Mark your calendar for May 18–20, 2012, and plan to join us for a special tournament to celebrate six years of pickleball in Hot Springs Village!

 

The tournament will be held at the DeSoto Family Recreation area. You can sign up for singles and/or doubles events. The entry fee is $30, plus $5 for each additional event. HSV Pickleball Club members and USAPA members will receive a $10 discount.

 

For complete information and the entry form, select the section “HSV Pickleball Celebration Tournament” in the main menu.

Increased demand for multi-level pickleball training has led the Hot Springs Village Pickleball Club to restructure its training program with additional qualified instructors and redefined lesson plans. The new program launches on March 1 with three levels of classes – PB101, PB102 and PB103.

 

There is no charge for the classes; however; all interested participants will be required to register in advance.

 

The club will continue to provide equipment for PB101, but participants in the other classes must have their own paddle and be current with their dues, paid at the POA.

 

All three levels of training will be held on Thursdays from 2 to 4 p.m. at the DeSoto Family Recreation area with priority use of the courts. The caged courts will be used by PB 101. Any courts not being used by the 102 & 103 classes are available for members’ play.

 

Pickleball 101 is designed as a 90-minute introductory class for prospective members, giving them the opportunity to try out the equipment, learn some of the basic skills, and experience playing actual games. Beginners wishing to sign up for PB101 can call Diane Ramsdell at 922-1127 or George Johnson at 915-8068.

 

Club members who desire to hone their skills for more confidence and more consistent playing are eligible for Pickleball 102. This level of instruction will focus on ball-hitting drills as well as games where correction and/or improvement can be made to the player’s stroke techniques, court positioning effectiveness, and overall game strategy. Club members can contact Don Pohlman at 922-9112 to sign up for PB102.

 

Upon completion of PB102, players who wish to progress to a more competitive environment can sign up for Pickleball 103 by contacting Dennis Ramsdell at 922-1127. The focus of PB103 will be on skill techniques and strategies for playing competitively as a doubles team in pickleball leagues and tournaments. This class will offer high-level instruction on specialty shots such as dinks, lobs and overhead slams, as well as on strategies for movement and positioning during advanced or competitive play.

 

“We’re offering a new look for our training program in response to what our club members are requesting,” says Diane Ramsdell, Pickleball Ambassador and training instructor. “An increasing number of new players are excited about learning the game, and our more experienced players want to sharpen their skills.”

 

If you have questions, please send an email to training@hsvpickleball.org.

New website enhancements make information clearer and quicker to access. Please check out the  FAQ,  Contact Us, and  Calendar pages to see the changes.

A new FAQ section was added that targets potential and new members. Our goal is to answer the majority of potential and new member questions in one spot. It can be a little overwhelming for someone not familiar with our club when they need to find out how to get started with POA fees, training and court access.

The Contact Us page is now simpler, faster and more straight forward when trying to determine whom to email when questions arise that the FAQ page can’t answer. There are currently five areas where questions or comments can be directed: Administration, Training, Equipment, Website and General Information.

A new, large-format Calendar page was added to give a better week-at-a-glance of what is scheduled for court activity. The original smaller version located on the homepage will still be available when you just need a quick reminder. The larger calendar can show weekly or monthly information in a larger format. Additionally, the dedicated calendar page also includes definitions on some of the more common activities and how it's displayed on the calendar.

All Introductory Training classes will be "by appointment only" Effective Nov 18th (contact Don or George to schedule a class). So the 17th will be our last clinic at 3:00 on Thursdays until next Spring. The Pickleball 101 classes will also have its last session for the season on the 17th as well. Please see the calendar on the Home page for updates to all schedules.

The Village Church of Christ is hosting an exciting one-day Pickleball competition that is open to all Arkansas residents. It will be held at the Village Church of Christ gymnasium at 210 Balboa Road in Hot Springs Village, December 17, 2011 starting at 9:00am. Click here to Download entry form and additional information.

Beginning the week of October 2, the schedule for Open Play and the training clinics will change. Please make a note of the new times:

The Referee Clinic for volunteer referees during the Pickleball Senior Olympics is now set for 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, September 22. Tom Burkhart, our Mid-South Region ambassador, will be conducting the clinic, which will take 20 to 30 minutes to cover basic instruction.

If you are willing to be a referee during the Olympics, please plan to attend the clinic which will be held at our pickleball courts (not in Jessieville).

Thanks to all the volunteers!

You can download a copy of the 2011 Arkansas Senior Olympics Entry Form from our website Here. Please print the form and fill out completely with all of the events you desire to enter and a SIGNATURE. All entries must be postmarked no later than September 2, 2011.