USAPA Junior
SPOTLIGHT
NICKY
GOLOWICH
ON THE WORLD STAGE
By Bob Nibarger
S
ixteen-year-old Nicky Golowich, living in
Fort Myers, Florida, has spent a great deal of
time becoming a true student and scholar of
history, embellishing his cooking skills, and
learning firsthand about America since his parents, Nick
and Dana, took him across the country for two and a half
years in a recreational vehicle.
When his family landed in Georgia in early 2016, there
was an opportunity to play a sport with which his dad
was completely taken. When told that the name of the
sport was pickleball, it took months for Nicky to get over
what he had deemed as, let’s say, not a good fit for a
seventh grader. Little did he know...
Fast-forward to November, 2019. Nicky completed a
very successful USAPA National Tournament in Indian
Wells in which he earned his seventh junior national gold
medal from the U.S. Open and the USAPA Nationals. He
next headed south to Tres Palapas in Los Bariles, Cabo,
Mexico. There, he earned gold in men’s doubles at the
first Junior International Tournament, sponsored by the
World Pickleball Federation.
The road in between has been dictated by an immense
amount of time spent volleying pickleballs off a concrete
wall, learning as much as he could on YouTube and other
channels about how to play the sport, and searching for
two years for an accomplished adult to help him develop
his game. Finally, in late 2018, U.S. Open senior doubles
champion Barry Waddell took Nicky under his
wing to fine-tune his development.
Nicky’s game has since taken off. In
addition to his national titles, another
highlight was when he won the 5.0 men’s
70
TO SUBSCRIBE, CALL 888.308.3720 OR GO TO THEPICKLEBALLMAG.COM
USAPA JUNIOR’S COMMITTEE CHAIR
Nicky with his parents, Dana and Nick
doubles championship at the USAPA South Atlantic
Regionals in the summer of 2019.
A firm believer in the future of pickleball, Nicky feels
that the junior program needs to be spotlighted for the
purpose of showing other young people what a terrific
sport opportunity pickleball presents. He maintains
that if pickleball is ever to become an Olympic sport, it
must do so on the shoulders of young people, in whom
established players can take an active interest to support
and nurture for the future.
For example, accomplished superstar Frank Anthony
Davis invited Nicky to play with him at the Heritage
Tournament in Finley, Alabama, which earned Nicky
his first 5.0 men’s doubles victory ever. Nicky says that
copying the initiatives of FAD, Waddell, and tournaments
dedicated to Junior players needs to become a priority
for the USAPA community.
A straight-A dual-enrolled student attending
Southwest Florida University and Lee County Virtual
High School, Nicky plans to enroll at an Ivy League school
once he graduates. He is thankful for the opportunities
given to him by his hard work and dedication to the
sport of pickleball, and grateful to his current sponsors
at Paddletek for their support.
Nicky’s belief in the development of young players in
the sport remains unwavering. One day, he may find
himself on another international stage representing the
United States, playing the sport with the weird
name at the Olympics!
Send your nomination for future junior
spotlights to [email protected]. •