From Navy Corpsman to Pickleball Ambassador: Gabe George's Journey with MACS and Pickleball

"We're not just about playing; we're about fostering a thriving pickleball culture."

Orlando Advanced Pickleball (OAP) started as a small community of pickleballers, to now having cultivated a huge group of pickleball enthusiasts in Florida, boasting over 3,900 members. OAP, founded in April 2023, joined DUPR in October, is not only encouraging level base play, but also about making a positive impact on the environment.

Beyond the court, OAP is committed to sustainability through their pioneering pickleball recycling program in Florida. By converting worn-out pickleballs into functional zip ties, OAP has diverted over 225 lbs of pickleballs from landfills, equating to over 1,500 pickleballs recycled and counting. "We're not just about playing; we're about fostering a thriving pickleball culture", says Dave John, founder of OAP. Strategic bins have been placed across key locations in Central Florida, with plans for expansion pending local government approval. In the meantime, individuals are encouraged to transport their worn-out balls to courts equipped with recycling bins to help preserve the environment and support OAP's mission to ensure pickleballs don't end up in landfills, both for the sake of environmental responsibility and for the legacy future generations of pickleball enthusiasts.

“We're committed to ensuring pickleball don't end up in landfills, both for the sake of environmental responsibility and for the legacy we leave for future generations of pickleball enthusiasts,” Dave adds. The organization is also hosting a Fundraising Tournament in June, to raise money for the Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida, that already has over 220 registrants!

Founded just a year ago, OAP wasted no time in partnering with DUPR shortly after its inception. “Recognizing that DUPR is the pinnacle of accuracy and consistency in pickleball rating systems, OAP swiftly joined forces. Now, OAP is preparing for upcoming events, ensuring that scores are entered into DUPR”, Dave confirms. 

The OAP Team recognized the importance of recycling pickleballs after noticing many damaged balls being thrown away in trash cans at courts. Standard recycling facilities cannot process thermoplastic molded resin, the material pickleballs are made from, so OAP took the initiative to ensure these balls do not end up in landfills. 

“Every contribution helps our collective efforts” David adds. “We can help save the world, one pickleball at a time." Whether it is through league participation, tournament play, merchandise purchases, lessons, or donations, all of it helps towards the goal of a more environmentally efficient pickleball community.

OAP operates their recycling initiative without any financial gain, emphasizing their dedication to making a difference in the environment and the pickleball community. As a relatively new organization, OAP has quickly established itself in the pickleball world through partnerships with organizations like DUPR for accurate rating systems and innovative initiatives like pickleball recycling.

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Learn more about Orlando Advanced Pickleball here.

On April 3rd, at the Major League Pickleball Premier Level Draft, the New York Hustlers selected Jackie Kawamoto with the 16th pick of the 2024 draft.

Shortly after, the Los Angeles Mad Dogs used the 26th pick to select Jackie’s twin sister, Jade Kawamoto.

The final rosters for the MLP Premier teams are comprised of the 48 most in-demand players in professional pickleball. Six of those coveted spots went to three pairs of siblings: the Kawamoto sisters, Ben and Collin Johns, and Jorja and JW Johnson.

Whether as practice partners, doubles teammates, or competitors, sibling teams have a unique chemistry that is difficult to replicate. Their shared history, communication skills, trust, competitive edge, and motivation all contribute to their success on the court.

For Jackie and Jade, the sibling advantage has helped them rise rapidly through the ranks of professional pickleball.

“Just having that person to always practice with was definitely an advantage for us,” says Jackie. “I'm a righty and Jade is a lefty, and we move together very well. I think that's our biggest strength. I know where I need to be when she gets pulled wide, and vice versa. I know all of her shots. We just know each other's game so well.”

“We've practiced with each other our whole lives, so it comes naturally,” adds Jade.

Like many professional pickleball players, the Kawamoto sisters have a background in competitive tennis, playing throughout their childhood and into college. 

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Their journey with pickleball began in 2019.

“At first it was just fun, something to do with the family,” says Jade. 

“It didn't take long for all of us to get hooked and pretty much play nonstop,” adds Jackie.

They started competing in 2021, and in less than 3 years, they’ve become top rated pros. The Dink recently rated Jackie and Jade the number five women’s doubles team in the world for 2024, and their 5.9+ DUPR ratings demonstrate how far they’ve progressed in their short time since finding the sport.

“Chemistry is such an important part of this game because of the nature of the game and how quickly it goes,” Jackie explains.

Jade adds that the emotional support is just as important as the training.

“When you grow up with each other, and you're the same age and have gone through similar experiences… I know it's a cliche or whatever, but it does help you on the court to have someone that knows your emotions and knows how to bring you up when you're down,” she says.

This season, that bond faces a new challenge. Where the Kawamoto sisters played together for the ATX Pickleballers in 2023, this year they’ll meet as rivals.

It’s fitting, perhaps, that their new teams represent the sister-cities of New York and Los Angeles, two American metropolises that share similarities and a healthy rivalry.

For Jade and Jackie, meeting head-to-head is an opportunity to keep improving their game.

“We were pretty competitive with each other when we were younger,” Jackie recalls. “It always pushed us to be a little bit better.”

“We still like to be competitive with each other,” Jade says, “but mostly in a fun-spirited way, not like ‘I have to be better than you at this’. It helps us get better if we're trying to have that competitive mindset, but also keeps it fun.”

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David McCune says the India pickleball market is ‘poised to go boom’ and that the nation’s technically adept players pose a real threat to the USA’s hegemony in the sport.

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DUPR Executive Director David McCune was "blown away" by the level of play and scale of pickleball participation on a recent overseas activation at the Indian Open in the vast, vibrant city of Mumbai.

February's Indian Open, organized by Global Sports, boasted a $150,000 prize purse, making it the most lucrative pickleball tournament ever played outside North America. 

David's observations highlight that players from sub-continental and Southeast Asian regions bring exciting new skill sets to the court that are set to provide a stern challenge to the USA's hegemony in the sport. What was even starker is that when a nation of 1.4 billion people gets a taste for a new sport, it can create high volumes of participation quickly!

"The region is poised to go 'boom!'" smiled David after meeting with partners, athletes, sponsors, club owners, local dignitaries and celebrities in Mumbai to raise awareness of the benefits of DUPR (or "humanizing the algorithm," as he neatly calls it).

David added: "The best question about the level of play in India is not to ask how far they are behind the States, but how far along they are. Let me tell you, these guys are doing very well indeed!

The tournament was a real eye-opener for some of the US pros. When they got into those rapid hand battles, it wasn't a series of blocks and speedups — the Indian athletes were actually redirecting their attacks with spin on the ball. These guys are used to badminton where a shuttlecock reaches speeds of nearly 500 km/h, so pickleball is virtually in slow motion for them."

David was particularly taken by the current Indian No. 1 Harsh Mehta: "Until he hits it, you just don't know whether he's going to roll it, cut it or flick it. I watched him break the ankles of one of our top 10 pros numerous times! This guy is incredible."

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Brian Omwando was another competitor in the Indian Open draw. An ex-tennis player turned pickleball fanatic, he opened Nairobi Pickleball Club last May and has helped embed DUPR as the go-to system in tournaments in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. Brian led a squad of five players to Mumbai (it was his first-ever plane flight).

"It was a totally new experience for us - seeing how players warm up, the different drills they do, and tactics like stacking, which we are now including in our practice sessions. The standard was a different level but we were amazed how well we played against players who have been playing for many more years than us."

British player Louis Laville reached the round of 16 in the men's singles where he fell to India’s Rohit Patil. He was also bowled over by the host nation's rising stature in the sport.

“Pickleball in India is absolutely exploding," he said. "They have coaching programs, investment, sponsorships, and financial backers.

“What the tournament showed us is that the UK and Europe need to get on with developing pickleball facilities and getting more people playing very quickly, because the rest of the world is starting to motor ahead in terms of numbers and level of players and investment into the sport. I am very excited to watch the top Indian players take on some of the top pros at April’s US Open!"

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^{Written By: Mike Dale}