If you have a LevelUp Pickleball Camp on your calendar, or you were about to book one for 2027, the company running it just changed hands. On November 5, Selkirk Sport, the paddle maker, announced it “has acquired” LevelUp Pickleball Camps. The terms were not disclosed.
The trade press covered the deal as a business story. This one is for campers: what Selkirk says will stay the same, what the announcement leaves open, and what you can check for yourself before you book.
Disclosure: Pickleball Union sells pickleball getaways with coaching through a travel partner. Those trips compete with camps like these.
What Selkirk says stays the same
According to Selkirk’s announcement:
- Campers keep the more than 30 professional coaches and the camp formats they know.
- The Dollard family, who started LevelUp in 2016, stays on as head pros.
- The 2027 camp calendar is set, and it includes new international destination camps.
“Camps are where players get better fastest,” said Mike Barnes, Selkirk’s co-founder and co-CEO. LevelUp founder Wayne Dollard said, “We started LevelUp to give players the kind of camp we always wanted to attend,” and that joining Selkirk gives the camps “the resources to grow.”
The release says LevelUp runs more than 400 camps a year in more than 35 states and has coached about 25,000 players, and it calls Selkirk and LevelUp together “the largest provider of pickleball camps in the world.” Those are the company’s own numbers. LevelUp’s website still says “200+ camps across 35 states.”
What the announcement doesn’t say
Four things a camper would want to know are not in the release:
- Whether existing bookings and refund terms change
- Whether prices change
- Whether the LevelUp name stays
- Which paddles will be used or promoted at camps
None of that means anything bad is coming. It means the answers aren’t public yet.
What you can check today
We read LevelUp’s and Selkirk Academy’s own websites on November 10, 2026. Both can change without notice, so treat this as a snapshot.
LevelUp’s site doesn’t mention the deal yet. Selkirk doesn’t appear on its home page, FAQ, camp list, shop or terms.
Camps and prices. LevelUp listed 72 camps running from November 7 to 8, 2026 through February 9 to 10, 2027, all in the U.S. (Arizona, Florida, California, Pennsylvania, Nevada and Utah). Two-day camps were priced from $595 to $699, and four were marked sold out. No international camps were listed yet. For comparison, LevelUp’s two-day Sarasota camp was $595 when we covered it in 2023.
Two camp brands, two refund policies. LevelUp is joining Selkirk Academy, Selkirk’s own camp program, which started in 2026. Their posted cancellation terms are different:
| If you cancel | LevelUp (posted 2026 policy) | Selkirk Academy (posted terms) |
|---|---|---|
| Well in advance | 7 or more days out: 50% refund or 75% camp credit | 60 or more days out: 100% cash refund |
| In between | Same as above | 10 to 60 days out: 50% cash refund or 75% voucher |
| Close to camp | Within 6 days: 50% camp credit | Under 10 days: no cash refund; a 50% voucher at Selkirk’s discretion |
| If the camp is canceled | Credit held until the camp is rescheduled within 12 months; full refund if you can’t make the new date | Full refund |
The short version: at LevelUp, the most cash you can get back is half, however early you cancel. At Selkirk Academy you can get all of it back if you cancel 60 days ahead, and nothing in cash inside 10 days. Selkirk Academy also lets you transfer your spot to another player up to a week before camp. Which set of terms applies to LevelUp camps going forward is the question to ask.
What a camp looks like. Both run an 8-to-1 student-to-coach ratio. LevelUp camps are two days with six hours of instruction a day and video analysis, for players rated 2.0 to 4.5. Selkirk Academy camps run one to two days, are listed for players rated 3.0 to 4.0, and include lunches, AI video analysis and coaches certified by Pickleball Coaching International.
The paddles. LevelUp’s online shop lists paddles from Paddletek, Engage, Diadem, JOOLA and CRBN, and no Selkirk. Selkirk Academy camps include a welcome gift of Selkirk gear it values at more than $150 and a “Demo Paddle Fleet” of Selkirk paddles on court. Its FAQ says you’re welcome to bring your own paddle.
If you’re already booked
Nothing in the announcement changes your booking. LevelUp’s posted 2026 policy, as of November 10:
- Cancel 7 or more days before camp: 50% refund or 75% future camp credit.
- Cancel within 6 days: 50% future camp credit.
- Camp credits must be used within one year of the original camp date.
- Bad weather that leaves fewer than 10 on-court hours: 50% refund.
- The policy doesn’t cover international camps, which list their own terms.
Keep your confirmation email, and save a copy of the policy page as it reads today.
Four questions to ask before you book a 2027 camp
- Do my refund and credit terms stay the LevelUp terms, or switch to Selkirk Academy’s?
- Will prices change for 2027?
- Will the camp keep the LevelUp name and the coaches listed for it?
- Will campers be required, or steered, to use Selkirk paddles?
Why a paddle company wants to run camps
Camps are where players spend two days with a coach, try new equipment and pick up habits. Racket Business, a trade publication, framed the deal as an equipment brand moving into coaching, and said Selkirk will need to keep coaching advice separate from sales recommendations.
Our own data shows why the court matters to a paddle brand. In the 2026 Paddle Consumer Report, friends and playing partners were the top research source for a next paddle (30%, n=1,052), and 8% of players bought their current paddle through a coach or brand rep (n=1,070). Both are from the August 2026 wave. A camp puts a brand’s paddles in players’ hands right where those decisions start.
Selkirk’s 2026 so far
- March 17: launches Selkirk Academy
- May 12: acquires Bread & Butter Pickleball Company
- September 10: names Doug Thielen president and chief marketing officer
- November 5: acquires LevelUp Pickleball Camps
For more on the people behind the company, see how the Barnes brothers built Selkirk.
Sources
- Selkirk Sport, “Selkirk Sport Acquires LevelUp Pickleball Camps”, press release via Outdoor Sportswire, November 5, 2026
- LevelUp Pickleball Camps: camp list, FAQ and cancellation policy and shop, read November 10, 2026
- Selkirk Academy FAQ and terms, read November 10, 2026
- Racket Business, “Selkirk Buys LevelUp: Why Coaching Is Becoming a Bigger Business”, November 7, 2026
