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HomeOpen Play & Clinics

Open Play

 

Experience the fun and social aspect of Open Play sessions, where players gather to have fun, get some exercise and sunshine and meet new friends! Watch your friendships grow and extend off the courts. Meet new folks to get together and rent a court or two! Whether you're a beginner or a more advanced player, we will have Open Play sessions for all!
 
We will have All Levels Open Play and also have sessions that focus on similar skill levels (e.g., Beginner, Advanced Beginner, Intermediate). Our Director of Pickleball may join some of the Open Play sessions to give advice, if desired, and to answer any questions that may come up during play.

Please note that Open Play is a time for players to mingle and play with each other, ensuring a dynamic and fun social experience. If you desire a court exclusively for your family, we offer court reservations exclusively for our members. Our members are allowed to bring guests to both Open Plays and court reservations for a $5/per guest fee. Please pay this fee to the Director of Pickleball at @juliepickleball for Zelle or Venmo. This guest fee goes directly to the club.

We offer two courts for your enjoyment. During open play, each game is played to 11 points, win by 2 or if there are other players waiting, getting to 15. When there are two to four players waiting to play, as a game concludes, the winners will stay on the court and split, with two new players joining in. The selection of the two new players is based on who has been waiting the longest. Once the 2 winning players have stayed on the court for 2 games, a total rotation is fair.

When there are over four players waiting, high player demand is efficiently managed by folding four out of the five or more players into the next game. Basically, this is 4 on - 4 off. The order of play is determined by the length of time each player has been waiting.

PADDLE STACK/PADDLES UP: An easy and efficient way to keep track of who's been waiting the longest is to hang the paddles on the fence with the handle facing out and hang them in order of who's been waiting the longest to determine the order in which waiting players will join the game.

Clinics

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Come and join one of our clinics where you can learn new skills and improve your pickleball game. Whether you're a beginner or intermediate player, our clinics offer  specialized training for you. Clinics may be skills or rating-specific. Not sure of your rating? No problem! You can easily self-rate by following these guidelines: CLICK HERE. 

In clinics, you'll have the opportunity to participate in fun and challenging drills and drill games with other players, or you may have the Instructor feeding balls for specific skills. We believe that drilling is the best way to simulate game play and improve your performance. You will be able to take the Drills & Drill Games that you learn and go practice in between playing regular games. This is by far the best way to improve your game!
 
Please check the Events Calendar for up coming clinics. If you don't see a clinic you want, reach out to Julie at julie@pickleballisthethirdplace.com or via text at 919.448.6150. You are also welcome to get three to seven people together and request a private clinic.

Here are some of the Clinics that will be offered. The list may change and grow as it suits the players.

 

 

  • Learn to Play: clinics for the those that don't know the basic shots, rules or scoring
  • Serves and Returns: It's Not Just Getting the Ball Over the Net
  • The First 3 Shots: Just How Important Are They?
  • The 4th Shot: To Poach or Not to Poach
  • Net Play: Playing at the NVZ/Kitchen | Dinking with a Purpose
  • Respect the X: Forehand Does NOT Always Take Middle
  • The Transition Zone: Not Where You Want To Get Stuck
  • The Error Game: Great For Identifying Common Errors and Self-Correcting
  • Strategies for Doubles: Stacking, Tournament Strategy, etc.
  • Playing with a Referee: Get Experience with a Ref before Playing in Tournaments.
 
Here are just some of the Skills that will be highlighted during Clinics. You will also be taught various Drills and Drill Games that you can use to improve your game. Drilling is CRUCIAL to developing muscle memory and getting comfortable with all of the shots you will use in your game.
  • Serving
  • Returning
  • Dinking
  • Driving
  • Dropping
  • Lobbing
  • Volleys
  • Resets
  • Blocks and Punches