New year, new rule changes. The 2024 USA Pickleball rule book is now available, and it brings a few notable changes to the sport's dynamic - from The Dink Newsletter: "Correcting Server, Receiver and Player Position Errors (4.B.9) In last year's rule changes, players were told to ask "Am I good?" to clarify their position or server status to avoid incorrect server/returner error faults. Now, faults for incorrect servers, receivers, or wrongful player positions are eliminated. If a rally in progress is stopped to correctly identify a player/position error, the rally shall be replayed. If a player/position error is identified after the rally has played out, the rally shall stand. The ref is now responsible to correct any player errors before calling the score. Catch or Carry Ball on the Paddle (7.L) This change essentially removes the responsibility from a ref to determine if a player intended to carry the ball on a paddle. If a carry occurs, it's an automatic fault. Wait, what's the difference between a carry and a double-hit, you ask? Good question:
Paddle Specifications (2.E.2/2.E.5.a/2.E.5.c) Responding to the many paddle controversies over the last year, USAP has added language that condemns “any objects or features that allow a player to impart excessive spin on the ball." Of course, there’s no immediate guideline as to what counts as “excessive spin.” But there are guidelines regarding prohibited surface & mechanical features that do often impact spin. Those prohibited features include:
We cover some more important rule changes you won’t want to miss in our full article." Pickleball Canada has yet to adopt the new USAP rules, but since they most often certainly do, let's see! Hollyburn Country Club ("HCC") West Vancouver (www.hollyburn.org) Holiday Charity Event Highlights Giving Back and a Pro Exhibition with BC-Based Pros: HCC Bash N' Dasher Holiday Event Saturday December 9th 2023: This holiday event, hosted by HCC's Pickleball Committee, featured a Pro Exhibition, round robin play with the Pros and a reception. All surplus funds will be donated to North Shore Family Services' holiday food drive. This charity program helps families on Vancouver's North Shore who are in need over the holiday season. Dave Snell HCC Chair of the Pickleball Committee and PBC Board Member said "in summary, I believe we all had lots of fun, lots of great pickleball including the thrill of playing with the Pros, good holiday spirit and camaraderie, and HCC's pickleball enthusiasts raised donations for a very worthwhile charity in our community - North Shore Family Services." Guest Pro's for the Pro Exhibition matches included HCC Pro Tim McVinnie (Top Canadian Mens Senior Player 50+) , Steve Deakin (Top Canadian Open Player and PPA Tour Pro), Robin D'Abreo and Jeffery Ho (Silver Medalist with his brother at the recent US Nationals in Dallas - see story here). The Pros then spent the rest of their afternoon mixing in with HCC members in a round robin, showing them how this game we love is really played!! A bit about Steve: Steve is PPA tour Pro (just signed a new 3 year contract), a proud, card-carrying member of Team HEAD and works diligently to obtain podium status at every event he enters as they were early to find him and add him to their extensive line up of Pro players. At one of the US Open Pickleball Championships in Naples, Florida, Steve performed with his usual burst of athleticism and headed back to Vancouver with 3 Medals – Gold in Men’s Doubles 35+ with Erik Lange, Gold in Mixed Doubles 45+ with Susan Baze, and then the Coveted Bronze on the big stage Men’s Doubles Pro Event with Randal Zbinden of Utah. Steve is also a pickleball Ambassador with Pickleball Canada. More importantly, all surplus funds from this Event are to the benefit of North Shore Family Services as mentioned above. Additional donations were raised by Family Services attending and selling pickleball-themed Xmas items made by HCC volunteers, and by onsite pledges. This Event is just one example of a Club in BC that is hosting holiday events and "paying it forward" to the benefit of their local charities. We would love to hear about your Club initiatives over this holiday season by sending your info and pics to [email protected] and we will post those stories here. Happy holidays to all our enthusiastic BC pickleball members, Clubs and their families on behalf of your Board of Directors! From the Left (top on mobile): Tim McVinnie, Robin D'Abreo, Dave Snell, Jeffery Ho and Steve Deakin Center: "Charley Brown" Pickleball-Themed Xmas Tree Right (bottom on mobile): Pros on HCC New Pickleball Courts (repurposed curling rink) Paddles for PADS/PickleballBC (PBC) Province-Wide Tournament Reminder: Reminder that April 20th 2024 is the date we are asking all our Clubs and Associations in BC to join us in a PickleballBC/PADS province-wide pickleball event - save the date now! Registration is planned to begin January 3rd 2024 so watch for updates. We expect that with our 17,000+ members and growing, that we will have over 3,000 players playing our favourite sport that day, making it the largest event in Canada to date. Burnaby Pickleball Club and Hollyburn Country Club have already committed, so please do so soon by replying to Walter Knecht President PBC's email announcement and request for expressions of interest! Pacific Assistance Dogs (PADS) breeds, raises and trains fully certified assistance dogs. Our service (mobility & PTSD) and hearing dogs provide life-changing independence to those with disabilities. Our accredited facility dogs work with community professionals such as teachers, RCMP and psychologists to help support healthy communities. PADS is a fully accredited member of Assistance Dogs International. PICKLEBALLBC (PBC), founded in March 2017, is dedicated to the growth, development, promotion and enjoyment of pickleball in BC and elsewhere. We encourage people of all ages and skill levels to experience pickleball and discover the enjoyment of friendship and participation in an active lifestyle. In conjunction with the Pickleball Canada affiliation, PBC is now the B.C. Provincial governing body for pickleball. We are beyond pleased to support PADS by way of this tournament, which at a forecasted 3,000+ players across BC, will be the largest tournament in Canada to date Pictured here is Cadence who has recently been retired from PADS. Looks like an early holiday present - a PADDLES FOR PADS branded paddle!
Pickleball BC's Board Director of Facilities Announces "SOMETHING NEW for our sport in noise reduction": "USA Pickleball just announced that they have approved a line of 4 paddles in their new "Quiet Category" from OWL Sport that are significantly quieter than other paddles. OWL Sport claims a 50% reduction in usual paddle sound output. They expect to be shipping as early as December in time for the holidays. These paddles won’t be approved for sanctioned tournaments, like others in this category that should be announced in the coming months from other manufacturers. But they should provide some relief to neighbours of pickleball courts where the noise has been an issue. Pickleball BC will try to acquire a sample so that we can use it on outdoor courts to assess the relative improvement in noise reduction along with playability - please refer to our acoustic research report previously conducted with an outside consultant and BC Recreation and Parks Association here. Well done OWL Sport and USAP!!" Here’s a link to the USA Pickleball article: USA Pickleball Announces its First Certified Quiet Product – The OWL by OWL Sport – USA Pickleball OWL Sport encourages you to watch a special program on NBC's Today with Hoda and Jenna on Tuesday, November 21st at 10:00 Pacific where the new OWL Sport paddle(s) will be featured and John McEnroe is scheduled to attend. Left (top on mobile): OWL Sport says that the OWL is the first paddle on the market that delivers a 50% reduction in total noise profile. Right (bottom on mobile): According to the Association of Pickleball Players (APP), 48.3M Americans over the age of 18 have played pickleball in the last 12 months (Aug '22 to Aug '23) - see PBC story here Tuesday Oct 31 Burnaby Squint Opening: PickleballBC (PBC) attended the Burnaby Squint Lake pickleball court "grand opening" on Halloween day. Walter Knecht, President of PBC attended as he plays in Burnaby sometimes, he is a member of the club, and he knows a few people there (understatement!!). About 100 people joined in the opening festivities! Squint has 4 dedicated pickleball courts now. This brings the total, dedicated and shared in Burnaby, to 99 (ninety nine)! Amazing. Burnaby Mayor Mike Hurley says that the city is "becoming the pickleball capital of Metro Vancouver in a story in BurnabyNow Lauren Vanderdeen's story here. “There are now 99 courts to play across our community — never been a better time to pick up a paddle and give it a try!” Karen Watson, president of the Burnaby Pickleball Association, expressed her gratitude to the City of Burnaby and said the association is “thrilled” with the new courts. She told the NOW the courts have already proven to be “extremely popular” and noted the shared tennis/pickleball courts now have a new surface as well. You can see from the below picture, even though Walter was NOT an invited guest, he did make himself known to Councillor Dhaliwal prior to the ceremony. The Councillor insisted Walter help cut the ribbon as below. From the left: Councillor James Wang, Walter, Marion Taylor, Burnaby and Area Pickleball Association, Mayor Mike Hurley, Councillor Sav Dhaliwal and Councillor Richard Lee Mayor Mike Hurley celebrated the opening of the new dedicated pickleball courts at Squint Lake with members of the Burnaby pickleball community |@MayorofBurnaby/X all community.@MayorofBurnaby/X PHOENIX November 3rd 2023: USA Pickleball, the National Governing Body for the sport of pickleball, along with pickleball federations across 28 countries, today announced the launch of the Global Pickleball Federation ("GPF") “We are thrilled to announce this significant milestone, the launch of the GPF, in conjunction with our colleagues around the globe. This has been an important project for the growth of our sport and a necessary effort as we continue to unify pickleball and establish a path forward in the coming years,” said Justin Maloof, USA Pickleball Chief Operating Officer and Global Pickleball Federation Board Member. “I look forward to seeing the GPF’s work yield results as we continue to introduce pickleball to new countries, establish ourselves on the world stage, and pursue the inclusion of pickleball in future Olympic and Paralympic Games.” The national governing bodies across four continents include American Samoa, Australia, Cameroon, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Curacao, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Mexico, Morocco, New Zealand, Nigeria, Panama, Peru, the Philippines, Rwanda, Samoa, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Tonga, Uganda, United States and Venezuela. The GPF will be headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, which is also home to the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee, along with many sport National Governing Bodies. Read the full announcement from USA Pickleball here. ### About the Global Pickleball Federation (GPF) The Global Pickleball Federation (GPF) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization established in 2023 and operates in accordance with GPF bylaws, which can be found on the organization website. The mission of the GPF is to grow and promote pickleball in as many countries as possible from the amateur to professional level, and do so with integrity and purpose. Headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, the GPF is guided by a Board of Directors, including a Chairman of the Board and elected leaders of each participating continental federation. For more information, please visit www.globalpickleballfederation.org About USA Pickleball USA Pickleball is the National Governing Body (NGB) for the sport of pickleball in the United States. Its mission is to promote the development and growth of the sport while sanctioning events and providing annual members with premier tournaments, educational opportunities, player rankings, official rules and other exclusive benefits. USA Pickleball is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporation that is governed and operated by a Board of Directors and a national office staff, who provide the guidance and infrastructure for the continued expansion of the sport. ### West Vancouver Monday October 30th 2024 Hollyburn Country Club (HCC) Pickleball Committee and HCC management presented a $5,000 donation (plus $200 from additional on site pledges) to MS Canada as proceeds from their HCC Fall MS Charity Tournament. BIG THANK YOU’s go out to their Volunteer Committee, Tim MacVinnie our Tournament Manager, Jamie Dean our Head Ref and all the players and spectators who made this a success - and donated on site!! Canada has one of the highest rates of MS globally, with an average of 12 new diagnoses every day and over 90,000 Canadians with this incurable disease. To raise awareness of the impact of this disease and help those living with MS to enjoy a better quality of life, MS Canada encourages collective action. They reach out to governments, partners, and other organizations, highlighting the need for better healthcare, financial support for people with MS, and public programs and practices that benefit the MS community. Read more about MS Canada here: https://mscanada.ca/about-us/about-us and we encourage our BC Clubs to share their charity work to [email protected] so that we can publish these charitable endeavours. Above from right, Nancy Chapman HCC GM, Jan Snell (MS Ambassador), Nadia DiSpirito Coordinator Community Fundraising MS BC, and Dave Snell.
November is Diabetes Awareness Month and Tuesday November 14 is World Diabetes Day - Submission from Christina Lake Pickleball's Laurel Moore and Cassie: "I think we can all agree that there is a day for everything. It is so hard to keep track. Or perhaps it just isn’t something on your radar. As you know, the designation of awareness days, weeks, or months is meant to draw attention to specific issues, conditions, or causes with the goal of raising awareness and promoting understanding, empathy and action. I’m sure many of you know someone living with diabetes. Or maybe you have it too. Whatever your story we thought you might like to know about one of the more positive, friendly and approachable members in our club. Kelly Moore has had type 1 diabetes for 32 years and is on the latest pump therapy. Nothing stops this guy from being active! This year, he represents 1 of 30 teams across Canada that will take the time to complete in the Diabetes Canada #unitethecircle challenge. I think we can all agree that nothing “unites” people more than pickleball. Kelly isn’t alone with diabetes. We know that. Join or support Kelly’s team and help him inspire others to raise awareness. Your support will help get us all one step closer to finding a cure. Besides, who can resist a pickleball challenge? Check out Kelly's website to see if you are on the courts with him!" https://crm2.diabetes.ca/site/TR/LaceUp/UniteTheCircle?px=1717266&pg=personal&fr_id=3145 Kelly Moore of Christina Lake Pickleball The Apple Heart and Movement Study reveals tennis and pickleball are a win for overall health, as pickleball’s popularity continues to rise: "After analyzing more than 250,000 pickleball and tennis workouts recorded on Apple Watch by study participants from 2021 to 2023, researchers found pickleball workouts were slightly longer than tennis workouts on average — 90 minutes versus 81 minutes, respectively — and saw greater variability in time played... Sumbul Desai, M.D., Apple’s vice president of Health said "research is a vital component to our work in health at Apple, and it’s important to see the science behind the mental and physical benefits of activities like pickleball and tennis on Apple Watch users. Physical inactivity is a modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular disease and a number of other chronic conditions. Finding an activity that someone enjoys partaking in can help build a routine, whether that means picking up a paddle or a racket.” Some other interesting take-aways from this study:
“We are pleased to see pickleball-related findings included in the Apple Heart and Movement Study, in collaboration with Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the American Heart Association. There are numerous benefits for individuals of all ages and backgrounds on the pickleball courts as part of a healthy, social, and active lifestyle,” said Mike Nealy, USA Pickleball’s chief executive officer. Editor's PS: This is NOT an advertisement for Apple watch - just an interesting study that we think our PBC members would be interested in :) Researchers from the Apple Heart and Movement Study saw a steady increase in the popularity of pickleball workouts, with pickleball workouts surpassing tennis workouts for the first time. Vernon Pickleball Association "Best Pickleball Club in Canada" - Pickleball Today Contest Winner19/10/2023
October 19th 2023 Cambridge Ontario: Pickleball Today Announces That Vernon Pickleball Association Has Been Voted As Canada's Best Pickleball Club: The results of Pickleball Today's Canada-wide contest to determine who is the best Club in Canada have been announced - and the Vernon Pickleball Association (VPA) has been chosen! Walter Knecht President of Pickleball BC said "while there are many great pickleball venues across Canada there is no doubt the Vernon OWA facility [Okanagan Wealth Advisor’s Pickleball Complex at Marshall Fields] ranks high on the list of places to play. Combine the number of courts with the dedication of the VPA executive and the 1,000 plus members who volunteer endlessly - the Vernon Pickleball Association deserves this top rated recognition." Pickleball Today conducted this contest over the last while to find Canada's best as follows:
“The VPA has hosted four tournaments this year including the inaugural B.C. Provincials with 650 competitors. Pickleball is the fastest growing sport in North America, and having a year-round dedicated facility in Vernon has become a draw for both tourism and new residents,” Anne Longley spokesperson for VPA told Vernon Matters earlier. Second place in Canada's Best Pickleball Club 2023 went to: St.-Isidore Pickleball Club in Saint-Isidore, NB Third Place in Canada's Best Pickleball Club 2023 went to: Pickleball Hamilton of Hamilton, Ontario The Board of Pickleball BC and on behalf of our 16,000+ strong membership congratulates VPA (where the Provincials and the CNPL Western Region draft was held this summer, amongst other tournaments) and all the winners!!! The Vernon Pickleball Association logo and their Wonderful Complex |
We are always delighted to receive suggestions and/or contributions of content for this web site. Please send to [email protected]
|