Hillsborough County Indoor Pickleball Championships

Submitted by Russell Elefterion

USAPA Ambassador, Tampa, FL

Thank you for participating in last year's inaugural Hillsborough County Indoor Pickleball Championships at All People's Life Center.  I want to invite you and all your pickleball friends to this year's tournament being held on Thursday, April 10th and Friday, April 11th, 2014  at the same site (All People's Life Center-6105 E. Sligh Ave-Tampa).

This year's tournament will include the following improvements based on player evaluations:

Sanctioned Tier-4 USAPA Tournament

Dry-fit tournament shirts to all first place winners (Of course all players will receive t-shirts)

Ability levels from 2.5-3.0, 3.5-4.0 and 4.5-5.0

USAPA Pre-Certified Officials (A first for any tournament in the USA)!!!!

All Proceeds benefiting the "Strongdogs" - Men's USA Wheelchair Basketball Team!

Sponsorship by Hillsborough County "Friends of the County Parks"

Round Robin Games to 11 points!!! (which means you'll play at least 4-6 teams)!!!

Metals & Awards 1st-3rd place in each division

Last year's tournament had 114 players participating and we hope to have even more playing this year!  Play will be:

Thursday 9am-12noon   Women's Doubles

Thursday 1pm-4pm         Men's Doubles

Friday       9am-2pm         Mixed Doubles

Attached is our Flier and Registration form.  If you have any questions simply email me back!

Happy Pickling!

Russell Elefterion

Program Specialist-Seniors

Parks, Recreation & Conservation

Hillsborough County BOCC

p: 813.264.8541   f: 813-269.1364

e: elefterionr@hillsboroughcounty.org

w: http://www.hillsboroughcounty.org/parks

Tournament Flyer

Registration Form

In a pickle - tourney starts Thursday

February 7, 2014 - www.thedestinlog.com

 

The City of Destin will be hosting a Destin Pickleball Classic at the Destin Community Center on Feb. 13-15 for adults age 50 and older.

Games start at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday for Women’s Doubles and 11:30 a.m. on Friday for Mixed Doubles and Men’s Doubles.

CLICK HERE to read more.

 

Pickleball comes to Miami Beach — and you don’t need pickles to play!

February 7, 2014 - www.miamiherald.com

Meet a group of ladies who stay out of the kitchen — at least when they’re playing pickleball.

You read that right: pickleball. It’s a sport that’s gaining popularity from Seattle to Mumbai, despite its name and rules.

Rena Rosenfeld will forgive you if you’ve never heard of pickleball. And then, she’ll recruit you to play. Rosenfeld is on a mission to bring the sport to Miami Beach, which may mark the first time pickleball breaks into Miami-Dade County.

CLICK HERE to read more.

The Players Pickleball Tournament @ Stonecrest, Summerfield, FL

 The Players Pickleball Tournament @ Stonecrest will be held March 7,8, and 9 at the Stonecrest Community in Summerfield, Florida.  It is a skill/age tournament.  Men and Women's singles will be on Friday, March 7.  Men and Women's Doubles will be on Saturday, March 8 and Mixed Doubles will be held on Sunday, March 9. 

 

Registrations must be postmarked by Saturday, February 22 and on-line registration will close on Wednesday, February 26, 2014.  The link for the on-line registration is:  http://www.active.com/event_detail.cfm?event_id=2121300. 

 

We hope to see you there!

 

Cindy Eddleman

Nancy Meyer

 

Tournament Directors

Pickleball in Saga Bay in the Town of Cutler Bay

Submitted by Mitchell Ball, Ambassador, South Florida

Pickleball has finally made it down to Miami, Florida to the Town of Cutler Bay, Florida. Saga Bay Park of Cutler Bay is hosting the 1st Miami location of Pickleball Demo/Clinic in history of Miami-Dade. The location is also hosting the Cutler Bay Senior Games for Pickleball from March 17-22, 2014.

The Pickleball Demo/Clinic will be on Saturday February 22, 2014 at 8 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. on the multipurpose tennis courts for Pickleball. Pickleball is a combination of three sports (tennis, ping pong and badminton). Actually it is the fastest growing adult sport in the country today. It has over 250,000 members and is growing weekly.

Come learn what Pickleball is all about!
· Rules
· Forehand
· Backhand
· Serve
· Strategies

For more info about the Pickleball Demo/Clinic call Mitchell Ball at 786-259-4711.

Pickleball Senior Games
March 18th, 2014
Pickleball – Singles &; Doubles, 9:30 AM
Location: Saga Bay Park

CLICK HERE for Senior Games Registration.

CLICK HERE for Senior Games Flyer.

CLICK HERE for Rules and Schedule.

Pickleball tourney on tap

www.highlandstoday.com Feb. 7, 2014, Sebring, FL

More than 100 pickleball players from south Central Florida are expected to be at Tanglewood for the second annual Winter Classic on Feb. 15-16.

The tournament is sponsored by Edward Jones/Alan J. Holmes.

There will be men's, women's and mixed doubles competitions with players grouped according to ability levels within age groupings.

Ratings go from a relative beginner at 2.5 to an extremely skilled player at level 5.0.

At the 2.5 and 3.0 skill levels, there will be just two age groups; 35 to 64 and over 65.

At levels 3.5, 4.0 and 4.5 the competition will be broken into three divisions; 35-49, 50-64 and 65+. At the 5.0 level the youngest age category will be from 19 to 49 years of age.

The $35 registration fee covers all games and a T-shirt.

- See more at: http://highlandstoday.com/pickleball-tourney-on-tap-20140207/#sthash.dWznKfBm.dpuf

Pickleball Tournament at Sanibel Recreation Center

February 6, 2014, www.island-reporter.com

 Sanibel, FL

Join us on Friday, Feb. 14 or 28 at 11:30 a.m. for the Healthy Heart Month Pickleball Tournament. This event is open to all players 18 years of age and over. To participate please pick up a registration form at the Sanibel Recreation Center to complete and return by Wednesday, Feb. 12.

Can't make the tournament or want to learn how to play pickleball? Come out to the recreation center on Wednesdays from 5-7 p.m. or Saturdays from 1-3 p.m. for pickup pickleball. All skill levels are welcome. Non-skid, closed-toe shoes are required. This activity is for ages 14 and up. The cost of this program is included with your daily, weekly, six-month or annual Sanibel Recreation Center membership. Day pass is required for non-members.

For more information, contact the Sanibel Recreation Center.

The Sanibel Recreation Center is located at 3880 Sanibel-Captiva Road. Daily, weekly and annual memberships are available. For more information call the Sanibel Recreation Center at 472-0345 or visit our web site at mysanibel.com.

- See more at: http://www.island-reporter.com/page/content.detail/id/523250/Pickleball-Tournament-at-Sanibel-Recreation-Center.html?nav=5053#sthash.irmEysJg.dpuf

Online Registration Open Now for Cypress Cove Tournament

Submitted by Mike Sullivan

Kissimmee, FL (February 5, 2014) -- Registration for all players is now open for the First Annual Cypress Cove International Nudist Pickleball Open, being held March 1-2, 2014 here in Kissimmee at Cypress Cove Nudist Resort and Spa.

Made possible by the recent re-purposing of one tennis court into four dedicated, regulation Pickleball courts, this new tournament will be the sixth annual spring event for Pickleball players held at the Cove since the game took hold in 2008. With the growth in participation at prior tournaments, the event is expanding from one day to two, with a full day of preliminary qualification play on Saturday, March 1, followed by the double-elimination finals on Sunday, March 2.

Pickleball players coming in for the tournament can make a great weekend of it at Cypress Cove. Besides the two days of exciting play, other events centered around the tournament include a cocktail reception, dinner and dance at Lakeside Restaurant on Saturday night, and post-tournament pool parties both Saturday and Sunday afternoons after the action ends on the courts.

Cypress Cove owner Ted Hadley said, “It’s been amazing to watch the growth of Pickleball here at Cypress Cove, from nothing in 2008 to many, many enthusiastic players year-round now. With our new courts and the expansion of this new 2-day spring tournament, we plan to make Cypress Cove the world’s premier destination for nudist Pickleball players!”

“Many Cypress Cove visitors discover Pickleball for the first time when they see us playing every day of the week,” said Mike Sullivan, a Cypress Cove resident and an avid player, and the director of the new tournament. "We encourage them to give it a try, since it’s so quick to learn and easy to play, and they soon become ‘hooked’ on the game. Virtually everyone who tries it loves it, which is why the sport is growing so fast here and everywhere it is introduced.”

“The new 2-day tournament at Cypress Cove this spring will be the biggest-ever Pickleball event at any nudist resort anywhere in the world,” Sullivan said. “We expect dozens of players from around the region and from as far away as Europe to compete and enjoy a delightful weekend of great Pickleball competition at the resort."

Pickleball is played every day of the week at Cypress Cove. Annual tournaments have been held every year since 2008, most recently attracting four dozen competitors in March, 2013. The newly-expanded courts, with capacity to accommodate 30 games per hour, make it possible to host a much larger number of tournament players and still have plenty of time later in the afternoon for relaxing by the pool, sunning and enjoying all the other outstanding amenities Cypress Cove has to offer.

Tournament registration is open now to players from intermediate skill levels and up. For complete details, see the tournament website at https://sites.google.com/site/ccinpo

For more information on Pickleball at Cypress Cove, write to pickleball@me.com or click the Pickleball link on the Cypress Cove home page at www.cypresscoveresort.com.