Pickleball tournament is a smash hit!

Pickleball players pose for a group photo on the Girdwood pickleball courts before the tournament began. (Photo by Ann Murphy)

By Chase Berenson

TNews Contributor

For five hours on Sat, Aug. 16, Girdwood’s pickleball courts were a competitive site as they hosted the Girdwood Pickleball Club Summer Tournament.  The Girdwood Pickleball Club is typically a casual group of players with a primary focus of fun, but the tournament gave everyone an opportunity to put their pickleball skills to the test.

Pickleball is the fastest growing sport in the US, and is booming here in Girdwood.  It is a fast-paced paddle sport that combines elements of tennis, badminton, and ping-pong, played on a court smaller than tennis with a net that’s lower than tennis.  Players use solid paddles to hit a perforated plastic ball, aiming to score points by making it difficult for opponents to return the shot.

Fourteen players were in for the tournament, making seven teams of two players each.  The day was divided into three segments: warm-up play, followed by seeding play, followed by the ranked tournament.  The warm-up period had classic fun games. 

The seeding play consisted of four ten-minute games with different teams and players in each one, where players were ranked on their win/loss ratio as well as the ratio of points earned to points lost to the opponent; this allowed every player to be ranked individually. 

Once this was completed the player rankings were announced, and teams were decided for the tournament based on rankings.  Then the serious fun started!  The seven teams played a double-elimination tournament that was highly competitive, and gave everyone a chance to play multiple games and participate in the fun.

The weather cooperated all day long, and though there were some sprinkles of rain the mild weather and minimal rain provided great conditions.  This was especially good news because the tournament had originally been scheduled for June, but had to be postponed due to rain on the original date.

Throughout most of the day there were multiple games at the same time on side-by-side courts, but as the tournament progressed to the final teams gameplay condensed to one court.  With 10 players sitting out and 11 spectators lining the court, this brought everyone’s focus to the final two games. 

The final game was between the only remaining teams in the competition: Jarrad Griffith and Barbara Lydon against Matt Wilson and Wendy Beaubien.  With all eyes on them, Jarrad and Barbara edged our Matt and Wendy to take home the bragging rights, while Matt and Wendy celebrated coming in second place in the tournament.

Pickleball is easy to learn and fun for all ages.  Anyone can try it, with adults invited to pickleball on Tuesday evenings at the Girdwood school.  Games are played outdoors while weather allows, but now that school is back in session games will move into the gym as the season changes.