PICKLEBALL CURMUDGEON
WWII Veteran Barney
McCallum Served
Our Country
It was 1944, and like many boys his age, Barney
McCallum joined the U.S. Navy in order to serve his
country during World War II. Told that he needed to finish
high school first, Barney reported to Recruit Training just
two days after graduating at age 17.
Assigned to a ship for the next two years as a Deck
Seaman (deck seamen are charged with managing
the ship while going into and out of port, as well as
maintaining the ship’s appearance and keeping the deck
secure), Barney was recognized as being a very strong
guy who was not afraid of heights. So he was tasked with
climbing the 70-foot-high mast to pull the boom up and
secure it whenever the ship would leave port. This could
be particularly dangerous when the ship was already in
motion. Barney remembers one of the most challenging
climbs leaving port in San Francisco as the ship went
under the Golden Gate Bridge in a storm—it was just him
and the elements, 70 feet in the air.
Most of Barney’s Naval service was spent traversing the
Pacific Ocean. His last wartime travel turned out to be
during the last battle in Okinawa, when his ship picked
up 1,000 Japanese POWs to take to the United States. By
the time the ship had reached Hawaii, the war had ended.
Barney and his shipmates then went back and forth
between Japan and the U.S., bringing soldiers home.
The final voyage for Barney was through the Panama
Canal (during a hurricane!) and back to Norfolk, VA,
where the ship was decommissioned.
Barney can count three separate times during his short
Naval career where he almost lost his life. Honored to
have served, Barney wonders if he should have stayed in
the Navy rather than return to Washington state to attend
college. We’ll never know how pickleball history may
have been altered if Barney, also founder of Pickle-Ball
Inc., had taken a different course in life.
Thank you, Barney McCallum, for your service to the
country and for helping to create pickleball!
Jennifer Lucore and Alex
Hamner started playing
pickleball in 2010, and have
competed in tournaments
across the USA (and
internationally). Between them,
they have 26 National Titles,
including winning gold in the
Women’s Open Doubles at
Nationals for four consecutive
years (2011–2014). For more
pickleball fun see Jennifer’s
blog at www.allpickleball.com.
Scene on the Court:
Occasional
Observations
from a
Pickleball
Curmudgeon
BY CRAIG LAUGHLIN
‘ Playing to Win! ’
R
ecently, my wife Barbie and I played a few
pick-up games with a married couple—
beginners I’ll call “Dick” and “Jane.” Barbie
partnered with Dick, and I partnered with
Jane. Dick hit every ball to his wife, and it was clear
his only objective was to win. You could almost see
him beating his chest after every point, followed by
(mostly incorrect) coaching tips for his wife, based,
apparently, on his years of tennis experience. Talk
about a prescription for sleeping on the couch!
I usually ask permission before offering advice on
what might help someone become a better player
but, in this case, I couldn’t restrain myself. I asked
Dick whether he was more interested in improving
his game or winning an “I Beat Jane in Pickleball”
t-shirt. He said he was interested in getting better,
so I shared some wisdom I’d learned at a Scott
Moore boot camp. Scott advises treating a pick-up
game as a learning experience, during which one
should focus more on making better shots and
better decisions, and less on winning the game. This
has led me to appreciate opponents who expose my
weaknesses and punish me for my dumb decisions.
I told Dick that hitting every ball to his wife would
never make him a better player, and that by doing
so he was wasting a learning opportunity. I also
shared another of Scott’s observations—that hitting
winners against weak players, with shots that would
be pounced on by good players, creates “positive
reinforcement for negative decisions,” which would
not serve him well in the long run.
Except at the highest levels (where most points are
truly “won”), the winning team is usually the team
that makes the fewest unforced errors. Unless
you’re playing in a tournament, the best way to
improve your game is not to pick on the weaker
opponent. Rather, let the situation determine your
shot selection. If that means engaging the stronger
opponent, embrace the learning opportunity! •
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2019 |
MAGAZINE
21