For a time, Rodney Grubbs was something of a celebrity in the world of pickleball. At tournaments around the country, Grubbs has been both a competitor and a merchant. He’d play and set up a booth selling game equipment and his own line of branded apparel, Pickleball Rocks. The business made an impression on Sharon Guingrich, “Hey, this is really cool. They’ve got a cool name. The brand is really interesting. They always had new products coming out.”
Guingrich, who lives in Columbus, had become a pickleball devotee. She played the game. She taught the game. She spent weekends traveling to tournaments, crossing paths with Grubbs on multiple occasions. And Grubbs was a charming, talkative guy.
The Sales Pitch:
“I call him Mr. Congeniality. He’s friendly with everyone. Always says, ‘Hello. How you doing?’ And he had the reputation of being a good guy.”,” recalled Guingrich.
Grubbs also had the cachet of being named an ambassador by USA Pickleball. Because of his early advocacy of the game, some thought Grubbs deserved to be in the Pickleball Hall of Fame. So, it was flattering to Guingrich when Grubbs approached her with an opportunity.
“He asked me if I was interested in investing in the company,” said Guingrich. “He said, ‘I had someone else who needs their money back to buy a house and I have a slot open.”
Closing the Deal:
The two met. Grubbs leafed through a three-ring binder, walking Guingrich through his pickleball business plan. Guingrich said Grubbs stressed this was a limited investment opportunity, and if she got in, he wanted her to keep quiet that she had landed one of his slots. Initially, Guingrich invested $25,000. The transaction was a simple promissory note. The return on the investment, 12% interest and she had the option of rolling over the amount to compound the earnings. Guingrich would eventually expand her investment in Grubbs business to $75,000.
Source: https://fox59.com/investigations/pickleball-swindler-duped-investors-out-of-millions-of-dollars/