{"id":318189,"date":"2026-06-24T15:26:09","date_gmt":"2026-06-24T15:26:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/318189\/"},"modified":"2026-06-24T15:26:09","modified_gmt":"2026-06-24T15:26:09","slug":"pickleball-enthusiasts-attend-clinic-hosted-by-top-rated-player-at-the-courts-cape-coral","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/318189\/","title":{"rendered":"Pickleball enthusiasts attend clinic hosted by top rated player at The Courts Cape Coral"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Allyce Jones, one of the top-rated, professional women’s doubles pickleball players in the country, provides some on-court instruction at a two-day clinic held last week at The Courts Cape Coral.<\/p>\n

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Brook Hollan works on her backhand technique during the recent clinic at The Courts Cape Coral hosted by PPA pro Allyce Jones.<\/p>\n

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The Courts, Cape Coral<\/p>\n

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The reputation as a top pickleball destination for The\u00a0Courts Cape Coral took another leap forward this\u00a0past week when top women\u2019s doubles player Allyce Jones hosted a two-day clinic for pickleball enthusiasts in Southwest Florida.<\/p>\n

The clinic attracted about 35 pickleball enthusiasts looking to improve the nuances of their game. <\/p>\n

Jones focused mainly on the swing and footwork. She explained how improvement\u00a0in\u00a0racket technology has allowed the\u00a0players to create topspin,\u00a0relatively new to pickleball.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause of the\u00a0new paddles we have that allow you to grip more, you can create spin. When we first came into pickleball we didn\u2019t have any grip so players had to push the ball more and couldn\u2019t spin it as much. So when I\u00a0was learning and watching the\u00a0high level players, the\u00a0spin was more like a tennis\u00a0shot,\u201d said Jones \u201cSo now the\u00a0top players are hitting it more like\u00a0a tennis stroke versus a pickleball push. So I started doing that about a year and a half ago, doing\u00a0more spin. Tennis and pickleball translate a lot and people don\u2019t know without pickleball instruction.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jones\u2019 background as a high level tennis player helps her teach players how to\u00a0create that spin, important on a short court like pickleball.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She also possesses a natural gift to coach. She said\u00a0it\u2019s one thing to know what you\u2019re talking about but being able to have a player grasp what you\u2019re trying to teach is so rewarding.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s nothing better than seeing something click and they have instant joy because they figured it out,\u201d said Jones, who holds about 12 clinics a year working around her Professional Pickleball Association schedule. \u201cThat brings me the ultimate happiness. It\u2019s been that way ever since\u00a0I was young when I started coaching when I was\u00a018.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jones said she tries to see the strengths and weaknesses in player\u2019s games and focus her coaching on those aspects.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor example, I grabbed someone during the clinic that was staying more open stance. So I asked her sports background and she said softball. So I said when you stand in the batters box, you turn. That clicked with her. So I\u2019m being able to transfer based off the person you have and be able to know what clicks for them is huge.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brook Hollan attended the clinic hoping to\u00a0fine tune her game.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to learn more technique. I started\u00a0in tennis then started rec play in pickleball about 18 months ago and I just never had anyone help correct me or do anything to improve. It\u2019s kind of hard when you don\u2019t know what you\u2019re doing,\u201d said Hollan. \u201cThe tips she\u2019s given are very technical which helps a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jason Smith is the director of communications for The Courts. He was instrumental in bringing Jones to Cape Coral. They had established a professional relationship at the\u00a0Professional Pickleball Association tournament held a few years ago in Cape Coral. An equipment \u201cmalfunction\u201d \u2014 Jones had lost her paddle \u2014 led to a friendship that continues to this day.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a funny story how we met,\u201d said Smith. \u201cShe had lost her paddle that ended up being at our front desk. I think my comment to her was, \u2018Don\u2019t you have 20 of them?\u2019 And she said, \u2018I just love my paddle.\u2019 That\u2019s how we met, and we talked briefly, exchanged phone numbers. I can\u2019t remember who reached out to who, but we thought it was a really good idea to play. I thought it was a really good idea to bring somebody of her caliber of coaching to the members here at Cape Coral. I think it\u2019s a good thing for the community and for our members\u201d<\/p>\n

Jones, ranked in the top 20 in women\u2019s pickleball doubles, accomplishments are undeniable. In high school she played softball, won two tennis state championships and a volleyball state championship and was awarded the Utah Valley MVP.<\/p>\n

She went on to play volleyball at Utah Valley University where she set several defensive records and won several awards including Conference Defensive Player of the Year, UVU Female Athlete of the Year and UVU Crowd Pleaser of the Year.<\/p>\n

Following her college career, she became a teacher and volleyball coach. She won four state championships and won NFHS Coach of the Year for the West Region of the United States.<\/p>\n

Smith believes Jones loves coaching as much as playing.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot only is she an incredible player, she\u2019s an incredible coach,\u201d said Smith. \u201cThe little bit I played against her, my game improved just from the pointers she gave us. She\u2019s a natural coach. She was like, do this, do that. She\u2019s very much, I would say, a coach first then a player. Don\u2019t get me wrong, she enjoys playing but I think she really enjoys coaching.\u201d<\/p>\n

Smith has ambitions to attract other professionals to The Courts, both pickleball and tennis.<\/p>\n

\u201cI continue to see the PPA coming back year after year,\u00a0hopefully even expand that to some lower level PPA\u00a0challenger tournaments, we talk\u00a0about bringing a\u00a0professional\u00a0tennis tournament here. I would eventually like to bring some tennis professionals here to do a tennis clinic. Everything we do is a\u00a0simple decision, if it improves the health and the economic vitality of the community then yes we\u2019re going to do it,\u201d said Smith<\/p>\n

The Courts Cape Coral is a hot bed for pickleball. It has recently been recognized as one of\u00a0 the top spots in Southwest Florida and the Southeast U.S., also recognized as the top pickleball area in the country.<\/p>\n

Lisa Zuk, general manager of The Courts, attributes that to the facility Cape Coral built.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey built a beautiful facility. The one good thing we hear about\u00a0that distances us from other facilities is the amenities we have, full cafe, pro shop, a large shaded area, We\u2019re very central with our cafe. They were smart the way they built it between tennis and pickleball. A great design really,\u201d said Zuk. \u201cSecond, I attribute a lot to the team. Everyone works hard and are very creative. One thing I always personally say is I\u2019m very keen on offering something for everyone. I want all levels\u00a0and abilities, from the tiny tots up to somebody in their 90s, also social activities. I think we\u2019re finding more ways to combine the on-court activities with the social activities. I believe that is very\u00a0popular with\u00a0those who take part.\u201d<\/p>\n

You can go to The Courts Cape Coral website at https:\/\/playthecourtscapecoral.com\/ for additional information on upcoming events, which include:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Currently taking place is the weekly summer camp for kids running through July 24 for both tennis and pickleball<\/p>\n

\u2022 Summer Sizzler Pickleball tournament for club members June 25, 26 and 27<\/p>\n

\u2022 Junior Summer Sizzler in mid-July<\/p>\n

\u2022 USTA tennis tournament the end of August for level 6 players<\/p>\n

\u2022 Tennis Mixer July 2 with brunch and Wimbledon watch party<\/p>\n

\u2022 2nd year anniversary\u00a0of The Courts Cape Coral in August (a themed event to be determined)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Alzheimer\u2019s\u00a0Awareness Tournament for members this October<\/p>\n

\u2022 The PPA championships return in February 2027<\/p>\n

The Courts Cape Coral is located at 420 S.W. 2nd Ave., off Santa Barbara Boulevard at Lake Kennedy. Call (239) 574-0808 for more information.<\/p>\n


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