We had a player hit in the eye today. Ricochet off their partner's paddle and hit them directly in the eye. Fortunately the player was wearing safety glasses. You can buy them online for less than $20. Highly recommended. You can even get prescription safety glasses online or from your local Optometrist.
Aiken Pickleball News
Lexington SC is scheduled to open their new 24 Hour Pickleball facility this coming Friday, March 1st. Facility will have 8 indoor courts and as the name suggests, will be open 24/7. Cost -
$100 initiation fee
Choice of two memberships
Gold - $90 every four weeks.
Silver - $60 every four weeks.
Gold membership includes
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Unlimited open play participation
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6 hours of court reservations per day
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Reserve up to 14 days in advance
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24/7 access to facility*
Silver membership includes
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Unlimited court reservations
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Unlimited open play participation
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2 hours of court reservations per day
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Reserve up to 5 days in advance
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24/7 access to facility*
Future locations planned for Greenville, Charleston, Charlotte, Asheville and Augusta. Franchise options possible for Aiken. Go to 24hourpickleball.com for full details and investment opportunities
Drills with "Little Mo'' will be every Saturday until the end of May. The drills will be held in the morning on Court 4 at Odell Weeks from 915-1030am. As in the past, each week will have a different theme. Schedule as follows:
Sat Mar 23 - Return of Serve, down the line.
Sat Mar 30 - Dinks with a purpose; hitting your target spots
Sat Apr 6 - Half Volley soft drop; Half Volley drives.
Sat Apr 13 - Overhead smash; Volley snap at the kitchen.
Sat Apr 20 - 3rd Shot drop - Canceled - Moved to Saturday, June 1st
Sat Apr 27 - Drive topspin Volley (Starting time moved to 11am)
Sat May 4 - King/Queen of the court, (Doubles)
Sat May 11 - Drop, Chip, Drive.
Sat May 18 - Lobs
Sat May 25 - Specialty shots (Various Big Mo Shot choices).
Sat June 1st - 3rd shot drop (moved from April 20th)
Skill Levels do not matter in Drills with Little Mo. Players rotate hitting balls fed by a ball machine. Doesn't make any difference if you are a beginner or an advanced player. Each player hits approximately five-eight balls in a row and then rotates. "Big Mo" will be there to show everyone the proper technique.
Cost is $15 per person per sixty minute session. Each session is limited to a maximum of six players (minimum of three). Register and pay at the Odell front desks and present the receipt to the instructor.
For those of you that don't know, "Little Mo" is a ball machine. "Big Mo" is Mo Garcia our head teaching professional.
There was some great pickleball played yesterday afternoon on the fourteen outdoor courts at Virginia Acres Park. Over fifty girls and boys participated in the Augusta-Aiken Middle School League Pickleball Championship representing their individual schools. These kids are good! Pickleball has officially joined basketball, soccer, football, baseball and golf league competition for the fourteen schools that are members of AAMSL. See photos.
Gold Medal Match
For 3rd place - Main draw
Consolation 2nd place
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Consolation 1st place
All fourteen courts in play!
We are pleased to announce that Chuck Buchanan has been selected as the USAP Ambassador for Aiken County, SC. He will be working with Mo Garcia, the District Ambassador, to secure new pickleball venues throughout our area.
We are spending numerous hours correcting careless mistakes or senior moments. The past couple of Thursdays approximately 10% of the court reservations have been invalid. Some are as simple as not putting the first initial and last name of two players, or of making two court reservations side by side, but not listing two different players. More serious infractions are when players exceed the two-court limit, thus temporarily taking up a court they are not entitled to.
Currently court time is limited and everyone is in a hurry to get a reservation, but there is no reason not to enter the names correctly. Prior to entering the SUG, go to Docs and type in the names of the players you are playing with in the correct format (first initial, last name) and do a copy. When in SUG select the court you want and hit paste.
Those of you that are having senior moments and exceeding the two-court limit on Thursdays will now have your last entry automatically deleted. Blatant repeat offenders will be referred to the City for code of conduct ethics violations.
One of our old pickleball players passed away last Friday - Donald Penzien. Don was a regular at drop in play. Some of you might remember him when you see his photo.
There were 92 rule changes for 2024. Following are two of the most significant.
1. Correcting Server, Receiver, and Player Position Errors (4.B.9) Faults for incorrect server, incorrect receiver, and player position errors are eliminated. All previous points count. Players return to correct positions with no penalty.
2. Catch or Carry Ball on the Paddle (7.L) Rule 7.L now makes catching or carrying a ball on the paddle a fault without having to determine that the catch or carry was deliberately done.
To access a zoom meeting among USAP Ambassadors and the rules committee discussing the changes click the link below.
Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/share/ntihK3yvUQBkIfHD73M1cfETUoVm7qJQbLu27_... Passcode: 7zv*raK5
With the increase in outdoor play it is not surprising that the Lost and Found at the front desk at Odell is overflowing with items left on the outdoor courts. There are some really nice jackets and a VP pickleball paddle just waiting for someone to claim them. I'd get there before this Friday as that's when the Xmas craft show starts and parking will be difficult.
The photo below is how someone left the closet at Odell Weeks today. Notice that the dividers are blocking the entrance to the upstairs door despite the sign that says DO NOT block door. This is a no, no. There is a photo on the front door of the closet that shows how the nets and dividers should be stored. Please follow this guide.
