LEAGUE SPOTLIGHT
New Jersey
A League of Their Own
T
he New Jersey Pickleball
Association (NJPA), began three
years ago with one tennis player,
George Cheah, who instantly
became addicted to a new sport.
Entranced, George watched online and at his
local YMCA and eagerly bought some starter
equipment. However, the available pickleball
resources didn’t match his enthusiasm for the
game. The Northeast offered few venues for
league play. George tried reaching out to parks
and recreation centers, but the reply was, “What’s
pickleball?”
Ditto for community centers, tennis clubs
and basketball courts. Many rejections later,
George launched a five-year plan on a shoestring
to build a pickleball league in Bergen County,
New Jersey, where he lives. The mission was to
organize, promote, teach and play pickleball with
500 members within five years.
Fast-forward three years. The league now has
420 members and expects to surpass the initial
goal of 500 by the end of summer. They also
have five indoor sites, two outdoor sites and one
combined indoor-outdoor site. NJPA members
have access to each site, enabling them to play
seven days a week.
Their vision would have been nothing more
than a pipe dream without the right technology—
club scheduling software and, also, cooperative
site owners. In addition, highly motivated volunteers made it all
happen!
George expressed his gratitude for Cheryl Vellek and Barbara
Norton, the league’s second and third members, for their enthusiasm
and drive from the beginning.
The NJPA 2018 Program includes:
y Group rating match events seven days a week
y Player development programs, including intro-clinics for newbies
y Drill, Lesson & Play (DLP) Events
y Incremental Progression Series (IP Series): Building core foundation
y Performance Rating Level (PRL): Rating players upon entry and
progress review
y Summer Camp for recreational and competitive tournament players
y Tournament programs, which include organizing and preparing
our tournament members to compete in local, regional and national
events as a league team
y Outside events, which include the Connecticut Masters in May; the
U.S. Open in Naples, Florida, in April; the New Jersey Senior
Olympics in September; and the USAPA Nationals in Arizona in
November
y Local New Jersey Team Pickle Tournament (NJTPT) Series held four
times a year
y Referee program trains selected players to learn the rules of
refereeing as well as the art of controlling a game for the benefit of
all tournament players •
We’d like to feature your league!
For more information, email [email protected]
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