Author: Anahid Gregg

Those who have been playing since 2015 know the struggles we went through to get our courts approved. It really DID take a Village, as we went through multiple sound studies and jumped through hoops to obtain approval from the City of San Jose Planning Commission. Had we not found the Sun City Grand “Quiet Paddle List” and the quieter Onix 2 Pure balls, we would not be playing pickleball at The Villages. Need new paddles? Costco is currently selling Selkirk Latitude Paddles – 2 for $99, regularly $69 a piece (but you can’t use the included balls here)!

Being good neighbors to residents of both The Hounds Estates and Villagers is paramount. There is an updated paddle list on our site, and we are sending out another round of requests for paddle make & model to ensure our database is up to date. Onix 2 Pure balls can be purchased at discounted prices through our website, we buy in bulk to share with Club members.

The Villages requires us to register all players, and it takes less than a minute to submit your request for guests. Simply click this link!
See you on the courts!

This week we look at another set of amazing members, Susie-Q and Marie! They moved into the Villags on Valentine’s Day (aw…) and both have led pretty incredible lives.

Read all about them in this weeks article!

Pickleball is great fun, but what are we without our members? We have people with fascinating backgrounds, and one of those is Peter Conk, who has been been instrumental in working with the homeless in San Jose, many of whom are women and seniors. Here’s a glimpse into what his work!

Look for more member profiles in the future, and if you know someone with a unique story, let us know!

We shared the results last week, but you can read about all the fun here.
View full results by clicking here – congratulations to all the participants in this fun event!

We even had some fun costumes, next time we’ll have to give prizes…

Good question! First reason is safety. The proper shoes will prevent your feet from sticking to the court, as well as providing the proper support and stability. They also won’t mark up the beautiful surface. This correct equipment can make all the difference! Read more here.

Feel free to share this link with your friends who are interested in trying Pickleball!  This has the basic information to get started, next week will discuss the proper footwear.  See you on the courts!

YourCourts keeps evolving, meeting customer requests, and now they have added a Wait List! You can add yourself to the Wait List and get notified by either email or text if a court is cancelled. Click this link to read the complete process.

A corollary is… if you realize you will not be using a court you’ve reserved, please cancel as early as possible, so others can make use of it. Thank you!

They say it takes a Village… well, in our case it takes Villagers to handle all the planning and implementation of our Club events! So we’d like to introduce you to the women behind the scene, Michelle McQuay and Sherry Benz – read all about them here!

Do you have problems filling your group sometimes? And what about when there is a late cancellation?
YourCourts has the answer!

The Find A Match functionality allows you to see the people who are available to play during your timeslot, as well as their level. At that point, you send invitations to only those people you choose. Read how to set it up, and make your game scheduling so much easier!

Kyle Koszuta, “That Pickleball Guy”, makes great videos. He not only explains how to improve your game, but why – and will terrific examples. You can view the full video under The Game and selecting Instructional Videos. Here are the basics, but we strongly recommend watching for yourself.
1. Return and Run – if you are on the receiver, as soon as you hit the ball, run up to the kitchen line and stand next to your partner (who should already be there). Note how they are literally an inch or two away.
2. Stance & Punch – Stand in a ready stance, knees bent. Keep your paddle up, so you can control where the ball goes with short, compact strokes.
3. Serve & Stay – Many points are lost when someone moves up after serving, or backs up and makes a bad hit or… falls because you NEVER BACK UP!
4. Third Shot Tactics – learn a drop shot. Since many players do not move up, you can easily win a lot of points, and have time to move up to the kitchen line!
5. Hold the Line – Once you are at the kitchen line… stay there. Hold that line; you’ll be in position and won’t be off balance.
6. Dink to the Backhand – over and over! They will miss by hitting into the net or popping up.