2018 NIT Mixed Doubles Tourney Champions, 4.0+ Division David Zapatka The 6th Annual Norris Invitational Pickleball Tournament, the NIT, Sun Lakes’ largest pickleball tournament of the year, returns this month, March 4-8. The NIT namesake is Dick and Maureen Norris who worked so hard on behalf of the pickleball community to have a place for…
‘Pickleball Rocks’ founder, Rodney ‘Rocket’ Grubbs David Zapatka Have you seen those really cool-looking pickleball shirts that say, “Pickleball Rocks, Let’s Play,” on them? You probably have and if you haven’t, you will likely see one soon. They’re the marketing genius of Rodney “Rocket” Grubbs of Brookville, Indiana. Here’s his story. In 2008, Rocket was…
Pickleball roundup Janice Golden, Sun Lakes, and Jamie Noblit, Sun Lakes, won gold in the Pickleball Roundup, Sun City, ladies doubles 4.5. Mixed Doubles 5.0 Janice Golden, Sun Lakes, and Doug Kelton, Phoenix, won the gold medal in the mixed doubles 5.0 at the Pickleball Roundup Tournament, Sun City. Mixed Doubles 65 4.0 Larry…
Promoting pickleball to hundreds of Chinese sports enthusiasts David Zapatka Yangzhou China – Dear friend, fellow pickleball player and International Federation of Pickleball (IFP) board member Carolyn Stevens presented pickleball to hundreds of urban department leaders, entrepreneurs and industry elite at the 2018 Chinese World Sporting Events & Tourism (WSET) Summit. The IFP was…
National Championship has record attendance David Zapatka Indian Wells Tennis Garden, Indian Wells, CA. The Margaritaville USA Pickleball National Championships were held November 3-11. Many Sun Lakes residents attended as participants and spectators. A record 2200+ participants from around the country and world played nearly 5,000 matches. $75,000 in prize money was the highest in…
David Zapatka The Bainbridge Cup, similar to the Ryder Cup and Solheim Cup in golf, was held in conjunction with the Italian Open in Montesilvano, Italy, in July. One hundred fifty players from 16 countries participated in the tournaments. USAPA board member and friend Pat Murphy was responsible for setting up 188 matches so…
David Zapatka The USAPA National Tournament scheduled for November 3–11 is just a month away. The Indian Wells Tennis Garden near Palm Springs, CA, is hosting our national tournament for the next five seasons. They are providing 40 fully-painted, cushioned, Plexipave courts and one beautiful stadium court. The buzz in the pickleball community has…
David Zapatka Last month, we answered questions from reader, friend and Cottonwood Pickleball President Irene D’Alosio. Since these questions were on the minds of many Sun Lakes residents, we’re continuing to answer her questions about balls this month. People have been under the impression that the USAPA/IFP list of approved balls is all “quiet” balls.…
David Zapatka, USAPA rating committee member Reader, friend and Cottonwood Pickleball President Irene D’Alosio asked questions about balls, paddles and club policies. Since these questions seem to be on the minds of many Sun Lakes residents, I’m sharing them with our Relishing Pickleball audience. Many people have been under the impression that the USAPA/IFP…
David Zapatka, USAPA rating committee member The USAPA has launched its official tournament rating system powered by PickleballTournaments.com. The new rating system will benefit pickleball tournament directors and competitive players, enhancing the sport’s growth and development. Tournament directors will be able to create optimally balanced brackets for all their events, and tournament players will…