From Headlines To Pickleball: Frankie Sharpe’s Journey From Journalism To The Courts

Hawaii Pickleball Player Spotlight: Frankie Sharpe

From Headlines to Dinks: A Journalist’s Pickleball Passion

Kapalua—Just minutes from the courts at the Kapalua Tennis Garden, you'll find Frankie Sharpe—an avid pickleball player who has worn many hats; writer, editor, investigator, and now, pickleball addict. With her long career at top magazines and newspapers, and a front-row seat to one of the wildest crime stories in Los Angeles history, her journey to Maui and the pickleball courts is as compelling as the stories she’s spent her career uncovering.

From her early tennis days in Huntington Beach to ghostwriting over 25 books on health and wellness, she now plays pickleball daily. And while she’s racking up medals on the courts, her biggest goal is to stay injury-free so she can keep playing well into her 90s!

Frankie is proof that pickleball isn’t just a game—it’s a lifestyle, a community, and even a source of healing after life-changing events.

Having called both Pacific Palisades and Maui home, she’s experienced the heartbreak of seeing communities she loves devastated by wildfires. But in Lahaina, she’s also witnessed resilience—the strength of neighbors coming together, rebuilding, and finding moments of joy (including playing pickleball together) even in the midst of loss. That same hope carries her forward, a reminder that even in the hardest times, community and connection—on and off the court—can help light the way.

Without further ado, please meet Frankie Sharpe!

Frankie (L) on the winner’s podium after winning Gold in 3.0 Women’s Singles 50+ at the PPA CIBC “The Finals” in December 2024, and (R) with PB friends, pictured in the center

Name: Frankie or Frances?

My real name is Frances, but I go by Frankie. One of the people at pickleball started calling me “Frankie” and it stuck. Now everyone calls me that, and I love it. 

Currently residing in:

I live in Kapalua about 2 minutes from the pickleball courts at the Kapalua Tennis Garden and about 10 miles north of Lahaina.

Where did you grow up and what high school did you go to?

I grew up in Huntington Beach, California, when it was just a sleepy beach town.

I’m kind of a supernerd and overachiever and at Marina High School, I was on the tennis team, student council, and worked on our high school newspaper.

I went to UCLA for undergrad and NYU for grad school. The NYU program was in Paris, so I got the chance to live in France for about three years. Ooh la la!

What do you do outside of pickleball (hobbies, work, school, etc)?

I’ve had a long career as a writer and editor at several magazines and newspapers.

I’ve also ghostwritten over 25 books—mostly on health and wellness. Currently, I work remotely for a world-renowned psychiatrist and brain health expert named Dr. Daniel Amen who believes that mental health is really brain health.

Through his clinics nationwide (not in Hawaii yet), bestselling books, social media (@doc_amen on Instagram), and Change Your Brain Every Day podcast (available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, etc.), he’s changing the way people think about mental health and destigmatizing it. I’m really grateful to work with someone who is transforming people’s lives for the better. Here’s a blog we posted on 7 Surprising Ways Pickleball Benefits Your Brain. Bottom line: better brain, better life!

Since I spend my days writing about brain health and mental wellness, I TRY to lead a healthy life—staying active (weightlifting, yoga, hiking), eating right (for the most part—still can’t resist a chocolate chip cookie!), socializing (lots of dinners with friends), and keeping my brain active (reading, games, trivia night with friends).

Frankie (third from right) with MFD firefighters from Station #11 (Napili)

You were the editor of your local newspaper in Pacific Palisades, CA, as well as for various magazines. What is the most interesting story you’ve covered?

OMG, I covered the CRAZIEST story while I was editor of the Palisadian-Post newspaper.

The police found a decomposing body in an SUV and when they went into the guy’s condo, they found 1,200 firearms, six tons of ammunition, and hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash! His “fiancée” told police that the man, Jeffrey Alan Lash, ran an undercover black ops company and went on international missions to fight terrorism.

Then she revealed a bombshell—Lash also happened to be a “human-alien hybrid.” What the heck?!?!?!?

My team at the Post covered the story, and it made headline news around the world. We eventually broke the real story of how Lash got all those guns and all that cash—he had seduced multiple wealthy women across the LA area and coerced them into giving him millions of dollars to support his “mission.”

I teamed up with one of those women to investigate, and we uncovered a sensational story of lies, deception, and intrigue. We’ve written a book about it that’s already been optioned for a TV series and are in the process of looking for a publisher. You can check out the wild story about our investigation in this article in the Hollywood Reporter. Seriously, it’s stranger than fiction! (Side note: the Hollywood Reporter story is soooo interesting and Frankie is cited throughout the article!)

What brought you to Maui?

My husband Wil and I have been coming to Maui for over 25 years—Wil playing beach volleyball in Kaanapali, and me playing tennis at the Kapalua Tennis Garden. We knew that someday we wanted to live here full-time, and when the pandemic hit, we decided we didn’t want to wait anymore.

So, we sold our house in 2021 and bought a place in Kapalua—best decision EVER!

Frankie with her hubby, Wil

How did you discover pickleball and when did you start playing?

I was playing tennis and one of the guys who works at the Kapalua Tennis Garden suggested I try pickleball.

I remember telling him, “Pickleball is just for people who don’t know how to play tennis.” I know, totally snobby—haha! Anyway, he convinced me to give it a try, and I liked it… and then I loved it!

That was April 2021 and now, I’m a full-fledged pickleball addict and rarely touch a tennis racquet anymore.

What do you love most about pickleball?

I really love how fast it is. Give me a great hand battle any day!

Even more than that, I love how social it is. Our pickleball ohana is the best! You couldn’t ask for a wackier group of fun-loving people. We have lots of pickleball parties and events for the holidays where we all get dressed up in costumes and do a potluck dinner.

Plus, we get visitors from all over the country (and the world), so we get to play with new people all the time and make new friends. I must have hundreds of people in my contacts with the last name “Pickleball.”

What paddle are you playing with?

Lately I’ve been playing with the Six Zero Double Black Infinity, but I also have a Joola Ben Johns Perseus CFS 14mm.

How often do you play?

I play every day for about 2-3 hours. I start work early morning and when I finish, I like to say that it’s time for “recess.”

What is the next goal you’re working toward (in pickleball or otherwise)?

Skillwise, I’m always working on something—deeper drives, better drops, harder serves. But honestly, at my age—I’m 62—my main goal is to stay injury-free so I can keep playing this amazing sport until I’m in my 90s!

That means cross-training and LOTS of stretching before and after games.

Anything else on your mind?

I’ve played in a few tourneys here on Maui.

At the Kapalua Labor Day tourney, we got Gold in mixed doubles 4.0/4.5/5.0—mostly cuz my partner is waaaay better than I am and he covers 85% of the court haha—and Silver in ladies dubs 4.0.

I’d like to try some neighbor island events too. I recently played singles in my first PPA tournament in California and it was soooo much fun!

In January, my hubby and I went to Australia for a PPA International tournament where we got to watch the pros play!

Any last parting words?

Since we live so close to Lahaina, we have many friends who are Kapalua Tennis Garden members or who work there who lost everything in the devastating fire on Aug. 8, 2023. We all pulled together and did as much as possible to support them—outfitting people with new pickleball paddles, clothes, gear, and more.

I have to say, one bright spot to come out of the aftermath of the catastrophic fire is that the Kapalua Tennis Garden opened play to non-members at no charge for several months, so a lot of fire survivors who used to play exclusively at the Civic Center in Lahaina started playing at our club.

What a gift to expand our ohana with such awesome new friends and to be a place where people who had experienced such profound loss could enjoy moments of pure happiness playing pickleball.

Who knew pickleball could be so healing?