Author: Al Hausmann

Well, you couldn’t ask for better weather. And you couldn’t ask for a better group of pickleball players. It was an exciting weekend with lots of fun drills and competitive pickleball games.

• Thanks to Scott Hettinger for organizing and planning every step of this event. I know it took days of work.
• Thanks to Scott’s captains:
  –1st Place – Blue Dragons: Cathy Rollins / Pat Allred
  –2nd Place – Red Riders: Chris Camplin / Mary Brown
  –3rd Place – Silver Bullets: Jeff Franken / Dick Cournoyer
  –Spirit Award – Mellow Yellow: Robyn Smith / Darin Denzler
• Thanks to the Liz Wilson and the Social Committee for organizing the snacks, food and banquet.
• Thanks to Carolyn Gaziano for taking pictures of the tournament play! (Link will be at the bottom of the page.)
• Thanks to Dan Heatherly for setting up the PA system and playing music!
• Thanks to Al Hausmann for taking the banquet pictures. (Link will be at the bottom of the page.)

Below you will find the list of people and the awards they won. As well as the finalists.

Tournament Results:

Top individual scores for each skill in the skills competition
Court 1 – Deep Serve  =  Andy Goliszek  21 points
Court 2 – Deep Return =  Kathleen Melnyk  22 points
Court 3 – 3^rd Shot Drop = Deb Chiarello  43 points
Court 4 – Ski Ball = Donna Cinotti  200 points
Court 5 – Lob = Liz Wilson & Andrea Velez  42 points
Court 6 – Volley = Dan Heatherly  99 points
Court 7 – Cross Ct Drive = Kat Blankenhorn  5 points
Court 8 – 3^rd Shot Drive =Tony Rollins, Jeff Franken & Dick Cournoyer  5 points

Top 3 Highest total combined points for all 8 skills
3^rd Place        Mike Melnyk  234 points
2^nd Place       Lynn Norris      249 points
1^st Place        Donna Cinotti  289 points

 Top 3 Highest total  combined points for 7 skills (minus the ski ball)
3^rd Place     Deb Chiarello  147 points
2^nd Place     Jim McCarthy  166 points 
1^st Place      Dan Heatherly  167 points

 Team Standings for the SKILLS COMPETITION
4^th Place    Mellow Yellow with 1748 points =  1 bean
3^rd Place    Red Riders with 2004 points =  2 beans
2^nd Place    Silver Bullets with 2402 points=   3 beans
1^st Place     Blue Dragons with 2701 points=   4 beans

This year’s winners of the Battle for the Paddle 2-day Team Tournament:
—Spirit Award –  Mellow Yellow (On behalf of Mount Olive pickle company)
—3^rd Place – with 77 total points – The Silver Bullets
—2^nd Place – with 79 total points – The Red Riders
—1^st  Place – with 98 total points – The Blue Dragons

This year we coordinated with the Tennis Association and will be using a website created by the Blatant Team Store to view, order, and ship SJPA-branded merchandise.

Their website has a much larger selection of apparel than previously provided in our apparel sales: including shirts, fleeces, jackets, hats, visors and more. 

The Blatant website should streamline the ordering and delivery of your orders. Take a look at their website that offers more than 80 items.

• Store opens now.
• Store closes October 14.
• Orders placed between October 1 and 8 will receive a 15% discount (you must enter the discount code: STJAMES15).
• Production will begin on October 15 after all orders have been placed.
• Items will ship within 3 to 4 weeks after the store closes.
• Anything with a zipper, polos, and hats will be embroidered while the t-shirts, hoodies, long sleeves, and performance type gear are printed items.
• No Returns Policy:  All items are special ordered, so there are no returns. Of course, items that are received damaged or defective in some way are returnable, but it’s not like Amazon where you can order a bunch of shirts and return the ones you don’t want.

Key Dates and Timeline in the Merchandise Sale

• October 1: Online sales are eligible for a 15% discount (discount code: STJAMES15)
• October 8: Last day to apply the 15% discount (discount code: STJAMES15)
• October 14: On line sales end at 11:59PM
• Items will ship within 3 to 4 weeks after the store closes

Take advantage of the discount offered on these eight days: Oct 1 – 8
(you must enter the discount code: STJAMES15)

APPAREL WEBSITE URL: https://blatantteamstore.com/collections/st-james-pickleball-association-team-store

By Fred Ammann

No, not characters, although we have our share of them playing at Rymer. I am talking about character, as in the mental and moral qualities distinctive to an individual. Pickleball is both fun and competitive; the two, however, do not always sync together. It is a sport filled with good-natured camaraderie, but one where winning can often take precedence and upset that happy balance. This is where one’s character can come to the forefront.

          Let us start with line calls. They are hard to make because the ball does not leave a mark on the court, and you are often not in the ideal position to see that tiny sliver of green between the ball and the line. In a friendly match, it is easy to play that ball “in” and give your opponents the benefit of the doubt. However, in a tight league or tournament match, playing for all the marbles, do you now make an “out” call? Your character might have something to do with that split-second decision.

          A similar character-testing situation involves overruling a partner’s call that you were sure was incorrect, knowing that doing so might disrupt team chemistry. Another is calling your partner for a non-volley-line infraction when your opponents were unaware of the illegal entrance into the kitchen. Do you still have the conviction to do the right thing?

          I must confess that my character temporarily hits the pause button on occasions when playing with my wife, Janice, who is NEVER WRONG when making a call. To overrule her would bring a severe blow to the domestic tranquility of our household and make for an uncomfortable ride home, not to mention me spending time in the Ammann doghouse for the foreseeable future, and we do not even have a dog.

          I play in several weekly scheduled groups with players of like ability, give or take someone having a bad day. Anything goes in these games, from frequent compliments for good shots an opponent makes to some friendly trash-talking, “Yeah, you better call for back-up,” when the score reaches 9-1-1. At one point or another, we all have been on the giving and receiving end of the praise and barbs. And there is always the good sportsmanship paddle-slap at the end, win or lose.

          Playing in open or white-board groups, however, is different. Here, there can be a wide gap in ability levels. How does the better player handle these mismatch-ups? Is it business as usual playing all out, or dialing it back a notch to not embarrass the lesser player? During our winters south, when we play in Naples, the pickleball capital of the nation, Janice and I have been on the receiving end of both.

          I find it reassuring that most top players in St. James play the latter rather than the former, making it fun and a positive learning experience. Some, however, need that win and play full tilt. They are not good ambassadors for the game and something to consider regardless of which side of the ratings scale you find yourself on.

          I have one final related thought that has nothing to do with pickleball. As an avid cyclist, Lance Armstrong was a hero to me and the whole bike-riding community, until he wasn’t. It all came down to character.

Are you new to Pickleball?  Would you like to practice skills to advance your game?  

Christine’s Beginner Round Robin is open to men and women that want to learn pickleball and improve their game. We will focus on serves, volley’s, dinking and much more. You do not need to be rated to participate. 

According to the Sports & Fitness Industry Association’s report, pickleball is the fastest growing team sport in America. So come see what all the fuss is about and join us for a great time learning and improving your game!

This Event will NOT be available on the FIRST Wednesday of every month. It will be scheduled for the remaining Wednesday’s of each month – SIGN UP WILL START SEPTEMBER 5.

Play starts on September 13th.

The St. James Pickleball Association (SJPA) provides a “New to St. James Pickleball” event each month. This event is starting back up this Wednesday, September 6, 2023.

Registration starts now.

ABOUT THIS EVENT:
This clinic provides the basics of the game from serve to volley and dinking.  It is a foundation for playing.  If you don’t know if pickleball is the game for you, this is the way to find out.

This event is an introduction to pickleball, you can only attend this event one time.

IS THERE A FEE?
You do not have to be a member of the St. James Pickleball Association  (SJPA), however, you must be a member of the Clubs at St James.  You must be a Signature Sport or Golf member. This time only, if you are only a Social Member, you will be assessed a $10 fee to use the courts. 

I’M A MEMBER OF THE CLUBS AT ST JAMES VS. SJPA MEMBER
–Your Signature Sport or Signature Golf membership is with Troon, the country club management company, also called The Clubs At St James. Fees paid to The Clubs At St James are your country club dues.
–The St James Pickleball Association (SJPA) is also a members only association working with SJPA members hosting events and socials throughout the year. The SJPA has a $20 yearly, per person fee. Almost ALL events on our calendar are for SJPA members only. The events listed on the calendar will always specify otherwise.

Play starts: Wednesday, September 6, 2023

It started out windy, but that was OK because the wind was a welcome relief from the heat.

The music from DJ Tim Axiom created the beach party atmosphere.

We had a great crowd from both the pickleball and tennis associations. The wind subsided about an hour after the party started. This turned into a perfect night to be listening to music on the beach. Friends, music, and sunsets, make life on the beach the best.

Pickleball in St James….In the beginning
The short story, is our St. James resident Fred Ammann and a small group of residents started playing pickleball over on Oak Island in 2015. By spring of 2016, at Fred’s suggestion, Troon management reappointed the tennis hitting wall space at Seaside into two pickleball courts.

St. James Plantation is no exception to the popularity of pickleball. In the Spring of 2018 Cindy Hettinger and a group of pickleball enthusiasts quickly signed up 277 people who were interested in pickleball. Today, our St. James Pickleball Association (SJPA) has over 570 (updated since the article) and is still growing for 2023.

Our Growth…
After many growing pains, we now have eight beautiful, lighted courts at the Greg Rymer Memorial Pickleball Courts and the two courts at the Seaside Wellness Center available for Sport and Golf members.

The SJPA volunteers run an event once a month called: New To Pickleball. This clinic teaches the basics of the game from serve to volley and dinking.

In September of 2020 our first president, Scott Hettinger, contacted Al Hausmann to create a logo, develop a website and an SJPA facebook page. SJPA website is an active, up-to-date, interactive website hosting all communications, events, socials, pictures, and external pickleball news. Alerts are sent out to all members regarding SJPA projects:

• Invitations to parties and social events, including our annual holiday party.
• Tournaments.
• Leagues.
• Round robins.
• Ladders.
• On-court and social events.
• SJPA sends notifications about local pickleball events and camps.
• https://stjamespickleball.com

 Events for local charities:

• Winter Dance featuring The Salty Dawgs raised $3325 to benefit Matthew’s Ministry.
• Our Social Committee ran our 2^nd Annual Spring Fling (music festival) raising $4309 for the Southport Oak Island Interchurch Fellowship Food Pantry (SOIIFFP).
• Make a Wish Social Fundraiser.
• We are providing volunteers and donating paddles for a summer camp for under-served kids in Brunswick County.
• Sneaker drive collected over 1,100 pairs of sneakers which converted into nearly $1000 for Waves 4 K.I.D.S.
• Our Sunshine Committee provides a little sunshine to SJPA members who’ve experienced an illness, injury, or loss of an immediate family member. They also sponsor food drives at many of our events to benefit SOIIFFP.

SJPA Board of Directors is our advocate and directly represents our members with the Clubs At St. James management (Troon).  

Our current board consists of: Deb Chiarello, and George Johnson, Kathy McArthur, Mary Heatherly, Al Hausmann, Jeff Franken, and Liz Wilson.

Membership and Benefits: A SJPA membership costs only $20 / year per person. Social events: pool parties, progressive dinner, beach parties, and more.

• Organized on-court social events, fundraisers, round robins, tournaments, and leagues.
• Beginner pickleball instructional play.
• Other opportunities to mix and mingle with fellow SJPA members.
• Direct communication with our club owners, Troon, via the Sports Advisory Committee, where the SJPA continues to advocate for improvements, expansion, programming, etc. on behalf of our membership.

The beautiful weather – absolutely BEAUTIFUL. Fantastic music provided by Cat-a-tonic’s. Dinners provided by the 2Bros and A&M Red Food Trucks – DELICIOUS and Chuck’s Ice Cream – ALWAYS A FAVORITE.

Of course, all who attended – made for a wonderful evening and VERY successful fundraising event. With great attendance, generous donations and a hefty 50/50 drawing, we raised $4309 for the Southport/Oak Island Interchurch Fellowship Food Pantry (SOIICF).

This year’s event took place on the lawn at Woodlands, and we heard good things about how nice it was to spread out, easy to venture around, say hello to friends and neighbors, and play a game or two.

The SJPA Board and Social Committee thank you for supporting our efforts to provide, not only a great social event for our membership, but more importantly help our local community with a substantial donation that is so very needed.

Once again, we would like to thank Carolyn for the excellent pictures:
https://www.amazon.com/photos/shared/Z1IWvhmRSE2rjKXzDVcH7w.grrhTBtylLIVg9fTJ2QCbp

This volunteer group just wrapped up at the end of March. What a wonderful experience for the kids.

A great big thank you to all the Pickleball Volunteers who gave pickleball instruction to the children at Southport Elementary.  You were so giving of your time and patience! 

For those who weren’t at the school during the second week, you should know that the students cheered when they saw the pickleball nets up and realized they were going to get to play again. 

It was amazing to see how many hands went up when we asked who had played pickleball before and how many were going to play over Spring Break!  The children were truly grateful. You all need to be recognized for your hard work. I know there were some naps taken on days you volunteered!

-Alicia Mastropietro
-Joe Mastropietro
-Scott Hettinger
-Marilou Rubright
-Cheryl Giese
-Joe Giese
-Sheryl Hill
-Mary Heatherly
-Scott Nasiff
-Katy Nasiff
-Leslie Saralino
-Nancy Jorgensen
-Karen Fania
-Jim Fania
-Eileen Kopunek
-Kathy Kunze
-Sandy Schach
-Wendy Casterline

Extra thanks from Cindy Hettinger for your help and flexibility!

Nothing but positive feedback.  Even the very strong gusts of wind could not put a damper on the day.  

People brought great food and great fun.  It was really fantastic to see all the SJPA members having such a fun time playing. 

Great job to Andy and Kathy Goliszek for laying all the groundwork leading up to this event.  We were sorry not to see them there due to a last-minute illness and sincerely hope all is well.

A very big THANK YOU to Joe Bietz, Andrea Velez and Robyn Smith for jumping right in to save the day.  They did a wonderful job of getting the day all set up and keeping things running smoothly.

We all also owe a big THANK YOU to Carolyn Gaziano, who took a lot of pictures during the event. Here is a link to all of the photos that Carolyn took:

Again, many thanks again to Andy, Kathy, Robyn, Andrea and Joe for a fantastic team effort putting together a great event.

Hello to all of our 503 St. James Pickleball Association (SJPA) members, at this early point in the year! Here we are nearing the end of February with a few fun, successful events behind us, and lots more to come. 

Our Winter Dance was fabulous with lots of dancing to great music provided by The Salty Dawgs! To top it off, we raised over $3,200 for Matthew’s Ministry! Thanks to the Social Committee for a well-organized event. The beautiful raffle baskets were a huge hit! We are looking forward to many more awesome social events this year.

Mother Nature did not cooperate for our Winter Classic Pickleball event, which had to be canceled. Almost a wash-out, our Valentine’s Pickleball Social ended up being a big success! (Many thanks to the Events committee members who spent more than an hour rolling the courts!) Laughter, yummy food, and fun pickleball ensued – and the weather cooperated. Our Events and Tournaments committee is hard at work planning more excellent activities to enjoy this year.

Coming in March, Kim has a pro-night planned on the 2nd, so, mark your calendars.

The popular Progressive Dinner is on the 16th, a St. Patrick’s Day Pickleball Social on the 17th, and then something new to our repertoire, “Mixed Up Doubles” social pickleball will be on the 22nd. More details will be on our website. 

Our awesome webmaster and Board member, Al Hausmann, and his side-kick Diana Kelly, keep us all “in the know,” with a jam-packed website, http://www.stjamespickleball.com.   One feature we’ve recently added is a “ST. JAMES PICKLEBALL ASSOCIATION – 2023 CALENDAR of EVENTS,” so you can see the activities that our committees have planned and easily update your calendar! Be sure to check out the website frequently, so you don’t miss the latest happenings on and off the courts planned for this year.

Membership is still growing! Every month, Christine Cournoyer and her army of volunteers, welcomes 20 or more folks to the “New To Pickleball” event. Then Christine runs a “Beginners Pickleball” every week, teaching the basics to those who catch the pickleball “bug.” This wonderful service provided by our volunteers helps our newbies learn the game and find other players at their level, so they can enjoy the game we all love to play!

Our Sunshine Committee, Chaired by Kathy Goliszek, has been very busy, and we hear great reviews from our members who are recipients of their cards, meals, and support when injuries, surgeries, illness, etc. arise. This committee also coordinates food collections at different events throughout the year on behalf of the Southport-Oak Island Interchurch Fellowship Food Pantry (SOIIFC), who is so grateful for the generous donations and support of the SJPA. 

The roll out of the new, Troon Chelsea reservation system (is that a groan I hear?) has been challenging, to say the least. That being said, it seems like folks are getting the hang of the system, in spite of the frustrations as we adjust to this new product. We will be approaching our Club Management about the possibility of some improvements to the system, to make it more user friendly, and will keep you updated.

Another recent addition is the Dynamic Universal Pickleball Rating (DUPR). We are optimistic that this system and its complex algorithm will assist with obtaining reliable ratings that will be useful for our players as they participate in SJPA events, as well as tournaments, ladders, and other events outside of SJPA. Since DUPR is new to most of us, we are anxious to get to that 60th game entry that will (hopefully) give us a realistic rating.

Your SJPA board and committees are working diligently on your behalf, to make 2023 a momentous year. As we strive to provide a well-rounded pickleball program, Board Members: President (me): Deb Chiarello – oversee the various events and activities, VP: George Johnson, Treasurer: Kathy McArthur, Secretary: Mary Heatherly, Communications: Al Hausmann, Tournaments and Events: Jeff Franken, Social: Liz Wilson. 

I continue to represent the SJPA on the Troon Sports Advisory Committee, where we work with our Club management to provide an excellent pickleball experience for our Club members. We are listening to you, and continue to make recommendations for expansion, improvements, and maintenance at our facilities.

Most importantly, we are thankful for each and every one of you, and appreciate your enthusiasm and support. Please feel free to contact me, or any of our board members, if you have questions, concerns, or suggestions. I look forward to seeing you on the courts! 

All the best!
Deb Chiarello,
SJPA President

November 16 @ 3:30 pm – 5:30 pm

Kim & Adam invite you to challenge us.

There will be 2 opportunities for you to teach us a thing or two. We look forward to your challenge and having fun with you on the court. You have an advantage
because Adam and I have never played together! We encourage all levels of play to take advantage of this opportunity. We, as the pros, promise to play in a way that challenges your level of play, whatever that may be.

Both events: Challenge the Pros, Drop Shot Challenge will be held at the Greg Rymer Courts. The Franklin Ball will be used. Prizes will be on hand.

EVENT #1: Challenge the Pros – Wednesday 16th from 3:30 – 5:30 pm

There are many ways of winning, the first is by participating! I want this to be fun for every challenging team/player.

Kim & Adam invite you to challenge them to a 10 minute game. Challengers can be:
— Mixed team
— Women’s team
— Men’s team
It’s up to you!!

*Our schedule will have 1-2 minutes between games
*Our time will allow for up to 10 teams to challenge
*You may play on 1 team only
*As each team arrives, we ask you to use your paddles to determine order of play
*Arrive early to be one of the first challengers
*You can place your paddle in queue once both of you are present

For this to run smoothly we’d like to see at least 3 teams in queue
by 3:30, and 3-4 after that.

ONLY TEAMS THAT HAVE SIGNED UP CAN PLAY.
ONLY 10 TEAMS CAN SIGN UP.
Play will begin promptly at 3:30pm.

I have my partner’s information I want to sign up now to Challenge the Pro!

---

EVENT #2: DROP SHOT CHALLENGE – Thursday 17th from 1:30 – 2:30 pm

Kim & Adam will feed balls & provide targets which are tomato cages, for you to hit &/or sink your drop shot from various areas of the court.

How we will play the game:
–If you, the player, successfully hits or sinks a ball at or into the
cage from a particular area, then the pro is given 3 chances to do the same.
–If the pro can match the shot, then the score is even (think Corn Hole).
–Pros feed all balls and pros alternate turns to even out the score.

There are four time slots and eight people per time slot.
First start time:
–1:30pm (sign up)
–1:45pm (sign up)
–2:00pm (sign up)
–Last: 2:15pm (sign up)

Open to ONLY 8 different players every 15 minutes. Please sign up for a time
slot.

REQUIREMENTS:
–Sport or Golf Membership
–SJPA paid member