FROM THE USAPA did this for more than a year , monitoring and posting the day ’ s schedule before any players got on the courts . Communicating and keeping all our members up‐to-date can be a huge task . Back in the beginning Grover saw the need to keep all members informed about the club . Our first article was written for the PebbleCreek Post back in 2007 by Pancho Epstein . He has been writing articles and tidbits for the club ever since . Pancho became known as “ The Scribe ” and the person behind our bi-monthly Dr . Dink articles . His humor and editorial wit toward the game of pickleball has been very enlightening and enjoyable over the years . Today we have many of our club members writing and helping with communicating the many activities and happenings that are constantly taking place in our club .
In the early days , Grover was about
If there is a Pickleball Heaven , we are living in it at PebbleCreek . the only person who had played the game of pickleball , so he solicited the help of other pickleball pioneers who lived in the Phoenix area . He invited Bob Lanius , Don Miller and Earl Hill to visit our club . They helped explain the rules and introduced the game of pickleball to many of our club members . They brought samples of the various types of pickleball paddles and balls .
To help with the training the club started a beginner / novice training program for its members . The club ’ s very first training instructors were Lou Ann Ashburn , Virginia Troester and Art House . After almost nine years , Art House is still going strong and is still the person in charge of Novice Training . Today we have weekly training classes , along with skills and drills . Our 35 trainers are busy helping and training many members to improve their pickleball skills .
It is now 2017 , 10 years later , and Grover ’ s vision of our community enjoying this crazy game called pickleball is truly a reality . Little did he know how fast and how big it would become here in PebbleCreek . The club now has 1,255 active club members . It may be the largest pickleball club in the USA . It continues to grow each year , adding hundreds of new
pickleball players . In 2015 , Robson Communities built 12 additional dedicated pickleball courts for a total of 20 courts . A new Ramada was built , with restrooms available and a place for an ice machine to help keep those drinks cold in the hot days of summer . Even with the addition of these new courts , the activity and usage of all of us playing pickleball can be crazy . The club has many socials and events to keep the spirit of pickleball growing , from drop-in play to weekly Ladders and Round Robins , our annual Chile Cook-off , New Member Pizza Party , April Fool ’ s Day Social , Memorial Day Salute , July 4th Firecracker Frenzy , Labor Day End of Summer Sizzler , Toys for Tots and our annual Welcome Back Concert , just to mention a few . Last year the club hosted its first annual PebbleCreek Pickleball Tournament . This threeday event drew over 400 players from all over the USA and Canada , and provided an opportunity for many of the club members to see pickleball at another level of play . This year our tournament is being held February 15-18 . It already has over 450 players signed up and is a Senior 50 + tournament . To expand the player participation base and offer the opportunity for younger players to play , we added an extra day for players under the age of 50 to play in 5.0 open Men ’ s and Women ’ s . This gives another opportunity for the younger players to play in a tournament that was geared toward seniors .
If there is a Pickleball Heaven , we are living in it at PebbleCreek . Yes we can enjoy pickleball 366 days a year — oh yes , Heaven has an extra day ! It can get cold here in the winter months ; some early mornings can get down into the 40s . The afternoon warms to the 70s and we may have to shed that extra shirt . Yes , the 100-plus-degree days of summer can be brutal , but it is a dry heat ! I hope all of you enjoyed the story of our club . We would welcome and love to have everyone come out to visit us , play some pickleball and meet the many friendly folks we have in the PebbleCreek Pickleball Club . •
JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2017 | MAGAZINE 59