced him to the sport.
"I played tennis for eight years first, and then my grandma started playing," Crump said.
After trying pickleball, Crump quickly realized he had a natural talent for the game. He decided to put more effort into developing his skills.
"I was like, 'Hey, I'm actually pretty good at this. Like, I should put a little more effort into it," Crump said.
That effort earned him a spot in the first-ever Junior Major League Pickleball season. About 100 players from across the country competed, with Crump landing on the Miami Pickleball Club.
"Everyone's very competitive, and I'm more competitive when it's other people my age. So it's definitely intimidating. But it was a lot of fun," Crump said.
The team entered the championship weekend in first place. They accomplished this without their assigned coach, relying instead on one of the moms to guide them.
"It's supposed to be the pro coach that comes to it, and he just never came to anything. We had one of the moms. She just was our coach," Crump said.
The championship came down to the final match. Crump got to play the final point, securing the win for his team.
"I got to play the championship point. So that was really cool," Crump said.
The victory marked a significant moment in pickleball history. Crump described the experience as an adrenaline rush that took time to fully sink in.
"It's true what everyone says, like I don't know what to say when it first happens. It's just like the adrenaline rush, and it doesn't set in on you till like a week later. I'm glad I did it with the people that I was on the team with. They were a really nice group, and we really had to stick together," Crump said.
Now that Crump has turned 18, he's no longer eligible for the Junior MLP. He's already qualified for the PPA World Championships in November, where he'll compete on the adult side of the sport.
