Mars Hill to host pickleball tournament to benefit Community Housing Coalition

MARS HILL - The town of Mars Hill will host its second pickleball tournament of 2023 in October amid the sport's explosion in popularity throughout Western North Carolina.

Mars Hill Pickleball Club will host "Madison Madness" Oct. 14-15, in conjunction with the town of Mars Hill. The tournament will take place at Mars Hill Recreation Park and will feature men's and women's doubles tournaments Oct. 14 and a mixed doubles tournament Oct. 15.

Tournament registration costs $75, and proceeds will benefit Community Housing Coalition.

Cathy Hicks and Cat Case will serve as tournament directors.

Hicks said she is not sure how many tournament participants to expect, as there will be tournaments in Asheville and Kingsport, Tennessee, that will coincide with Madison Madness.

"We're hopeful that we'll get about the same number that we got back in the spring," Hicks said. "There are just so many tournaments right now. There are literally hundreds, if not thousands of tournaments out there. So, we're all kind of fighting for the same tournament."

Hicks said the tournament organizing team is limited in the number of participants it can take on, as there are four pickleball courts at the Mars Hill park.

Susan Sewell is a board member at CHC and helped coordinate the first tournament in the spring. Sewell is volunteering to help organize the Madison Madness tournament as well.

In a phone call with The News-Record Sept. 26, Sewell said there were 26 participants registered for the tournament, but she hopes that number will grow to 40.

The sport's popularity is growing throughout the region, according to Hicks and Sewell.

"We use Team Reach as a site where people go to find out when the sessions are," Hicks said. "Right now, we're on 167 people that are on Team Reach. It's really become a very fast-growing sport.

Sewell said that number is more than double the number of players at the time of the spring tournament, which took place May 20-21 at Mars Hill Recreation Park to benefit Marshall Presbyterian Church's Neighbors in Need Crisis Organization and Food Pantry.

More: Mars Hill to host pickleball tournament to benefit Neighbors in Need

Hicks said Western North Carolina pickleball players are using the sport not only to exercise but to network and get together for social gatherings.

"That's the classic definition of a good exercise program - one that you stick with. And one of the reasons you stick with it is because A, it's enjoyable and B, you have the social aspect of it, where people are kind of holding you accountable and saying, 'Hey, we need you to come out and play,'" Hicks said. "Pickleball answers all those shortfalls we're seeing in other sports. Tennis is a great game, but it's not the social game pickleball is.

"You can play it at any age. Because of the way the game is designed, an 80-year-old can play a 20-year-old. Now, the 20-year-old may ultimately win, but the 80-year-old can also be competitive just because of the way the game is designed."

According to Sewell, CHC will operate a booth with snacks and drinks for the players throughout the tournament.

Games will start at 8 a.m. each day.

Sewell said the team would not have been able to host these tournaments without the support it's received from the town.

"Mars Hill has just absolutely been so supportive," Sewell said. "They purchased the nets for us to play pickleball. They lined their courts for us."

More: Mars Hill Recreation Park now hosts Madison County's first pickleball courts

Thanks to the town's leadership, Mars Hill has emerged as a de facto gathering site for pickleball players throughout the region, according to Hicks and Sewell.

"Weaverville's been trying to catch up to us," Sewell said. "That's why we have so many people that are coming up here to play. Nathan Bennett and the town board have been so supportive."

Hicks echoed Sewell's sentiments about the town government's support of their efforts.

"They've really embraced the whole concept of pickleball," Hicks said. "I just couldn't ask for them to do any more. They've really been great partners in growing support in Madison County."

Hicks said as of Sept. 28, there are no dedicated pickleball courts in Buncombe County that are free to the public, as both Reems Creek Golf Course and Asheville Racquet Club require membership fees.

"You're kind of limited to where you can go," Hicks said. "Now, Weaverville is in the process of building public dedicated courts. Fletcher just opened some in Henderson County. We're hopeful one day that we can get some dedicated courts in Madison. But that's expensive, and I get it. We may not have the budget for it. But certainly the demand is there."

Until then, players from throughout Western North Carolina will continue to come to Mars Hill, Sewell said.

"We have a couple in our group that are from Burnsville that come up," Sewell said. "We've got people from Weaverville. We've got people from Asheville that come up every Saturday morning, anywhere from 20 to 25 people.

"A lot of them are from North Buncombe and the Asheville area. But people are finding out about Mars Hill, and they come to play. So it's bringing people in. It's fun to have people from all over come to play."

To register for the tournament, visit www.pickleballbrackets.com.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Mars Hill pickleball tournament to benefit Community Housing Coalition