2021 PACIFIC NORTHWEST REGIONALS
Pickleball is at Home on the Range in Boise , Idaho
By Alice Tym
PHOTOS BY BRIAN KOHAGEN
Idaho ’ s capital city , Boise , was the host of June ’ s Pacific Northwest Regional Championships and what a welcome it gave to the over 900 players from 30 states and provinces including New York and Ontario . Bill McManus was the head referee . He brought in very professional referees from Washington , Nevada , Arizona , California , Oregon , and Oklahoma . Ron Ponder noted how clean and vibrant the city of Boise is and how much the referees enjoyed going to Boise .
Local players from Idaho , Carson Spencer , Margot Hunter , and Dick Johnson , as well as many others worked for eight years to get pickleball courts built at Hobble Creek . Their names decorate the courts and the flagpole . Both Hobble Creek and Settlers Park , municipal parks , served as venues for the regional championships and it was apparent that it meant a lot to local players to have this event in Boise .
Players ranged in age from 9 to 88 ( 253 players in the 19-49 age bracket ,
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Linda and Paul Hoggatt at Settlers Park . The high quality of refereeing at the Pacific NW Regionals is a direct result of Linda ’ s hard work in training referees around the country . Photo by Alice Tym .
< Left to right : Carson Spencer , who led the drive to build courts in Boise ; Karen Parrish , Head of Tournaments for USA Pickleball ; and Pacific Northwest Regional Director Mike Hoxie . Photo by Alice Tym .