Pickle Ball, Provincial Tournament Gatineau Open 2023 

Tashi Farmilo

The Association régionale de pickleball l'Outaouais (ARPO), in collaboration with the Fédération québécoise de pickleball, is excited to announce the provincial tournament Gatineau Open 2023, set to be held on April 29th and 30th at the Gatineau Sports Center, Quebec.

The tournament is sanctioned by Pickleball Québec, and it will feature 11 courts for the event. Morning games will begin at 8:30 a.m. with practice and warm-up starting from 8:00 a.m. On Saturday, afternoon games will begin around 1:00 p.m., and on Sunday, it will start at 12:00 p.m., though this may vary depending on the course of the tournament.

The Gatineau Open 2023 will feature three events: Men's doubles, women's doubles, and mixed doubles. There will be two age groups: 14 to 54 years old and 55 years old and above, and four skill levels: 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 4.5 and +, with no age category for the 3.0 level.

Registration fees are $55 for the first event and $15 for the second event, and a player can only participate in two events, one per day.

The level 3.0 and 3.5 events will start at 8:30 a.m., and the 4.0 and 4.5+ events will begin around noon or in the early afternoon.

Registration will open on March 8, 2023, and will close on April 15, 2023. Participants must be a member of Pickleball Canada at the time of registration, and the tournament director cannot register a player or guarantee a place if a technical problem arises.

The tournament format will be round-robin, with a pool of four or five teams per skill level and age group depending on the number of entries. The minimum number of teams per event is four. There is a maximum number of teams per age group and skill level, but it can be increased depending on the number of entries.

The organizing committee reserves the right to place players in an appropriate skill level, and skill levels and age categories for events can change depending on the number of entries. Yellow apparel is not allowed, and all games will be scored up to 11 points, except medal games, which will be 2 out of 3 for 11 points. The interior yellow Onix Fuse ball will be used.

There are two hotels within walking distance of the Sports Center, the Comfort Inn (819-243-6010) and the Holiday Inn (819-503-8800), for lodging.

For more information, interested individuals can reach out to André St-Jacques at tournoi@pickleballoutaouais.ca. The ARPO and the Fédération québécoise de pickleball look forward to welcoming participants for the Gatineau Open 2023.

Photo Caption: Pickleball Players at Provincial Tournament Gatineau Open 2023

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Gatineau Open