Raymond H. Goettsch On March 15 through 17, more than 148 members of the SaddleBrooke Pickleball Association (SPA) played in the second annual Dinking in the Desert intramural tournament. The tournament was for men’s doubles on March 15, women’s doubles on March 16, and mixed doubles on March 17. Due to the weather, the men’s…
SPA Members Volunteer for Edwin Road Trash Removal Raymond H. Goettsch On Feb. 17 SaddleBrooke Pickleball Association (SPA) members volunteered to remove debris and trash from the sides of Edwin Road. SPA Board President Terry Jackson supervised the semi-annual clean-up project. SPA’s Ladies APPL Team Victorious Nancy Dowell A hard-fought pickleball match took place at…
Raymond H. Goettsch The four teams fielded by SaddleBrooke Pickleball Association (SPA) to compete in the Arizona Pickleball Players League (APPL) have completed their regular season play, and three teams advanced to state play. The Tire Biters team (men’s 3.0 65+) finished its season with three wins, four losses, and one tie. The only opponent…
Raymond H. Goettsch Pickleball play at the Ed Robson Pickleball Center is now on television. SaddleBrooke Pickleball Association (SPA) has installed a 43-inch television monitor in the Michael and Shirley Hovan Ramada. The monitor lists the daily schedule for the forms of play, court by court, from 7 a.m. through 5 p.m.: drop-in play, round-robin…
Raymond H. Goettsch Last summer, SaddleBrooke Pickleball Association (SPA) member Jeanie Medema noticed that the potted live plants decorating the Ed Robson Pickleball Center were dying. As an instructor in ceramics, Jeanie thought that ceramic plants could replace the dying plants. She made the proposal to the SPA Board, and the board agreed. Jeanie created…
Raymond H. Goettsch The four teams fielded by SaddleBrooke Pickleball Association, Inc., have begun competing in matches in the Arizona Pickleball Players League. The Flying Burrito Brothers team (3.5 65+ men) defeated the Ranch Wranglers2 team from SaddleBrooke Ranch by a score of 30 points to 15 points on Jan. 2. On Jan. 3 the…
Raymond H. Goettsch SaddleBrooke Pickleball Association, Inc. (SPA) has fielded four teams to compete in the Arizona Pickleball Players League for this season. The teams’ match schedules have now been set. “H” refers to a home match at the Ed Robson Pickleball Center, and “A” refers to an away match. Flying Burrito Brothers (men’s 3.5…
Raymond H. Goettsch Members of the SaddleBrooke Pickleball Association, Inc. (SPA), will have a rematch against members of the SaddleBrooke Ranch Pickleball Association (SRPA) on Oct. 20–22. This now annual tournament has been named The Battle for the Saddle and will be held this year at the Ed Robson Pickleball Center in SaddleBrooke. In the…
Raymond H. Goettsch This is the time of year when pickleball players make suggestions for rule changes to USA Pickleball for 2024. Approximately 100 proposed changes can be found on rules.usapickleball.org/entry, and comments can be made regarding these proposed changes. Probably the most important proposed change is to make the volley serve illegal and the…
Shot Selection David Zapatka Continuing our study of Pickleball Fundamentals Master the basics and compete with confidence by Mary Littlewood, it is time now to learn about shot selection. Mary Littlewood says the ideal sequence of shots provides a means for all four players to get to the net where pickleball is won and lost…