Paddling to Avalon: Pro Pickleball Tour Schedules Tourney Here for 2023 Labor Day Weekend
Summer on Seven Mile Beach will not end quietly when the thousands of vacationers leave the shore just before Labor Day 2023.
Avalon and the neighboring communities in Cape May County will be the center of the pickleball universe when the Association of Pickleball Professionals (APP) Tour hosts its New Jersey Classic in the quiet seaside town, highlighting the end of the always-busy summer season, Sept. 6-10.
A crowd of local pickleball players had their midday matches at the Avalon pickleball complex interrupted on Oct. 17 when Mayor Martin Pagliughi and representatives of the APP held an on-court press conference to announce the event.
“This is an exciting day for Avalon and Cape May County as a professional sports league has selected our region to hold a tournament that will be viewed through the world,” Pagliughi proclaimed at the 8th Avenue courts. “We’re proud to welcome the top-ranked players in the world to the Jersey Shore.”
Pagliughi introduced event partners Jeffrey Vasser (executive director, New Jersey Travel and Tourism); John O’Dea (president, Avalon Chamber of Commerce); and Jacqueline Ewing (president, 7 Mile Business Community Association), who joined in welcoming Ken Herrmann, the APP Tour founder and CEO.
The court full of pickleball players were a bit surprised by the press conference and despite having their games interrupted, seemed delighted that their sport would be played in view of national and international audiences that tune in to watch the fastest-growing sport in the country.
“Pickleball is so accessible here and has grown so much,” says Mary Jude Zarkowski. “You come to the courts, join people of all skill levels, make friends, and get a great workout. Having the professionals come for a tournament is exciting for the community.”
Terry Campbell noted that Avalon has seen the sport grow to where schoolchildren are playing with their grandparents. “The sport is open to everyone at every level of play and top players are willing to help others learn the game,” she says. “Adding more courts has really made it easier to get playing time.”
Linda Redding and Mary Gambone paused their game to support the announced event.
“We’ve had a couple of tournaments here and they were very well-received,” Redding says. “It will be great to see the top professional players in person. We go on Facebook to watch videos of the amazing players. It inspires us to keep improving. It’s a great game.”
The APP Tour is sanctioned by USA Pickleball and is an official Pro Tour Partner. Herrmann, who flew in from Chicago, said part of the overall plan for the tour was to have events in multiple regions of the country, not just major cities.
And how did Avalon, the smallest community on the APP tour calendar that includes stops at New York, Los Angeles, Houston, and St. Louis, earn an opportunity to be the center of Pickler World?
“Avalon is the kind of location the APP loves to have on its schedule,” Herrmann says. “Avalon and the surrounding communities offer great accommodations, restaurants, atmosphere. And South Jersey has thousands of players who love the game. We know we can bring a nice economic boost to the area at the end of the summer season.”
Herrmann says he expects a field of 800 to 900 players who would compete for approximately $70,000 in prize money, then enjoy local nightlife, beaches, and the other inviting aspects of Avalon’s seaside atmosphere.
Frank Anthony Davis, a Bridgeton native who is ranked eighth among APP men’s singles players, will be the “hometown favorite” in the Avalon event.
“I have been waiting my whole career, the past 10 years, for pro events to make it to my neighborhood,” Davis says. “The ability to sleep in your own bed and follow your own routines is a huge factor.”
Davis, whose web address is FADPickleball.com, found the sport in 2013 and has risen to the top level.
“I started playing pickleball in 2013 when my best friend, Bobby Kobylinski, introduced me to the sport,” Davis says. “He is a phys ed teacher and learned about pickleball at Rowan College. I fell in love with the sport immediately and started going to national tournaments in 2014. I never imagined it would become what it has today, but I always saw and felt the potential that the sport had.”
Davis, who won the Avalon Open earlier this year, said that tournament “was a fairly basic local event but well done.”
“It will be a completely different vibe when the APP comes to town,” says Davis, who is sponsored by Niupipo Pickleball, which produces his signature paddle. “The APP has done a great job of attracting top pros to their events and growing the sport in local communities and big cities alike. I am excited for the best of the best to join me in competition in South Jersey.”
Pagliughi, who noted that pickleball was not just popular in his community but the fastest-growing sport in the United States, said the event would generate a projected $1 million economic impact to businesses in the area.
Avalon has moved quickly with the sport’s growth, installing 10 pickleball courts at Eighth Street between Dune and Ocean Drives in 2018. An additional 10 courts are planned next year at the complex, which also provides facilities for basketball and tennis.
The New Jersey Classic will include a tournament of top pickleball professionals, a senior pro tournament, and an amateur division that will be open to locals and visitors. The first Atlantic City Pickleball Open took place in September at the Convention Center.
Visit apptour.org for more information on the APP Tour.