Andrea Molberg
Dave Weinbach, current men’s doubles pickleball champion in the U.S. Open and USAPA National tournaments, conducted a group pickleball clinic for 33 SPA members on December 11 at the Ridgeview Courts. He is known for his enthusiastic approach to teaching the game and has helped pickleballers all over the U.S.A. improve their skills. Dave is from Madison, Wisconsin where he operates an investment management business.
SaddleBrooke Pickleball Association (SPA) member Steve Wagner, also from Wisconsin, has known Weinbach for a few years and, with Mark Van Matre, extended an invitation for Dave to bring his knowledge and skill to the SaddleBrooke community. There was a broad range of skill levels among the men and women who participated and they got a lot from the clinic which covered a lot of fundamentals including where to be standing for various situations, how to hold the paddle, dinking, etc.
Weinbach also provided instruction that afternoon to 24 SPA members in private sessions at the Preserve, holding three one-hour sessions with eight attendees at each session. According to participant Sue Diericks, “Dave was very enthusiastic and his love of the sport was very evident. He took participants through several drills to improve our games and gave constructive corrections to the players as we performed the drills; most often using humor.” Participants learned to “respect the net,” serve, watch the ball, return deep and the “third shot.” Sue emphasized what an excellent instructor Weinbach is and how much fun it was to have the opportunity to learn from him.