Browsing: Pickleball News

The upcoming 2024 U.S. Collegiate Championships at the Grand Park Sports Campus in Westfield, Indiana, will mark the year’s inaugural APP signature event. This unique competition invites college students to represent their universities individually or as a team, engaging in singles, doubles, and mixed doubles matches, all vying for a substantial $50,000 prize purse. A Round-Robin Format The team event offers a prize pool of $32,500, distributed among the top placements. The structure involves a round-robin format, including playoffs, where teams will compete for different tiers of prize money ranging from $12,000 for first place to $1,000 for 9th -…

Over the past five years, the Northbrook Park District in the Chicago suburbs has seen a remarkable upswing in pickleball participation.  Meri Shea, Athletics Manager, notes the swift demand, often leading to swift program fill-ups upon registration opening. She loves this development, saying, “It’s been great to see such interest in this sport.” Escalating Interest In response to this escalating interest, the district is expanding its pickleball offerings indoors and outdoors. Currently, Stonegate Park hosts six dedicated outdoor courts, with additional courts underway at Oaklane Park and others scheduled for construction at Williamsburg Square Park by 2024. The expansion also…

It’s wild to think that last weekend’s Hertz Gold Cup, hosted in Daytona, Florida, was the last major event for the PPA Tour’s 2023 season before the PPA Finals at the end of the month! It’s been an incredible year for pro pickleball – we’ve witnessed its many ups and downs, but ultimately, it has seen a tremendous amount of growth alongside the sport’s rise in popularity. Being the last event that awarded points for the PPA Tour Finals Race, the Hertz Gold Cup had the potential to be pivotal for many players on the cusp of qualifying for the…

Pickleball is exploding in popularity across Arizona, and courts are sprouting up everywhere, from quaint Pinetop to some of the more luxurious resorts in the area. The Arizona Pickleball Players League (APPL) exemplifies this incredible growth.  Unique Format Founded in 2012 by Greg Mather as the East Valley Interclub League, The APPL now serves four main regions across Arizona during winter: West Valley, East Valley, Casa Grande, and Southern. A fifth region, White Mountain, is northeast of the Phoenix metropolitan area and offers summer play because of its location in the cooler northeast highlands. With over 4,700 excited players logging…

Heidi Kleinrichert and Natasha Nuerge have played together as a double team for around two years. Their approach is simple: “Maintaining the fun factor in this sport is crucial,” Kleinrichert, a Fort Wayne-based real estate agent, told Stephen Hunt of Red Line Editorial. “Having had our fair share of intense tennis matches, we made a pact to keep it light here.” A Unique Journey Competing as a doubles team at the 2023 Biofreeze USA Pickleball National Championships at Brookhaven Country Club in Farmers Branch, Texas, these two accomplished players, Kleinrichert and Nuerge, share a unique journey. Their paths, like so…

Selkirk’s pickleball recent announcement of its endorsement with prominent tennis ace turned pickleballer Jack Sock certainly turned a few heads. The Idaho-based company is certainly high profile, with its name appearing everywhere in the sport, from paddles and balls to podcasts and sponsorship agreements. In The Grand Scheme Of Things However, in the grand scheme of things, there are bigger names about at the moment, although not for long if the two homeschool brothers who own the company have anything to do with it! “They’re one of the top performance brands in the sport,” said PickleballCentral.com’s John Cowley. “I’ve been…

Cierra Gaytan-Leach has had a remarkable year. Beginning with her participation in Major League Pickleball’s inaugural Season One event in Mesa, Arizona, she then took time off for the birth of her first child in June. Remarkably, by September, she was back on the court and was justly recognized with the 2023 Biofreeze Bounce Back Player Award in early November. “I Feel Honored” Gaytan-Leach expressed her surprise and gratitude for the award, telling Stephen Hunt of Red Line Editorial, “I was definitely not expecting that. I feel honored to have won that, and I’m just happy to be playing competitive…

Last week, current and former New England Patriots players engaged in a round of pickleball alongside members of the Massachusetts National Guard. This activity was part of the NFL’s ongoing Salute to Service month, which recognizes and honors veterans, active-duty service personnel, and their families. Getting A Huge Kick Out Of The Occasion The event, held at the Kingsbury Club in Medfield, saw the participation of 60 service members. Reflecting on the experience, some of the attendees talked about the huge kick they were getting in mingling with football stars. Tech Sgt. Hannah Misiuk remarked, “I’ve been a very big…

Major League Pickleball Australia has just crowned The Brisbane Breakers as its Season One champion amidst exciting announcements about its plans for 2024. The season culminated in Melbourne, hosting a milestone finale boasting a staggering AUS$70,000 prize pool (about US$45,500). Wins In Brisbane And Melbourne The Brisbane Breakers secured wins in the Pacific Pro Brisbane and Pacific Pro Melbourne tournaments to take the overall title.  Following closely were the Gold Coast Glory in second place, the Sydney Smash landing third despite a hometown win at the Pacific Pro Sydney, and the Melbourne Mavericks taking fourth position. This marks the conclusion…

A curious set of circumstances turned Jack Munro, AKA Jr. Mint, onto the sport of pickleball. Following a baseball injury, 10-year-old Jack Munro needed something a little less high-impact, and that was it. He was hooked. His amusing turn of phrase shows just how much it meant to him: “As soon as I got the sling off, I said, ‘Screw baseball, I just want to keep playing this,’” he said. “I’m ambidextrous just because I played in that sling for a bit.” The Youngest 5.0 Player By 13, Munro had become the youngest 5.0 pickleball player, a significant achievement at…