Browsing: Pickleball News

National Pickleball is part of the Advanced Sports Media Group (ASM) family of websites, which promotes and helps grow amateur athletics in the United States. However, National Pickleball doesn’t just create events; it also sells them. Their National Pickleball Amateur Champions Series is the only series that rewards amateurs for their participation and performance in tournaments. Tournaments Throughout The Year They have tournaments organized throughout the year, with three scheduled for February and March as follows: St. Louis Gateway Classic The St. Louis Gateway Classic Powered By Onix will take place from February 9 to 11 at the Missouri Pickleball…

It was during a particularly stressful part of his life that George Olivencia discovered his passion for pickleball. George is the Chief of Medical Operations for the United States Army at Fort Cavazos in Killeen, Texas, and was undergoing chemotherapy for colorectal cancer when his uncle from New York introduced him to the sport just over two years ago. “What The Heck Is That?” “I said I’d like to try handball indoors because I hadn’t been playing since I was going through chemo,” he told Stephen Hunt of Red Line Editorial for USA Pickleball. “We’re not playing handball, paddleball, or…

The Association of Pickleball Players (APP) has appointed Melissa McCurley, a highly respected and experienced figure in the pickleball community, as the executive vice president of the APP’s competition initiatives. Significant Contributions The APP reports that due to her significant contributions to the sport’s growth and resources over the past decade, McCurley has been praised by APP Founder Ken Herrmann as a leader who played a pivotal role in shaping the organization’s vision since its inception in 2019. Herrmann says, “Melissa is one of the forefront leaders in the pickleball industry, significantly shaping the sport’s growth and resources over the…

The cold, Pennsylvania winters often drive people indoors to continue with their favorite sporting pastimes and a new business on the east side of Erie, Pennsylvania, is looking to take advantage of exactly that. Presque Isle Pickleball has players flocking to its indoor courts on McClelland Avenue. “Snowing Outside, But 70° In Here” Michael Agresti owns the facility alongside his wife, Helen, and told Elspeth Mizner of Erie News Now, “It’s snowing outside, but it’s 70° in here. So all year long, we can provide a place for people of all skill levels to play and we can do it…

Dink Productions has recently revealed their newest project, In a Pickle: A Comedy. With Balls, the first full-length feature film based on the rapidly growing sport of pickleball in the United States. Co-created by Dan Brooks, a former tennis player turned pickleball enthusiast, and Jason Reid, a prominent builder of tennis and pickleball courts in Florida, the film promises to provide audiences with a one-of-a-kind combination of humor, heart, and sportsmanship. Dink Productions is an exciting new production company with several compelling films currently in various stages of development. “In a Pickle” is the first project in Brooks and Reid’s…

The inaugural APP U.S. Collegiate Championships wrapped up at the Grand Park Sports Campus in Westfield, Indiana, on Thursday. It served as a significant national platform for top pickleball players from various colleges like Indiana University, Ole Miss, UCLA, and UConn, among others. A Pioneering Event This pioneering event allocated $50,000 in scholarship funds to the medal winners, culminating in an exhilarating championship final that saw Utah Tech emerge as champions in the team competition. The championship showdown comprised five distinct categories: women’s and men’s singles, women’s and men’s doubles, along with mixed doubles. Utah Tech commenced the action with…

Over 800 people from all over North America are coming to Macon to play in the 2024 USA Pickleball Atlantic South Regional Tournament. Tournament Directors Bill Hess and Jim Young invite you to the tournament, which will be moving to the Macon Mall Pickleball Facility run by Rhythm & Rally. This beautiful new indoor facility features 32 dedicated, well-lit, individually fenced courts. Read all about it in the article we published to cover its inauguration. “Amazing New Facility” “This is a tournament that will expose players from all over the country to your amazing new facility, and I know they’ll…

Pickleball’s journey to becoming a mainstream sport in the US does still have a few bumps in the road: its noise problem and the failed merger between the PPA and MLP to name a couple. The absence of an overall standardized rating system is another inconsistent factor. As the sport has expanded, so too have the tools, resources, and credibility within the professional realm. Various pickleball organizations have crafted distinct rating systems, differing in methodology, numerical scales, and accessibility. A Pivotal Role of Rating Systems As Kelly Campbell reported on the TrackItHub blog, some systems offer deeper insights into player…

If there was any doubt that pickleball is most definitely big business and is very much here to stay, look no further than the runaway success story that is The Picklr. The franchise operator is North America’s fastest-growing indoor pickleball facility and ended 2023 with 154 new locations signed across 23 states. With the locations it signed in 2023, The Picklr believes it will meet the growing demand for indoor pickleball courts by bringing more than 1,800 to the U.S. over the next few years. A Substantial Increase In Revenue In the latter half of 2023, The company experienced a…

Fifty-eight-year-old Eva Welsher is the number one ranked senior female mixed doubles player in the U.S. and spends her winters in Naples, Florida. She was originally drawn to pickleball after her kids left home, and she became an empty nester. A New Outlook On Life Her winter pickleball court has become much more than just a playing surface for Eva – it’s now turned into a community she feels a part of and a place that has given her a new outlook on life. “It was like the light came on again,” she said. “You know, the light came on…