Before Anna Leigh Waters ever picked up a paddle, Simone Jardim was already the player every other woman in pickleball was trying to catch. She held the world’s No. 1 women’s ranking for four straight years, a stretch so dominant it earned her a Guinness World Record and a nickname borrowed from tennis: the “Serena Williams of Pickleball.”

Here’s a closer look at how a Brazilian-born college tennis coach became the sport’s first true female superstar, what she’s doing now, and what we can responsibly say about her net worth.

Early Life and Tennis Career

Simone Jardim was born November 7, 1979, in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. She moved to the United States to play college tennis, starting at Auburn University before transferring to Fresno State, where she earned two All-American honors in women’s doubles and graduated in 2003 with a degree in mass communication and journalism.

Coaching came next, not pickleball. Jardim spent three years as an assistant coach at Fresno State, helping the team to a 58-20 record and three WAC conference titles, then moved into an interim head coaching role at William & Mary in 2008. From 2009 to 2016, she was the head women’s tennis coach at Michigan State University, where one of her players, future pickleball pro Catherine Parenteau, first picked up a paddle under her guidance.

Rise to the Top of Women’s Pickleball

Jardim discovered pickleball around 2015, turned pro that year, and resigned her Michigan State coaching job in May 2016 to move her family to Florida and chase the sport full time. The bet paid off almost immediately.

From 2016 to 2020, Jardim held the world’s No. 1 women’s ranking for five consecutive years — the longest such streak on record, a mark recognized by Guinness World Records. She won the U.S. Open Pickleball Championships women’s singles title four years running (2016-2019), and captured the “triple crown” — singles, women’s doubles, and mixed doubles titles at the same event — in both 2017 and 2018. At her peak she held 32 career PPA Tour titles, a women’s record that stood until 2021.

She kept winning well past her so-called prime, too. Jardim took the U.S. Open women’s doubles title again in 2023 and was named the PPA Tour’s Female Pro Doubles Player of the Year that same season. In 2024, she was inducted into the Pickleball Hall of Fame.

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Age and Playing Style

Jardim is 46 as of this writing and turns 47 on November 7, 2026. She stands 5 feet 8 inches tall, plays right-handed with a two-handed backhand — a carryover from her tennis days — and is known for a punishing fitness regimen that let her outlast opponents a decade younger.

Is Simone Jardim Still Playing Pro Pickleball?

Not on the full PPA Tour schedule she once ran. Jardim talked publicly about retiring after both the 2021 and 2022 seasons, citing burnout, injuries, and the toll of the non-stop tournament calendar — then kept competing selectively, which is how she ended up with a 2023 U.S. Open doubles title and a Player of the Year award. These days her public-facing work is centered on coaching: she is co-founder and co-director of Peak Performance Pickleball Academy in Bonita Springs, Florida, and regularly runs clinics and camps around the country rather than chasing a full pro schedule.

Net Worth and Earnings

There is no official, audited figure for Simone Jardim’s net worth, and any specific dollar amount you see online should be treated as an estimate, not fact. Pickleland’s own earlier roundup of top pro earners put her net worth at roughly $2 million — a figure consistent with what other outlets have floated — but no primary source publishes a verified number, so treat that as a rough estimate rather than confirmed fact.

What’s easier to say with confidence is where her income comes from: nearly a decade of PPA Tour prize money as the sport’s most decorated female player, equipment and apparel endorsements, and a growing coaching business built around her academy, camps, and clinics.

Sponsorships

Jardim’s sponsor history reflects the sport’s own growth. Photos from her PPA Tour prime show her playing in Prince apparel and paddles, and reporting around 2021 also listed Nike and the supplement brand Jigsaw Health among her partners. She was later announced as a JOOLA athlete as the paddle brand expanded its roster of pickleball pros. As with most veteran pros, exact current deals shift year to year, so treat any single brand as a snapshot rather than a permanent affiliation.

Personal Life

Jardim lives in Naples, Florida, with her husband, Chad Edwards, and their two children. She has spoken about balancing training, coaching, and motherhood, and about managing lingering injuries from her playing days with regular physical therapy. Off the court, her public presence is now built mostly around teaching: clinics, camps, and instructional content aimed at the next generation of players rather than her own tournament run.

Simone Jardim’s Legacy

Before DUPR ratings, before Major League Pickleball, before Anna Leigh Waters turned pro at 13, Simone Jardim proved a tennis-caliber athlete could dominate pickleball the way the top names dominate tennis or golf. Her five-year reign at No. 1 set the bar every women’s pro since has been measured against, and her academy is now producing some of the next wave of talent. The “Serena Williams of Pickleball” tag isn’t hype — it’s a reasonably literal description of what she did to the sport’s record books.

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FAQs

How old is Simone Jardim?

Simone Jardim was born November 7, 1979, making her 46 years old as of this writing. She turns 47 on November 7, 2026.

What is Simone Jardim’s net worth?

There’s no verified, official figure. Estimates floated online put it around $2 million, built from PPA Tour prize money, equipment and apparel sponsorships, and coaching income — but no primary source confirms an exact number, so treat any figure as a rough estimate.

Is Simone Jardim married?

Yes. She is married to Chad Edwards, and the couple has two children together. They live in Naples, Florida.

Is Simone Jardim still playing professional pickleball?

Not on a full tour schedule. After talking about retirement following both the 2021 and 2022 seasons, she continued to compete selectively — winning a U.S. Open doubles title in 2023 — and now focuses mainly on coaching through her Peak Performance Pickleball Academy.