This past weekend was very busy for pickleball players in far Western Kentucky. There were 26 individuals from seven local counties participating in two different tournaments.
The Henderson Pickleball Tourney was held on the Henderson County High School Tennis Complex with 139 entries. This was an inaugural event with 10 Pickleball courts set up. Fourteen locals participated in seven events collecting 12 Medals; 4 Gold, 4 Silver and 4 Bronze. In addition to local players, participants were from Western Kentucky, Southern Indiana, Southern Illinois and Southeast Missouri.
The Pickleball event of the Bluegrass Games was held in Lexington with 301 entries. Four different venues were utilized. Twelve locals participated in 10 events collecting 12 medals; 6 Silver and 6 Bronze. There were participants from several surrounding states.
August 6-8 there will be a large presence of Western Kentucky players competing in the inaugural Saluki Open Pickleball Tournament hosted by SIU Carbondale, Illinois. This tournament will showcase a newly renovated facility with dedicated pickleball courts next to the SIU football stadium.
Pickleball is one of the fastest growing sports in the US. These 26 individual entries are from a pool of 250+ active players in our Western Kentucky region. They play at various multi-purpose use courts. There are many more players in southern Illinois playing on multi-purpose and dedicated public courts. There is a dedicated four-court public complex, approved and in progress, in Calvert City. Another project is in the planning stages.
Henderson Tourney – Medal Winners
Allie Gold/Sam Gold – Mixed Doubles 3.0/Gold
Leigh Toby/Dax Mayhand – Mixed Doubles 4.5, 4.0/Gold
Allie Gold/Darlene Latta – Women’s Doubles 3.0/Silver
Kent Cadwell/Mason Cadwell – Men’s Doubles 2.5/Silver
Sam Gold/Marvin Travis – Men’s Doubles 3.5/Bronze
Leigh Toby/Jenny Travis – Women’s Doubles 4.0, 3.5/Bronze
Other participants: Ron Johnson, Jason Jones, Parvin Latta, Kayla Travis, Judith Perez
Bluegrass Games – Medal Winners
Jacob Hill/Mitchell Ponder – Men’s Doubles 3.5, 19+/Silver
Suzanne Shidal/Steve Shidal – Mixed Doubles 3.5, 65+/Silver
Holly Locken/Carl Marquess – Mixed Doubles 3.5, 50+/Silver
Chris Operle/Jacob Hill – Mixed Doubles 3.5, 18+/Bronze
Carl Marquess/Steve Shidal – Men’s 3.5, 65+/Bronze
Other participants: Shann Riley, Angela Rash, Dave Rash, Mike Rogers, Jax Rogers
Darlene and Parvin Latta
USAPA Pickleball Ambassadors Marshall County
