PUBLISHER ’ S PLAYBOOK
Dear Friends ,
Pickleball received a major lift last month when the US Open took place in Naples , Florida . It was the first major event , outside of the APP and PPA tours , to occur in 17 months . Vendors , manufacturers , participants , spectators , volunteers and perhaps even the organizers ( Terri Graham and Chris Evon ) were not sure what to expect . What occurred was a clear sign that pickleball is back and stronger than ever .
Over 13,000 spectators watched as 2,600 athletes competed at the seven-day festival . In the open air , crowds gathered for every match , masks were optional , and a long-forgotten sense of normal life returned for the week .
Each day was broken down into Age competitions ( 19 +, 35 +, 50 +, etc .), Age / Skill ( 19 + 3.5 , 19 + 4.0 , etc .), and Pro . My wife Lisa and I competed over two days with 47 teams and captured both the Mixed 50 + Open gold and Mixed 50 , 5.0 Skill gold medals . The greatest joy was not winning , but rather playing with Lisa and being treated by the enthusiastic crowd as if we had just won the Open Pro division !
There is no doubt that pickleball is stronger than ever and that the prior lifestyle we knew and loved is slowly returning . Thank you to all who have maintained your six feet , worn your masks and behaved responsibly . Your efforts have saved lives and allowed our pathway to normalcy to return faster . I look forward to the coming months and the continued explosion of pickleball . See you on the courts .
Wayne Dollard Publisher
PUBLISHER Wayne Dollard
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR
ART DIRECTOR Michael Miller
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Jack Bandel Rick Cipes Joe Dinoffer Morgan Evans Laura Gainor Brandi Givens Alex Hamner Craig Laughlin Jennifer Lucore Karen Mitchell Fran Myer Jim Parrott Dr . Noe Sariban Taylor H . Taylor Alice Tym Bob Unetich
CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS
Steve Taylor Bruce Yeung
Dollard Publishing Co ., Inc . publishes six issues of Pickleball Magazine per year . Subscriptions are $ 24 per year .
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED . REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART IS PROHIBITED . © 2021
Please recycle this magazine when you are through enjoying it .
My wife Lisa and I with our gold medals in Mixed Doubles and Mixed Skill / Age Doubles ; Lisa also won silver in Women ’ s Skill / Age Singles ! Photo by Bruce Yeung ; IG : @ yeungphotography
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