Four locals who practice at Naperville Pickleball facilities like The Picklr, and Sure Shot will test their skills at the upcoming Pickleball World championships. Craig Broeder, Jonny Bradford, his partner Shannon Kowalski, and Jill Ko are the four members heading to Texas for the upcoming competitions. The tournament has over 3,400 players participating, with 29 total from Illinois.
“This is my first time competing at this level because I only officially started playing pickleball in January, but I had a high-end high school tennis background. So I picked it up pretty quick and I’ve concentrated on singles,” said Pickleball Championship qualifier Craig Broeder.
“I’m just more excited about competition, playing high-level competition and different people, I haven’t ever played. It’s always exciting to meet new people you never know what their style is, what to expect but it’s also fun to rank yourself a little bit amongst the country’s best and see where you stand,” said Pickleball Championship qualifier Jonny Bradford.
A different strategy approach to competition
Pickleball’s popularity has exploded by being a sport that allows people of all ages to remain competitive in athletics while being less physically taxing on the body. For the mind, Jonny Bradford he says the game’s strategy is similar to that of chess.
“You can have 40 great moves in chess; losing the game only takes one bad move. Pickleball is similar where you can hit 40 great shots in a long rally, and if you make one mistake, the point is over,” said Bradford.
Since January Broeder has picked up the game quickly and is ready to showcase his skills to the world, competing in the singles division for 70 years and older. Bradford will compete in the men’s double and mixed doubles with Kowalski, while Ko will take the courts in doubles and singles in the 50 and older divisions. Prior to the championships Bradford has given pickleball lessons to Broeder at the Picklr and is excited about the experience for himself as well as his student after putting in weeks of hard work.
“He’s just a motivated person, and he’s here almost every day, drilling and putting in the work. He’s challenging some of the 25-year-olds to singles matches. He’s having a good time, playing some of the younger kids and he knows that he’s going to do well in about a week here,” said Bradford.
“Have fun and get a lay of the land. What is the likelihood I could be one of the top seventy-year-olds in the world?” said Broeder.
Let the World Pickleball Championships begin
Regardless of how these Naperville area athletes finish, it’s an exciting opportunity to share a love for pickleball amongst the best. The World Championships begin on November 4th and will run through November 10th at Brookhaven Country Club in Farmers Branch, Texas.
If you have a story idea, we want to hear from you!
