Headline says it all. Click here to read full article. Special thanks to Mo Garcia for making this happen.
Aiken Pickleball News
**** October 7th ****
As a way for the pickleball community to regroup and to welcome new members, Aiken Pickleball will be hosting a Friday Fun Night Potluck followed by indoor play at Odell Weeks on Friday, Sept. 30 from 5-8 pm. Over eighty new players have been added to our roster and this will be a wonderful way to welcome new players and to reconnect with Pickleball friends we have not seen in quite a while.
Please sign up for the Friday Fun Night Potluck and Play on our website - or click here - letting us know you are coming and if you are bringing guests. All are welcome.
Door prizes - At 5:45pm, two drawings will be held for gift certificates for private lessons with Mo and Ben. You must be present to win.
The schedule for Friday, September 30th is as follows: The social will be in rooms 1 and 2 at Odell Weeks starting at 5:00pm. We will start eating by 5:30pm. After eating, those that want will move to gym 2 to play pickleball, as six courts have been reserved for us for open play.
Because of the Palmetto Tournament (9-11), Fall Home and Garden Show (15-19), and the Holistic Wellness Fair (23-26) play in September is fairly limited with only one Funday Monday. Let's end the month with a Friday Fun Night and get to know each other. It’s been too long since we have all gotten together.
The minutes for the Leadership Team Meeting held on August 15 have been posted. Topics discussed were a possible social in late September, update on the Palmetto tournament September 9-11, need for new Treasurer, the Round Robin at Gregg Park on November 12, and much more. Click here to read the full report.
THE ENTRY DEADLINE FOR THE BOOMERS AND BEYOND MIXED DOUBLES TOURNAMENT IS NOVEMBER 5. This Tournament will be held at Gregg Park Civic Center on Saturday, November 12th. Divisions are:
4.0 AND ABOVE: 30-59 (three slots available) AND 60+ (three slots available)
3.5: 60-69 (three slots available) AND 70+ (four slots available)
3.0: 60-69 (waiting list only)
EACH TEAM WILL PLAY EVERY OTHER TEAM IN THE DIVISION. MAXIMUM OF 7 TEAMS PER DIVISION.
2.5: WOMEN'S SCRAMBLE. (SIGN UP WITHOUT A PARTNER) MAXIMUM OF 9 PLAYERS. EACH PLAYER WILL PLAY A GAME WITH EACH OTHER PLAYER IN THE DIVISION.
MEDALS AWARDED FOR FIRST, SECOND, AND THIRD PLACE IN ALL DIVISIONS. COST IS $25 PER PERSON. SNACKS PROVIDED.
THIS IS AN INDOOR TOURNAMENT. YELLOW ONIX FUSE BALLS WILL BE USED.
Last week over one hundred people from the ages of seven to seventy-five were introduced to pickleball. On Tuesday Aiken Pickleball, led by Mo Garcia (our head teaching professional) held a clinic for over fifty Aiken County Physical Education Teachers to help them introduce pickleball to their students. The event was written up in the Aiken Standard. On Thursday and Friday of last week, Aiken Pickleball also provided pickleball clinics as part of the City's Summer Camp Program. And on Saturday, eight people attended a New Players Clinic.
News articles from the Aiken Standard and action photos of Mo and the kids from the summer camp program are shown below. . Thanks to all of you that assisted with these endeavors.
Over 260 players participated in the first ever Beat the Heat Pickleball Tournament held at Riverside Recreation Center in North Augusta last weekend Congratulations to the following Aiken Players
Women's doubles
Rolene Roux and Vivian Chi - Gold Medal 4.0 and above, 16 and above
Leslie McCowan and Amy Buck.- Gold Medal 3.5 - 51 and above
Bebe Murphy and Jan Snipes - Bronze Medal 3.0 - 60 and above.
Men's doubles
Michael Howard and Mark Giddens. - Gold Medal 3.5 Men's - 59 and above
Harve Mobley and Phil Breidenbach. - Silver Medal. 4 0 - 50 and above.
Mixed doubles
Bebe Murphy and Kim Herring - Silver Medal 3.0 - 63 and above .
Amy Buck and Jeff Simizon - Gold Medal 3.5 - 54-59
Katherine and Mark Giddens - Bronze Medal 3.5. - 60 and above
Christine Chandler and Brian Eberhard - Gold Medal 4.0 - 60 and above.
Christy Pritchard and Michael Howard. - Bronze Medal 4.0 - 60 and above
Maria Binnicker and Brandon Hoffman - Gold Medal 4.5 - any age
Cheryl Breidenbach and Harve Mobley - Silver Medal 4.5 - any age
Rolene Roux and Cody Chi - Bronze Medal 4.5 - and age
Way to go gals/guys! Click here for full results in case I forgot someone.
Did you know that a local Aiken player, who may be playing on your court or the one next to you, is currently ranked number one in the world according to Global Rankings?
Congratulations to Chris Powers for achieving the highest accolade in Mixed and Women's Pickleball Doubles in the 60+ age group according to the independent Global Rankings system.
Well Done!
We wish her continued success in her Pickleball endeavors.
Starting Wednesday, October 5, and every Wednesday thereafter until the middle of December, Clinics with Coach Mo will be offered at Smith-Hazel Recreation Center from 9-11am. The first five sessions are available for sign up.
Each week will work on a different stroke for the first hour, then practice play the second hour. The clinics will be given by our head teaching professional Mo Garcia and are intended for 2.0-3.0 players looking to improve their pickleball skills. Schedule as follows:
Oct 5 - Return of Serve, down the line.
Oct 12 - Dinks with a purpose; hitting your target spots
Oct 19 - Half Volley soft drop; Half Volley drives.
Oct 26 - Overhead smash; Volley snap at the kitchen.
Nov 2 - 3rd Shot drop
Nov 9 - Drive topspin Volley
Nov 16 - King/Queen of the court, (Doubles)
Nov 23 - Thanksgiving week
Nov 30 - Block volleys at the net.
Dec 7 - Lobs
Dec 14 - Specialty shots (Various Big Mo Shot choices).
Cost is $10 per person for a two hour clinic. Each session is limited to a maximum of eight players (minimum of three). Payment should be made at the Smith-Hazel front desk and the receipt presented to the instructor. Click here to sign up or select “Clinics with Coach Mo” under our Sign-up lists. The first five sessions will be available on August 15 for sign up.
The membership card you use to access Odell Weeks will allow you entry into Smith-Hazel as they are both City of Aiken recreational facilities. The daily fee at Smith-Hazel for non-members to play pickleball is $3. The Smith-Hazel Recreation Center is located at 400 Kershaw Street in northeast Aiken.
Thanks to everyone who showed up today on August 1st, to get Funday Monday off to such a great start. Following is a quote from one of the players that participated. "Today was an outstanding day to play pickleball, it reminded me of the days I started playing."