Pickleball Life

[Scuba]

So far, DH and I have only played singles with each other. I’m a little intimidated to try open play, especially without knowing my rating. Also, I do it for exercise and don’t like the idea of having to sit out. So far we’ve been lucky and able to get our own court, so we haven’t needed to stop after two games.

 

[eytonxav]

So far, DH and I have only played singles with each other. I’m a little intimidated to try open play, especially without knowing my rating. Also, I do it for exercise and don’t like the idea of having to sit out. So far we’ve been lucky and able to get our own court, so we haven’t needed to stop after two games.

If there is only two of us, we play skinny singles, which also helps you develop shot accuracy. You need to return serve to the side the server started from and continue that until the point ends.

 

[Aerides]

A PICKLEBALL thread You're KIDDING me!

Of all thread topics to question this seems does not seem like a candidate. Pickleball is tremendously popular within the retiree population, and there's been a lot of coverage of it in most media.

And many of our members here play and have talked about that often. This is no different that the Golf thread.

Plus, it's the gift that keeps on giving, and should lead to many "Rotator Cuff Surgery?" threads down the road.

 

[Trailwalker]

So far, DH and I have only played singles with each other. I’m a little intimidated to try open play, especially without knowing my rating. Also, I do it for exercise and don’t like the idea of having to sit out. So far we’ve been lucky and able to get our own court, so we haven’t needed to stop after two games.

I know it can vary from place to place, but I've found most open pickleball play to be very generous and welcoming to developing players and varied skill levels.

I played today with an 80-year old woman who has good fundamentals but is limited physically. We played together a couple of weeks ago, and won a couple of games. She was so excited then about winning and talked at length with my wife about our games. When we won together again today (against two guys), she was equally as excited. I reminded her that we had won before together. She didn't remember. It was almost like groundhog day.

 

[Dtail]

I know it can vary from place to place, but I've found most open pickleball play to be very generous and welcoming to developing players and varied skill levels.

I played today with an 80-year old woman who has good fundamentals but is limited physically. We played together a couple of weeks ago, and won a couple of games. She was so excited then about winning and talked at length with my wife about our games. When we won together again today (against two guys), she was equally as excited. I reminded her that we had won before together. She didn't remember. It was almost like groundhog day.

Good story.
I play weekly around 1 to 2 games with a 78 year old male, who used to be a nationally recognized racquetball player. Has decent talent but doesn't move that well. I retrieve all the lobs.
Yeah agree to some extent about the welcoming to all levels. It depends where one plays.

 

[Dtail]

Of all thread topics to question this seems does not seem like a candidate. Pickleball is tremendously popular within the retiree population, and there's been a lot of coverage of it in most media.

And many of our members here play and have talked about that often. This is no different that the Golf thread.

Plus, it's the gift that keeps on giving, and should lead to many "Rotator Cuff Surgery?" threads down the road.

Yeah right. Usually the most negative comments (by me at least) come from the tennis players. So after many negative comments by players at our local court, I finally convinced 2 of them to play us. We won 11/2, 11/1. No more comments after that.
Injuries so far include a torn hernia (out 6 weeks) and a torn calf muscle (also 6 weeks). Have not heard of any rotator cuff injuries yet.

 

[Scuba]

If there is only two of us, we play skinny singles, which also helps you develop shot accuracy. You need to return serve to the side the server started from and continue that until the point ends.

We have done that occasionally. I agree it helps develop shot accuracy. However, I feel I get a better workout attempting to cover the whole court. Maybe we should alternate.

 

[eytonxav]

We have done that occasionally. I agree it helps develop shot accuracy. However, I feel I get a better workout attempting to cover the whole court. Maybe we should alternate.

You are probably a lot younger than me. While I could do full court, recovery would take weeks after doing so

 

[nhcycling]

I just started playing last week having never played any racquet sports in my life. I love it! It’s easy to pick up. I’ve been going to the community courts daily and already see improvement from last week. There’s a group of 30-40 beginners so it’s perfect. Some started playing in FL this past winter, most this spring. I’m not so good, sometimes I don’t get the ball over the net so I need basic skills training but we have people that come and do lessons 2x week. This has been a surprisingly good sport for me; I was going to go back to cycling or running daily when I retired but this is it. This is how I now spent my mornings!

 

[INTJ10]

The only problem with pickleball is that it is addicting. I played too much and injured my knee. I found that being less mobile actually improved my game because I focused on strategy and shot accuracy instead of a more physical game.

 

[Scuba]

You are probably a lot younger than me. While I could do full court, recovery would take weeks after doing so

Well, as DH pointed out to me today, we don’t actually effectively “cover” the full court. Sometimes we let the harder to reach shots go without trying too hard to go after them. [emoji23]

 

[aaronc879]

LOL, that's great and answers a question I just posted on another thread...when or at what age did you consider yourself OLD?

37, after my hip replacement. Now at 43 with chronic pain in both my leg and back I feel decades older than I am. I hurt myself sleeping, often. I envy those of you who are active and relatively pain free in your 60's or even beyond. I can't even imagine.

 

[Trailwalker]

Played three hours last night with some challenging games and then two hours this morning in social, open play. Time for a break and a day off tomorrow. It's hot out there on the outdoor courts.

 

[Dtail]

Played three hours last night with some challenging games and then two hours this morning in social, open play. Time for a break and a day off tomorrow. It's hot out there on the outdoor courts.

Good for you. Don't really like playing at night. I get no "backlash" for 5 hour playdays, because I get everything done after I play and the rest of the day is ours together.
Yeah by 12pm, the "Realfeel" temp here is at 110.

 

[Ready]

Pickleball was a big help for me in transitioning from the working world to being fully retired. I was used to having a lot of social stimulation from work. When I retired that all went away and when I started playing Pickleball I found it very easy to meet people and build a nice group of friends.

Over the years I became more involved in the sport. I took on the role of USAPA Ambassador for my city around three years ago. Two years ago I got my PPR coaching certification, and about a year ago I became a Selkirk Advocate (sales rep) so I sell paddles and gear now. I don’t make much doing it but they send me a few dozen free paddles each year and with the commissions I cover all of the costs of balls, shirts, bags, and anything else I feel like buying from them.

So overall it’s been a great compliment to retired life and something I highly recommend if you are so inclined to want to try it out.

 

[savory]

I've been playing for a few years now. B4 I moved, it was a 50+ group that played in the mornings. At my current location, the older crowd still exists but play is typically y organized I groups of 4 or do.

After 3pm and beyond the crowd gets younger and a paddle line forms. It is good to see the younger play. Many are new and their skills are just developing. But some are incredibly fast. They seem to get to everything.

I am going to play in my first tournament only because I was ask to. I am competitive enough to be looking forward to it. But I do not think I will be seeking out opportunities.

I did read an earlier post about a pickler giving up biking to play pball. I always bike to the courts. A great way to get loose and stretch out after play. My ride is about 2.5 miles each way.

 

[eytonxav]

One of my friends got a gift certificate to Chick N Pickle for fathers day, so got invited to lunch and pickleball tomorrow. Looking forward to playing indoors on a nice court. It sure beats the heat outside.

 

[mickeyd]

I play PB and tennis alternating days @ our CCRC 6 days/week. We play for fun. Isn't that what it's all about?

I always bike to the courts.

So do I.

 

[Dtail]

I play PB and tennis alternating days @ our CCRC 6 days/week. We play for fun. Isn't that what it's all about?



So do I.

Yes having fun is important. However as the level of competitiveness increases, many folks state that as long as I play well, it doesn't matter if I win or lose.
However when one is on the losing end of a close game (11 to 9), there is much less conversation than when one is on the winning side of that score.
On a related note, when there is a weaker player on one side, the other side will state that they will hit to the stronger player, but in general that is just not true.

 

[Trailwalker]

Yes having fun is important. However as the level of competitiveness increases, many folks state that as long as I play well, it doesn't matter if I win or lose.
However when one is on the losing end of a close game (11 to 9), there is much less conversation than when one is on the winning side of that score.
On a related note, when there is a weaker player on one side, the other side will state that they will hit to the stronger player, but in general that is just not true.

There's different types of fun for different people in pickleball, and that's okay. My wife read a book called, "Pickleball is Life: The Complete Guide to Feeding your Obsession," and it talks about how the game mirrors life in many respects. When I play social, I try hard to be gentle with beginning and developing players and offer advice and tips to either side of the court when asked. When I play against advanced players, the gloves come off. Targeting "weaker players" is a legit strategy. Hard body shots also. I found that level of athletic competition that I really haven't experienced from when I played sports in high school and as a young adult. Most people aren't necessarily looking for that. Pickleball offers something for everyone.

 

[eytonxav]

When I first started playing pickleball two of my friends decided to make their own wooden paddles. It did not last long as both broke off at the handle. I started with a $49 paddle and now my weapon of choice is a Diadem Warrior Edge.

 

[Whisper66]

To offer a slightly different perspective.....I started pickleball in early 2023. I'm a long time tennis player that loves tennis but it's popularity is minimal around where I live. With pickleball, I can easily play 6 days a week with local open play groups. I've been regularly playing about 3 days a week since the start of the year. It's an interesting sport that requires good hand speed, strategy and more finesse than tennis (IMHO). While interesting for awhile, I've gotten bored with it and so backing off playing as much. Basically I've come to realize it's just not enough exercise for me. I normally play 2-3 hours and just don't get enough out of it. Singles is better but most folks want to play doubles. I miss the running required in tennis and the exhaustion after just 1 to 1-1/2 hours of play in the hot sun of our area.

 

[Trailwalker]

To offer a slightly different perspective.....I started pickleball in early 2023. I'm a long time tennis player that loves tennis but it's popularity is minimal around where I live. With pickleball, I can easily play 6 days a week with local open play groups. I've been regularly playing about 3 days a week since the start of the year. It's an interesting sport that requires good hand speed, strategy and more finesse than tennis (IMHO). While interesting for awhile, I've gotten bored with it and so backing off playing as much. Basically I've come to realize it's just not enough exercise for me. I normally play 2-3 hours and just don't get enough out of it. Singles is better but most folks want to play doubles. I miss the running required in tennis and the exhaustion after just 1 to 1-1/2 hours of play in the hot sun of our area.

I can see but not share that point of view. I'm quite active but too much running is hard on my body at 62. The better I get at doubles pickleball, the less running around I do.

I learned this week that the age brackets for tournaments are not necessarily written in stone. I signed up with my partner for 60 and up, but there were not enough players in the lower age brackets, so we will be competing at 35 and up. Sign-in is at 6:30 a.m. on Sunday morning. I'm a little concerned that it's going to be a hurry up and wait situation. Trying to keep an open mind about tournaments, but it might be starting to close a bit.

 

[Gumby]

Pickleball sure has become popular around here. My town has a fairly large number of municipal pickleball courts; I am told by those who play that they are always full. Just today, the mall in Stamford, CT, opened a 27 court pickleball facility (with locker rooms, showers, lounge and cafe) in the space that used to be Saks 5th Avenue.

 

[Scuba]

To offer a slightly different perspective.....I started pickleball in early 2023. I'm a long time tennis player that loves tennis but it's popularity is minimal around where I live. With pickleball, I can easily play 6 days a week with local open play groups. I've been regularly playing about 3 days a week since the start of the year. It's an interesting sport that requires good hand speed, strategy and more finesse than tennis (IMHO). While interesting for awhile, I've gotten bored with it and so backing off playing as much. Basically I've come to realize it's just not enough exercise for me. I normally play 2-3 hours and just don't get enough out of it. Singles is better but most folks want to play doubles. I miss the running required in tennis and the exhaustion after just 1 to 1-1/2 hours of play in the hot sun of our area.

DH and I prefer playing singles. We haven’t had a problem getting court time this summer, but it will be a different matter during season. I find that doubles is plenty of exercise while I’m playing, but with doubles there are frequent extended breaks while sitting out and allowing others their turn to play.