Tennis Channel Founder Steve Bellamy Launches New Racket Sport TYPTI

From tennis to pickleball to padel, racket sports have been the talk of the sports industry over the past few years. Now, there’s a new racket sport to add to the conversation thanks to Tennis Channel founder Steve Bellamy with the fun and competitive TYPTI.

A mixture between badminton and tennis, TYPTI is played with 22-inch strung rackets and a channeled foam ball to create a nearly noiseless game. What makes it truly unique is that it’s easy for beginners from the first ball strike, and extremely competitive and chess-like for the pros.

One of the biggest challenges for new sports is the slow rollout due to funding, logistics and limited infrastructure. That isn’t the case with TYPTI. Bellamy is launching immediately with an all-skill level national competitive play circuit that will begin with the first event on February 25 at the Calabasas Pickleball Club with the professional division guaranteeing over $100,000 in total prize money.

When all is said and done with year one, at least $500,000 of prize money will be awarded during the tournament circuit. The following year will have even more prize money at over $1,000,000 total.

“We’re creating an infrastructure of tennis and pickleball clubs, entrepreneurs, family offices, racquet sport mavens and lovers, and cities who understand the economic impact of participatory sports,” Bellamy said. “We’re sanctioning tournaments and league teams, and looking for brands wanting to leverage sports to market their products. We’re also scouring the country for amazing players who can be the first generation of TYPTI stars. Basically, we’re building a really smart racquet sport and creating a community for the infrastructure.”

To support this competitive infrastructure from day one, TYPTI has partnered with the Racquet Sports Professional Association and Intercollegiate Tennis Association to ensure the sport spreads at all levels of competition.

“The initial response to TYPTI is VERY positive,” said Brian Dillman, RSPA CEO. "We hosted an introduction to TYPTI in Hawaii and then had a webinar to talk in more detail and our members were captivated. The connection to tennis, additional utilization for pickleball courts, reduced noise and the organization's tenacity will entice many people to play. We have partnered with TYPTI and will be working to help market the sport and develop coaching models exclusive to RSPA members."

The key to TYPTI’s success at launch is a strong group of strategic investors, including Tony Robbins, Drew Brees, Chris Pine, JJ Abrams, Bert Kreischer, Tiffany Haddish, Heather Mills, Kyle MacLachlan, Melissa Rivers, Giovanni Ribisi, Kenny Moore, Jen Prince, Nick Kyrgios, Milos Raonic, Prakash Amritraj, JT Mollner, Gil Henry, David Flaherty, Desiree Gruber, Andrew Segal, Barry Allen and Tony Pritzker.

While there is strong competition in the racket sports space, Bellamy seems to be on the right path for a blockbuster success. He’s created a fun sport for both players and spectators with a group of jaw-dropping investors and key strategic partnerships. It will be interesting to see how year one develops as the sport looks to begin driving mass awareness.

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