Collier County in the State of Florida is widely regarded as the pickleball capital of the world due to the 64-court epicenter for pickleball at East Naples Community Park. In response to the Coronavirus threat sweeping across the globe, Collier County Parks and Recreation closed all recreational facilities, including all pickleball courts, as of St. Patrick’s Day. To go even further, Collier County Parks and Recreation even removed all of the pickleball nets from each of the pickleball courts to prevent pickleball players from being tempted to step onto the courts—we all know how passionate pickleball players are, so this seems to be a smart move to prevent any temptation!
Collier County also announced that, in response to the global pandemic, the 2020 US Open Pickleball Championships, one of the top pickleball tournaments in the world, to be held near the end of April has been cancelled. The pickleball community must now anxiously await the next US Open Pickleball Championships to be held in April 2021. Despite the unfortunate events, the US Open Pickleball Championships has graciously offered all registered players to either (1) reserve their spot for the 2021 US Open Pickleball Championships and apply their registration fee to next year’s tournament; or (2) provide a full refund.
For the near term, remember to do your part to keep our pickleball community and our larger world population safe and healthy by staying home as much as possible, washing your hands often, avoiding touching your face, and practicing social distancing (i.e. remain at least 6 feet apart from others). Also, be sure to stay up-to-date with the latest information on the Coronavirus, as circumstances are changing daily, by visiting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at https://www.cdc.gov/.
