While the entire country may still be under lock-down, we are beginning to see the first stages of our country, and our pickleball courts, opening back up. State and local authorities are testing out looser restrictions and that could make some pickleball players very happy.
Every city and state has their own unique situation, so while we are seeing some courts around the country begin to open back up, there are still many places that continue to be a no go for pickleball. In California, the governor did NOT include pickleball on his approved list of activities, prompting many facilities in the Golden State to stay shut down. The Villages in Florida is one of the country’s largest and most active pickleball communities, and were recently praised by Florida’s Governor and even the President for how well they have done during the COVID-19 crisis. However, they are still playing it safe leaving the pickleball courts locked and the nets down.
However, many facilities around the country are opening back up for play, but with restrictions. Some of the common rules we are seeing are: general social distancing, restricting large groups, each server having their own ball that only they touch, and some places, like many venues in California, are only allowing singles play and require wearing masks.
Other communities like Collier County, Florida have gotten the courts up and running with fewer restrictions. According to Collier County Parks & Recreation, the pickleball facilities at East Naples Community Park, home of the Minto US Open Pickleball Championships, have opened back up allowing local players to get back on the courts. Barry Williams, Director at Collier County Parks and Recreation Department tells us Quote, “Local pickleball enthusiasts happily returned to their routines, but were cognizant of the CDC guidelines and ensuring social distancing, not interacting in groups greater than 10, and staff have implemented increased sanitizing of the area to ensure patron safety.”
And East Naples is not the only place. We are seeing play return all over the country. From the west in places like Las Vegas Nevada and St. George, Utah where their courts are coming back online.
To the north where pickleball players in Middletown New Jersey and Michigan are breaking out their paddles for some games. All the way to the south with courts in Macon, Georgia and areas all around Florida starting to see signs of life again.
The USAPA has continued to monitor the situation around the country and communicate with other national governing bodies in order to develop their response.
They have just extended their suspension of sanctioning to all tournaments through June 2nd.
They have also created a ‘Guidance on Safe Return to Play’ document, to help players stay safe as we head back to the pickleball courts.
There is definitely a growing excitement as more people are able to play pickleball. Many of the officials we spoke with are cautiously optimistic, but simultaneously nervous about having too many people show up and not follow the local guidelines for returning to play and risk another shutdown. In fact, in some areas it has become necessary to revert back to the tougher restrictions after too many people used the same space and did not follow the social distancing guidelines.
We know we are definitely excited to see these initial steps at returning to normal, and right now things are significantly different from one place to the next, so let’s make sure we do this in a safe and smart way. We can’t wait to see everyone on the pickleball courts soon, but until then, wherever YOU are, Stay Safe, Stay Healthy, and Stay Connected.
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