Last week, I met with Jim Harris, president of the pickleball club in the active adult resort known as Trilogy at Vistancia. Located northwest of Phoenix, Arizona, it is a beautiful community that is still growing.
Jim Harris, President A few years ago, resident Mike Pagliarulo and a group of pickleball enthusiasts were playing on taped, temporary courts. After much work, they succeeded in convincing the community HOA and the builder, Shea Homes, to build four new pickleball courts which became a reality in December of 2013.
The adage, “if you build it, they will come,” is true in Vistancia. Suddenly the new courts were full of players, and the club continued to grow.
Last year, the group held their first tournament. They set up four temporary courts on space borrowed from the tennis club and arranged with PickleballTournaments.com to oversee the brackets.
The tournament was well attended with 167 players, and many of the locals enjoyed their first tournament. Jim and his coordinators were gratified by the many comments they received afterward, saying how well the tourney was run, how much fun it was, and asking when the next one would be.
The adage, “if you build it, they will come,” is true in Vistancia. Suddenly the new courts were full of players, and the club continued to grow.
Last year, the group held their first tournament. They set up four temporary courts on space borrowed from the tennis club and arranged with PickleballTournaments.com to oversee the brackets.
The tournament was well attended with 167 players, and many of the locals enjoyed their first tournament. Jim and his coordinators were gratified by the many comments they received afterward, saying how well the tourney was run, how much fun it was, and asking when the next one would be.
This year, they have tier 4 USAPA sponsorship for their age 50+ skill-level tournament, and they’ve drawn an even larger crowd: 225 players from seven different states. The tournament,
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