England Open Pickleball Tournament 2022
Even after the Covid break, Pickleball England certainly hadn’t forgotten how to put on a very successful tournament.
This year the venue was at Southampton, making use of David Lloyd’s non-member section of their club. It was a full five day event covering all groups including a section for the over 70’s. Will we see an over 80’s one in the future?
484 players from 24 countries participated, making it their biggest event to date. In addition to all the excitement of the tournament, Pickleball England partnered up with APP Tour (Association of Pickleball Professionals) and DUPR (Dynamic Universal Pickleball Rating). This resulted in six professional players attending, providing some first class exhibition play along with some excellent experience gained by some of England’s top talent playing against them.
Quite a few from the club entered the Tournament. Although the competition was tough in all groups, eight of our members gained medals:
| Name | Level | Event | Medal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mark Bassett | 3.5 | 50+ Men’s Doubles | Silver |
| Shiv Brennan | 3.0 | 50+ Women’s Singles | Silver |
| Sue Harris | 4.0 | 50+ Women’s Doubles | Bronze |
| Angela Hayley | 3.5 | 50+ Women’s Doubles | Bronze |
| Ceil Doherty | 3.5 | 50+ Women’s Doubles | Bronze |
| David Bungard | 3.0/3.5 | 70+ Men’s Singles | Bronze |
| Frank Arico | 3.0/3.5 | 70+ Mixed Doubles | Bronze |
| Mary State | 3.0/3.5 | 70+ Mixed Doubles | Bronze |
Many congratulations and also well done to all the members who participated. Everyone that played thoroughly enjoyed the experience.