Sports

Pickleball Growth Expanding in Peachtree Corners

Published

3 years ago

April 19, 2022

Nathan Deen

The relatively new sport has more players than courts to accommodate them

Pat Foley remembers when the popularity of tennis exploded into its golden era in the 1970s. That’s when the 65-year-old Peachtree Corners resident picked up the game, and he continued to play it for decades to come. But as Foley has gotten older, the physical demands of tennis haven’t changed.

“I played tennis for a long time, and as we age, the tennis court seems to get bigger and bigger,” he said.

Now Foley is seeing the surge of another sport — pickleball. It’s like tennis but doesn’t require players to cover as much turf. In 2019, National Public Radio named pickleball the fastest growing sport in America, and according to news outlet Axios, participation in the sport increased by 21.3% between 2019 and 2020. An estimated 4.2 million Americans play the sport at least once per year.

“I had seen something in the news about it,” Foley said. “I had never played it. I really enjoyed it. It’s a very social game.”

From left, Peter Scourtis, John Ray, Dennis Wilton, Chuck Morgan (Photography by George Hunter)

Foley is a member of the Pickleball Flex League, which was started last year by Ace Tennis Academy owner Jeff Weaver and is designed to introduce new players to the sport.

Weaver has owned and operated Ace Tennis Academy since 1994 and developed it into one of the top tennis development programs in Atlanta, producing the winners of more than 35 national titles. But with the rapid growth of pickleball and no pickleball courts near Peachtree Corners to play on, he decided it was time to expand Ace Tennis Academy beyond tennis.

“It was time to introduce pickleball because pickleball is growing so much,” Weaver said. “There’s a want and a need for tennis players to play pickleball, but there’s also a want and a need for our members who don’t play tennis. We’re introducing pickleball and engaging more membership.”

A sport is born

The Pickleball Flex League allows members to play matches on their schedules. It’s a doubles-only league, which means players must find a partner of the same gender to form a team, and the league is divided into different divisions based on experience.

Each team communicates with other teams to schedule when and where the match will take place. Teams can designate any suitable court they choose to be their home court, where they will play three of their six matches for the season.

“We set up a flexible league because most people don’t have permanent courts,” Weaver said. “They have tennis courts with lines on it and they have to share time with tennis players. The flexible league allows them to schedule on their own time.”

Weaver said he first gauged community interest by hosting a meet-and-greet at its Field’s Club location in the Riverfield neighborhood off East Jones Bridge Road. The event drew a crowd of about 100 people. Now the league is beginning its third season. “We tripled in size from our first season to our second season,” he said. “We’re projected to probably double that or triple that this coming season.”

Foley, who has played in the league since the first season, said he not only noticed the growth in the second season, which took place last fall, but also the difference in competition. “Everybody that we played was better in the second season, and we didn’t play any of the same people,” he said.

Weaver said what the Pickleball Flex League currently offers is just the beginning. Ace Tennis Academy is in the process of converting two of its eight tennis courts at its Amberfield location, behind The Forum, into six full-time pickleball courts. When that happens, those courts will play full-time host to league matches, he said, and he plans to hire a full-time pickleball coach to the Ace Tennis Academy staff.

“Once we have permanent courts built, we will start providing a full-time pickleball instructor with those and start programming for our members. And then it’ll just blow up,” Weaver predicted. “Our goal is to build the pickleball membership to be as high as the tennis membership here.”

League membership costs $70 per player, and Weaver said he plans to expand the league from doubles to mixed doubles (a male and female on each team) and singles for its upcoming summer season. He’s also considered the possibility of forming a club team that would compete against other clubs from around Atlanta.

Need for public courts

But Weaver also acknowledges that an effort to establish permanent public pickleball courts would be beneficial to Peachtree Corners. “We’re also wanting to help the city and people in the area to lobby to have courts built in Peachtree Corners,” he said. “That would be a big plus for the pickleball community. You don’t have to be a member of the club to play.”

The city isn’t alone in having a lack of permanent courts despite growing interest in the sport.

Walter Putnam, a certified pickleball instructor in Duluth, said he has taught more than 800 people to play the sport in the past three years. “I haven’t had one person hand me their paddle back and say ‘Hey, this is not for me,’” Putnam said. “Everyone seems to like it. I spend about an hour and half to introduce them, and it only takes three lessons before they’re ready to go and play open matches.”

The question is, where can they go to play those matches?

Putnam is an ambassador for USA Pickleball, which means he travels through metro Atlanta raising awareness of the sport, establishing pickleball programs and lobbying to have public courts built.

Putnam said he has been working with Gwinnett County for two years trying to get more public courts built. He said the county has a 10-year plan to build 40 courts scattered throughout the area, but Putnam said ideally there needs to be one or two facilities that host 20 courts each. “We need a lot more than three or four here or three or four there,” he said. “We need a facility with something like 22 dedicated courts.

“This is an explosive market for pickleball. I’ve been predicting it for several years. It’s a slow process, but I would like to see something dramatic happen in Gwinnett County.”

Up Next

Norcross Soccer Program Prepares for Summer, New Season

Don't Miss

Norcross Volleyball Standout Looks Back on Winning Season

Nathan Deen

Freelance journalist and content marketer, author and aspiring Screenwriter. Nathan has written for Savannah Morning News, The Brunswick News and the Bayonet and Saber.

Doing Good

Pickle for Pups Combines Pickleball, Parties and Fun for a Worthy Cause

Published

2 months ago

October 1, 2024

Shawne Taylor

The two-day event aims to raise funds for local dog rescue

Show off your pickleball skills, cheer on the players, meet fellow dog lovers and enjoy the beautiful facility and courts at Life Time Health & Fitness Center in Peachtree Corners at the second annual Pickle for Pups fundraising weekend.

large outdoor facility with tennis and pickleball courts — Life Time pickleball courts, courtesy of Pickle for Pups

Whether you’re a tournament-level player or a pickleball beginner, this two-day event offers fun for everyone. With exciting games, drills and open play; a Friday night party; Saturday team tournament; and an online raffle, it’s a great way to meet and mingle with other pickleball enthusiasts while supporting the work done by BarkVille Dog Rescue.

Weekend events

The festivities kick off on Friday, November 15 from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. with an evening of food, drinks, live music and pickleball. The Life Time pros will offer clinics and drills, and other courts will be available for open play. Some of the rescue’s adorable, adoptable dogs will even be onsite for the fun.

dog on a leash wearing a halo — photo courtesy of Pickle for Pups

Saturday, November 16 from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. will feature the team tournament with two divisions: 3.0/3.5 and 4.0/4.5. Matches will include one men’s line, one women’s line and two mixed lines. The top four teams in each level will advance to the medal round, and medals for the top three teams in each division will be awarded.

Participants can form their own team or ask to be placed on a team at their level.

Team tournament players will receive a boxed lunch, and food will also be available for purchase at the club restaurant.

In addition to tournament play, beginners clinics and drills will be offered from 10:00 to 11:30 a.m., and open play will be available for those who can’t commit to the full afternoon but still want to have some pickleball fun.

There will be nine courts available for Friday night and 12 courts for Saturday. All courts are permanent pickleball courts and indoor courts are also available, so the event will be held rain or shine.

Ticket options

The Drinks & Dinks pass includes entrance to the Friday evening party (complete with food, drink, live music and pickleball), as well as entry on Saturday for open play, clinics and drills. Cost: $50.

The Top Dog “Team Up for Rescue” tournament pass is for people playing in the team tournament and includes registration for all of the action on Saturday as well as the Friday night party and an event swag bag. Cost: $75.

Both ticket options allow you to come both days or just one day.

large outdoor pickleball court facility — photo courtesy of Pickle for Pups

The raffle

Pickle for Pups is also holding a raffle featuring amazing prizes, including an all-inclusive trip for two to the Caribbean, a Zane Navratil ProXR paddle and virtual lesson, gift cards to local restaurants and more.

New prizes will be added weekly leading up to the event. Raffle tickets can be purchased online through November 16. The drawing will be held that day at 3:00 p.m.

Ten raffle entries are $25; 140 entries can be purchased for $200. Other entry packages are available for $50 and $100 as well.

The details

Event dates: November 15-16

Location: Life Time Health Club & Fitness Center at 6350 Courtside Dr. NW, Peachtree Corners, GA

For more information or to make a donation, purchase event tickets or buy raffle entries, visit go.rallyup.com/pickleforpups2024.

For more about BarkVille Dog Rescue, visit barkvilledogrescue.org.

Information about Life Time in Peachtree Corners can be found at lifetime.life/locations/ga/peachtree-corners.

Community

Olympian Jasmine Jones Visits Her Local Alma Mater

Published

2 months ago

September 25, 2024

Shawne Taylor

Olympic athlete standing with a school mascot

Olympian Jasmine Jones, a standout alumna of Greater Atlanta Christian School (Class of 2020), returned to her alma mater on September 12 to speak to and inspire the next generation of students there.

GAC staff interviewed Jones and also took questions from the students during a Q&A session that included every grade level.

Female Olympic athlete being interviewed onstage — photo courtesy of Greater Atlanta Christian School

As a member of the U.S. Olympic team and a 12-time Georgia state individual champion during her time at GAC, Jasmine’s visit was a homecoming filled with motivation and reflection. She spoke passionately to the students about the importance of perseverance, goal-setting, and embracing challenges, drawing from her journey from GAC to the University of Southern California and the global stage of the Olympics.

Jones qualified for the Paris Olympics on June 30 and made the U.S. team in women’s 400m hurdles after placing third. She went on to place fourth in the women’s 400m hurdles final at the Paris games.

Female Olympian meeting members of the audience in a school auditorium — photo courtesy of Greater Atlanta Christian School

Students and staff at GAC cheered Jones on during the Olympics. And they cheered her again as she took to the school’s stage to address the audience. Before and after the event, Jones posed for photos, gave high-fives and took time connect with some of GAC’s enthusiastic students and faculty.

Female Olympian meeting students at her alma mater — photo courtesy of Greater Atlanta Christian School

Her words — and her accomplishments — left a powerful impression on the crowd, reminding everyone of the heights that can be achieved with dedication and faith.

For more about GACS, visit greateratlantachristian.org.

Sports

A Record-Breaking Year for Wesleyan Athletics

Published

6 months ago

June 3, 2024

Peachtree Corners Magazine staff

Wesleyan is known for its faith-based academic excellence, but maybe you didn’t know that the school’s athletic prowess is just as impressive.

Girls Cross Country // Images courtesy of Wesleyan

Wesleyan School is known for its faith-based academic excellence, but maybe you didn’t know that the school’s athletic achievements are just as impressive. This year alone, Wesleyan has amassed an astounding nine state championships.

“The Wesleyan School athletic program has been incredibly blessed to enjoy a significant amount of success during the 2023-2024 school year. Winning nine state championships is a credit to our student-athletes, coaches, and parents,” said Chris Cleveland, head of school and assistant coach for the varsity boys basketball team.

Nine state championship titles are the most Wesleyan has ever won in a single school year. But the school’s athletic department is focused on far more besides winning.

“While winning a state championship is a substantial accomplishment that is worthy of celebration, it is not the sole measure by which we measure the success of a season. It is our greatest desire and prayer that the lives of our students will be transformed due to the investment by our coaches and through the relationships they build with their teammates,” added Cleveland.

After the girls and boys lacrosse teams won their state titles earlier this year, Wesleyan now has a state championship in every sport they field.

“We are so proud of our student-athletes, coaches, and our entire athletics program. Regardless of the number of state championships in a given year, our goal is to develop young men and young women of character. When recognition like state titles accompanies that objective, it certainly is a lot of fun and a great honor for our entire community,” commented Lacy Gilbert, director of athletics.

Congratulations to all Wesleyan student-athletes, coaches and faculty for this incredible accomplishment.

List of team titles:

Girls Softball
Girls Cross Country
Boys Swim & Dive
Girls Swim & Dive
Girls Lacrosse
Boys Lacrosse
Girls Tennis
Girls Track & Field
Boys Golf

List of individual titles:

Weezie Moore – Girls Cross Country
Abbey Suits – Dive
Hattie Wasmuth – Swim: 200 Medley
Max Perry – Swim: 50 Free
Ryan Cowart, Jace Neeb, JJ Neeb and Max Perry – Swim: 200 Free Relay
Ansley Chapman, MC Harrison, Vivian Hosier and Hattie Wasmuth – Swim: 200 free relay
Ryan Cowart, JJ Neeb, Max Perry and Connor Worgo – Swim: 400 free relay
Ansley Chapman, Lily Corbitt, Vivian Hosier and Hattie Wasmuth – Swim: 400 free relay
Weezie Moore – Track & Field: 3,200 meters
Kyra Brubaker, Ansley Voss, Eva Murphy and Julie Anne Bush – Track & Field: 4 x 800-meter relay
Anne McSweeney – Track & Field: 800 meters
Ben Vondrak – Track & Field: Wheelchair 800 meters and 200 meters