The History Behind the Ballantrae Pickleball Club

By Art Woodruff

A funny thing happened at a neighbourhood social in our retirement community 2 1/2 years ago when a friend asked me if I was interested in playing Pickleball.My response was "what the heck is Pickleball". The rest is history as my friend and I convinced 50 additional part-time & full-time players to get involved with this addictive sport.

We started playing, initially at a Seniors' Centre in Newmarket, Ontario, however, as the sport gained in popularity, we soon outgrew this facility. Luckily for us, Pickleballers had another, more modern, facility just a few minutes away called the Magna Centre located on Mulock Drive. This wonderful facility provides 4 courts for us enthusiasts three days a week.

The players come from Newmarket, Aurora and our Ballantrae Golf and C.C. We play mostly in the winter on Monday & Wednesdays (1-3 p.m.) & Fridays (8:30 11:30 a.m.) for a nominal charge of $2/session. It is interesting to note that we always play doubles with the ratio of men to women being almost equal. We have been fortunate to have Rudy Niessink (rudyn@295.ca) coordinate our activities this past two very busy years.We are optimistic that Pickleball will continue to grow in leaps & bounds for players of all ages.

This sport is certainly "the fountain of youth " for Seniors.

I would like to give special thanks to Dr. Dave Legallais for introducing me to this great game.

Editors Note: I would like to thank Art for the background on the Ballantrae Club and the next article, "Pickleball is "Iced" in Whitchurch-Stouffville", describes the beginning of the next stage in the history of the Ballantrae Pickleball Club. Oh behalf of Pickleball Canada, I would like to thank Rudy Niessink for his hard work in organizing this group. The success of any group depends on leadership and Rudy has shown the way.

You may have noticed that Pickleball Ontario has a new look in the form of its own logo. After many failed attempts by me to design something, I saw Rudy's design for the Ballantrae Club, see above, and as a bit of a lark, asked him to do something for Pickleball Ontario. The next day, I had the design you see at the top of this page. Thanks Rudy.