Invierno Invitational Results & Photos, January 30 – 31

What a great tournament. Thanks to everyone that helped out and made the competition flawless in execution. To all the players and spectators that came out, thanks for being a part of our Association.

Women’s Ultra Competitive

1st: Yenni Martinez y Clarett Prat
2nd: Belem Garcia y Mariana Fortes
3rd: Kellie Rich y Winnie Rivinius

Men’s Ultra Competitive

1st: James Main y Art Bauer
2nd: Ramon Cruz y Carlos Dessens
3rd: Alan Prat y Omar Inzunza

Mixed Ultra Competitive

1st: James Main y Mariana Fortes
2nd: Alan Prat y Yenni Martinez
3rd: Jeff Weinberg y Winnie Rivinius

Women’s Recreational Competitive

1st: Karen Chandler y Paula DeYoung
2nd: Hillary Dembroff y Karen Stewart
3rd: Pamm Monier y Gin Strong

Men’s Recreational Competitive

1st: Julio Meza y Leon Daniels
2nd: Cesar Inzunza y Daniel Vielledent
3rd: Danny Martinez y Chino Rodriguez

Mixed Recreational Competitive

1st: Daniel Martinez y Hillary Dembroff
2nd: Cesar Inzunza y Dulce Zuloaga
3rd: Russell Morales y Theresa Melius

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Featured Article: Loopholes in Sports

Sports depend on rules. Rules create an environment for fair play in competition. Every year, USA Pickleball publishes a list of rule changes, rule additions, cuts and revisions to the previous year’s rules. I suspect this will continue with more new rules and changes in 2022 and every year going forward. At the risk of sounding negative, I dread getting notification of the changes every year. This year’s change document is 81 pages long. Granted, most of the changes have to do with tournament play, but several of the changes will affect every pickleball player, whether they are playing in tournaments or recreational only.

But, this post isn’t about those specific changes. It’s about the need for ever-changing rules in any sport, many of which have rules books that have become overly extensive. Anyone familiar with the game of golf will tell you that the most recent USGA Rules of Golf book is some 240 pages long. In addition, the USGA publishes another book called Official Guide to the Rules of Golf, (formerly called, Decisions of Golf) which at over 350 pages includes situational interpretations of the rules and modified rules for players with disabilities. I’d wager that very few golfers have taken, or even have the time to read these important publications. Luckily, there are shorter versions available as well.

This post is also about the reasons that those who oversee the rules of sport feel the need to constantly make changes and new rules. Any serious sport participant, regardless of skill, but particularly those at the tournament and professional levels, have one goal in mind; to succeed. In order to do that, they must maximize their advantages and seek to achieve their goals as quickly as they possibly can. Often, rules get in the way, so we find loopholes.

What is a loophole? Well, a quick Google search states that a loophole is an “ambiguity or inadequacy in the law or a set of rules.” In short, that means a loophole exists when an action can be taken that is not totally addressed, or not addressed at all in a set of rules.

An athlete, in searching for ways to succeed, might look for ways to play around the rules, while not breaking them. According to Norwegian researchers, Øyvind Kvalnes and Liv Hemmestad (2010) in their paper entitled, Loophole ethics in sports, a rule-based approach may encourage what they call loophole ethics, “an attitude where every action that is not explicitly defined as wrong, will be seen as a viable option.”
Some might consider these actions cheating, while the acting player would argue that there was no rule that said the action couldn’t be performed. So, how do we address these situations, and close those loopholes? We make new rules that specifically address the loophole action. And the rules book gets longer, and the cycle continues with new loopholes identified, and new rules to prohibit that particular action in the future.

Alternatively, sometimes an action taken as a result of an identified loophole which is not deemed as harmful to the integrity of the game or sportsmanship, becomes part of the game. Ernie Perry found a loophole, and his shot, appropriately named the “Ernie shot,” became part of the game. He realized that by jumping completely over the corner of the NVZ, without breaking any of the NVZ rules, he could volley the ball, making contact closer to the net, usually surprising the opponent, and often winning the rally with an un-returnable shot. He found a loophole, and in this case, it became a very popular and exciting shot to execute and to watch!

In the newest USA Pickleball change document, Rule 13.D.1. starts, “In the spirit of good sportsmanship, players are expected to call faults on themselves as soon as the fault is committed or detected…….” Shouldn’t this statement be an overall guidance to the entire rules book, and not simply prefacing one rule? Shouldn’t there be a demand for honesty and sportsmanship to prevail in our sport? Some might think there is, but when new rules are introduced for the purpose of reducing cheating and closing loopholes, we are clearly overlooking honesty and sportsmanship. We want to believe everyone will play fair, but let’s face it, they don’t. And with pickleball growing to professional levels where athletes make money based on success, the trend will continue even further, and more rules will be introduced.

The above-cited Norwegian researchers suggest that sport could benefit from a more general, principle and value/ethics based set of rules, rather than the detailed rule standards that are most common in sport, and which create the opportunity to find loopholes and/or cheat.

Unfortunately, cheaters DO win, which is why we have a rules based culture. But, player reputations speak loud and clear. Everyone knows a player who is known for bad line calls or who uses an illegal serve to their advantage. In the spirit of good sportsmanship, should rules be further expanded for the purpose of stifling cheating? Personally, I don’t think you could write enough rules to keep a player who wants to win by whatever means necessary, including cheating, from doing so. And also, in my opinion, in their own minds a cheater doesn’t even believe they’re doing anything wrong.

So write those new rules. But keep your pencil sharpened, because as soon as they are published, you’ll be writing more.

by James Main, President, San Carlos Pickleball Association

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Pro Corner with James

Check out the most epic points of 2020

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Balls and Fencing Issues

Thanks to Russell Morales, we have ball cradles at the courts. Please use these cradles for your extra balls during play INSTEAD of sticking the balls in the fencing. It’ll prolong the life and roundness of the pickleballs and it looks great! At the end of play (whoever is last to leave the court), please return the balls to the green ball holders by the paddle holders.

To prolong the life of the fencing and to keep the courts in good order, the Board is requesting that all players STOP RUNNING INTO THE FENCING. Just like you control your body to not run into the No-Volley Zone (aka Kitchen), please stop yourself from running into or bouncing off the fences both in between the courts and the exterior fence. Fencing is one of the most expensive items to replace. Let’s keep the fees affordable for all members by helping to keep our court fencing intact. Just pretend it is a brick wall — you wouldn’t run into that at full force, would you??!!

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Skills & Drills are back

Tuesday, February 9 from 11:00am – 12:00pm: Beginner level Skills & Drills with Theresa Melius. Limited to 12 players

Thursday, February 11 from 11:00am – 12:00pm: Intermediate level Skills & Drills with Deb Forrester. Limited to 12 players

Reserve your spot for Skills & Drills 2 days prior to the event by emailing Theresa (T) at: theresamelius23@gmail.com. Please indicate whether it is for Beginner or Intermediate level skills.

Private Lessons are available with James Main during available times. Text or email James directly to set up a time: destinationpickleball@gmail.com

If you’re not already a member, now is a great time to join Mirador Courts.

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Open Play, Monday – Saturday

The courts are starting to fill up for daily Open Play so we are back to our regular court rotation schedule.

Open Play is every morning except Sunday from 8:00am to 11:00am. In order to accommodate all the skill levels, we are scheduling the Open Play as follows:

Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays:
Players under skill level 3.5 will play on four courts — Courts 4, 5, 6 and 3.
Players skill level 3.5 and above will play on two courts – Courts 1 and 2.

Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays:
Players skill level 3.5 and above will play on four courts — Courts 1, 2, 3 and 6.
Players under skill level 3.5 will play on two courts – Courts 4 and 5.

Use the paddle racks to determine next up. The paddle racks closest to court 1 are for the 3.5+ courts and conversely, the paddle racks closest to court 4 are for the 3.0 and Beginner players

You can also check the calendar or court reservation system for Open Play days and times.

And remember, you can reserve a court anytime around the Open Play times if you want to play with specific people for a few hours or do some drills with a few friends.

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Round Robin, Sundays

All Mirador Court members are invited to join us on Sundays at 8:30am for Round Robin play. We play for 15 minutes and then rotate players and courts. It’s a great way to meet and play with new people, without worrying about your scores.

Therefore on Sundays from 8:30am – 11:00am, the courts are reserved for the weekly Round Robin.

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sancarlospickleball.com

Check out our website at sancarlospickleball.com to keep up to date on:

• Tournaments
• Archived Newsletters
• Court Reservation System
• Membership Dues and Instructions
• Open Court and Skills & Drills Days and Times
• And other news

If it’s not open play, skills & drills or the Sunday round robin, all other times are open to reserve private sessions. It is strongly recommended to use the Court Reservation System to reserve courts outside of Open Play time. That way you are guaranteed a court.

Bookmark sancarlospickleball.com on your phone. Add it to your favorites on your desktop. Pin the link to your homepage so you will have all the latest and greatest news concerning the San Carlos Pickleball Association.

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Playing Pickleball during COVID-19

It’s up to you to assess your own risk and decide whether or not you should play at this time. If you choose to play at Mirador Courts, please engage in everyday preventive actions to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. These include:

• Stay home when you are sick.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water or use a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol. The restrooms are available for our use (keys are hanging on the post at court entrance; please lock the restroom after use).
• Maintain a healthy distance from each other when off the courts.
• Feel free to bring your own chair, or place your Membership Card on your chair from the court to reserve it so that others will not use it during play.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands. No hugs, handshakes, high fives or paddle taps.
• Clean frequently touched surfaces and objects daily. Coronavirus can live on plastic and metal. At the courts, that’s the balls, tables, chairs, locks on the doors, the fence, the paddle holder, the umbrella handle, etc. etc. The Board will not be doing daily disinfecting of the courts, so it is up to anyone who chooses to play to clean and disinfect any surfaces that they will come into contact with.

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Gear for sale

James has lots of Gearbox paddles, backpacks, eyewear, grips, edge guard, and yes, even socks for sale. All of the Gearbox GX5 and 6 series paddles are $140 (2800 pesos), CP7 series are $100, backpacks are $90..

If you are interested in any of these paddles or other items, please contact James at: destinationpickleball@yahoo.com.

Discount on Pickleball Gear

Members of the San Carlos Pickleball Association get a 5% discount at PickleballCentral.com.

If you’re looking to buy a paddle, balls or gear, visit pickleballcentral.com.

Click on “My Account” (in red font at the top of the page). If you have an account, sign in. Otherwise, go to New Customers, and click on Continue…and go through the prompts until you have an Account set up.

At Check Out, there is a box where you should put the following Coupon Code: CRSANCARLOS
Then click Apply.

This will give you a 5% discount on your order. You will see San Carlos Pickleball Association with the discounted amount beside it. It will also give our San Carlos Pickleball Association a 5% Club Reward that will accumulate over the year, and next year they will give our club a credit for that amount. It’s a win-win for both you and for our club!

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Videos of Matches

2020 Winter Open Men’s GOLD MEDAL: B.Johns / C.Johns v Z.Navratil / J.Warnick

2020 Winter Open Women’s GOLD MEDAL: S.Jardim / C.Parenteau v I.Tereschenko / A.Koop