On Saturday ESPN aired a first of its kind Pickleball Slam, pitting four aging tennis stars in a winner-take-all battle to highlight the rapid growth of pickleball. The match was played at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida.
Andre Agassi (52), hefting at least thirty pounds more than he did in his prime, teamed with Andy Roddick (40), his damaged right knee heavily taped, to take on Michael Chang and John McEnroe. Chang, at 51, was clearly the most comfortable of the four, while Johnny Mac, at 64 resembling a merger of Keith Richards and Walter Matthau, tried hard, if not successfully to reprise his youthful boorish court behavior. In brief, Roddick played Chang, while McEnroe battled Agassi in singles, before squaring off in the doubles match, which sported a $1 million dollar, winners-take-all purse. Additionally, each played for a $100,000 donation to the charity of his choice. Youth prevailed; Roddick and Agassi won.
If you didn’t watch the Pickleball Slam you didn’t miss anything. The level of play was low and the hype far greater than the reality. In short, it was a painful bore made palatable by the knowledge that several charities benefited from the farce.
On the other hand, The Savannah Open Pickleball Championship, which was held at The Savannah Golf Club, was terrific. While most competitors were from the Savannah area, several states were represented including New Jersey, Alabama, South Carolina, Florida and Tennessee. It was a three-day tournament with three broad groups: Women’s Doubles, Mix Doubles and Men’s Doubles, further divided by age and ratings.
The Landings Club performed extremely well with eleven teams earning medals. Overall, our best performance was in Mixed Doubles where we won three gold, one silver and three bronze medals. Gold medals were won by the teams of Krista Poppell and Peter Dorward, Claudia Gaughf, playing with Mark Silvers, and Karen Inglese and Johnny Moran. Cherie and AJ Goldman took silver while Amy Paderewski and Chris Philips, Dale Baker and Chas Ferrelle, and Mary Jane Martin and Scott McKessy grabbed bronze.
In Women’s Doubles, Krista Poppell and Kimberly Phillips, and Amy Paderewski and Claudia Gaughf won silver. Courtney Neely and Leslie Marino took bronze.
Benny Eichholz and Phil Espy won bronze; the only medal awarded to a Landings Club team in Men’s Doubles.
All in all, The Landings Club did extremely well. Of the twenty-seven members who played in The Savannah Open sixteen individuals won medals. Overall, we won 23% of the medals awarded in all categories. It is clear that The Landings picklers are a force, but so are the many competitors at The Savannah Golf Club and many other clubs in the southeast and around the country. We need to continue increasing tournament skills at all levels. Thanks to Alex and Bradley, we are doing what is necessary to stay in the upper brackets.
Many thanks to The Savannah Golf Club, Jaylen Silvers and Raffa Array for organizing an extremely successful tournament.