Seeking top competition is one thing. Keeping it within the same gender is another altogether.
A group that formed in March at Tampa Bay Pickleball gets the best of both worlds. Advanced 4.0-plus Round Robin Ladies Only meets Fridays at 7 a.m. at the indoor facility in
Oldsmar.
“A lot of times the advanced ladies get stuck playing the men,” said Tampa Bay Pickleball co-owner Andrew Giancola. “They like (their own group) better.”
Delana Sandy, a 52-year-old player who helped organize the group last March, made a request to management to run their own competition. Eight women showed up initially and as of late that number is around 14.
“They ran it all on their own and they’re really good,” said Anthony Capri, the facility’s general manager.
“It’s just a different pace; a different experience,” Sandy said of keeping it for women only, adding, “A lot of ladies wanted to play before they go to work.” Sandy, a former high school triathlete in tennis, swimming and volleyball, often played golf as an adult. Along with some friends, she took up pickleball in 2021 because, she reasoned, “We wanted something more active than golf.”
Aside from the top-notch competition, there is plenty of camaraderie.
“We’ve all become friends,” Sandy said. “Everybody cheers each other on.”
Sandy envisions more participants coming soon: “I think we’re going to grow more, once the snowbirds return.”
Photo courtesy of Tampa Bay Pickleball
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