Pickleball Magazine 3-4 Courtesy of Pickleball Guru | Page 53

with Tonja Major. The pros just came in
and really treated everybody to some of
the best pickleball in the country.”
The Gamma Classic also is unique
in that it’s completely funded and hosted by the
Parkinson Foundation Western Pennsylvania. Several
competitors live with Parkinson’s disease and come out
specifically to help the cause.
“This tournament does a great job by continuing
to showcase the connection between pickleball and
Parkinson’s,” Wertz says.
“The key is having as many courts as you can get
to make the play go as fast and as timely as possible.
Getting the pros there is also key to getting the spectators
coming in. The goal is to make this a destination
tournament for the City of Pittsburgh. We learn
something new every year. This year we had a total of
38 courts, and the convention center
really gives us an incredi ble venue to
grow in space as the tournament grows
in numbers. What really impressed me was
that everybody was commenting that this was
one of the best-run tournaments they’ve ever experienced.
Participants and all the volunteers—they just come in and
do what it takes to get it done. The volunteers are critical
to this!”
Sponsorships also continue to grow, he adds, with
Gamma Pickleball remaining the top sponsor for all three
years of the tournament’s history.
“We’re lucky to have a local company like Gamma that’s
so tied into the pickleball world,” notes Wertz. “Their
sponsorship has increased every year, and many of their
pros and ambassadors come out and play.” •
KITCHPICKLEBALL.com
Enter offer code
"pbmag"
at checkout and
save 10% instantly
O ffi c i a l a p pa r el
pa rt n er
@KITCHPICKLEBALL
JULY/AUGUST 2018 |
MAGAZINE
51