scene on the court
Spotlight on Sportsmanship
By Craig Laughlin
A . K . A . “ THE PICKLEBALL CURMUDGEON ”
Presenting the USA Pickleball Sportsmanship Guide
As famed college football coach Knute Rockne once said , “ One man practicing sportsmanship is far better than a hundred teaching it .” Grumbling about what strikes me as unsportsmanlike behavior has been a recurring theme in this column , so this quote really speaks to me . But what does good sportsmanship on the pickleball court really look like ? What conduct does it involve , and how can it be fostered ?
These are questions USA Pickleball Director of Officiating , and Chairman of the Rules Committee , Mark Peifer was pondering when he asked me to join a committee tasked with answering them . “ As a former tennis player ,” he said , “ I was heavily influenced by Colonel Nick Powell ’ s ‘ The Code ’— commonly known as the bible of tennis etiquette . As no similar reference exists for pickleball , I ’ m forming a committee to identify and memorialize specific behaviors , not already covered by the Official Rulebook , that demonstrate and will hopefully promote mutual respect , courtesy , consideration , and fair play ( i . e ., good sportsmanship ) among pickleball players .”
In assembling the committee , Mark drew from the ranks of USA Pickleball Ambassadors , saying , “ Our Ambassadors are involved in all areas of the sport , including both tournament and recreational play , and are uniquely able to represent the pickleball community at large .” The committee was chaired by Dick Osman , a District Ambassador and Certified Referee , and included Ambassadors Robert David , Jean Dicesare , Linda Koetting , Cindy Lawton , Steve Loranger , and Scott Nicastro , along with District Ambassadors Jeff Conradi , Brent Hall , Nancy Sutton , and Christine Wantuck , and me , your faithful Pickleball Curmudgeon .
I ’ m sure that , for Dick , the experience of chairing the committee was like the proverbial herding of cats . Each of us came to the table with our own list of pet peeves , and our own ideas on how to address them . When I asked Dick what possessed him to undertake such a challenge , he replied , “ While I enjoy the competitive aspect of pickleball , l love the social aspect and the relationships I have formed even more . Good sportsmanship is essential to developing and maintaining those relationships and avoiding the conflicts that can undermine them , so I jumped at the chance to join Mark ’ s team .”
The committee solicited input from every source we could think of , including other ambassadors , players , and referees , and then aggregated all of it in a document of overwhelming size and complexity . Next came the difficult task of combining similar inputs , resolving differences of opinion ( Just naming the document was a challenge !) and boiling everything down to a size and format we thought people might actually read , understand and follow .
Dick describes the team and the result this way : “ I was very impressed by the level of commitment , the knowledge , the eagerness to contribute , and the spirit of collaboration shared by the members of the committee . While it is impossible to address every nuance of every situation that can arise , we hope the guidelines are both broad enough , and specific enough , to provide guidance in the most common situations , and that , using common sense , they can be extrapolated to situations that are not directly addressed .”
Mark , Dick , and the committee members all hope the guide will promote sportsmanlike behavior throughout the game of pickleball . Imagine what Knute Rockne would say about not just one , but thousands of pickleball players practicing good sportsmanship every time they play . It ’ s up to all of us to make it happen ! Good behavior is in your court .
The USA Pickleball Sportsmanship Guide is printed on the facing page . Printable 8½ × 11 and 11 × 17 versions can be found online at
https :// usapickleball . org / membernews / usa-pickleball-sportsmanship-guide . •