Situated just north of bustling Atlanta, Georgia, the Country Club of Roswell (CCR) stands as a welcoming hub for a diverse community of members. With offerings ranging from golf and tennis to pickleball and swimming, the club caters to a wide range of interests.
In recent years, Haris Poric, a racquet sports pro at CCR, has noticed a growing enthusiasm for pickleball among club members, thanks in part to the introduction of league play. “We’re part of Joinpickleball.com, with four active teams based at CCR,” Poric shares.
Utilizing the club’s tennis hard courts for pickleball, Poric has successfully accommodated over 150 regular players. Interest initially started with beginner clinics and mixers, but as word spread about pickleball becoming a regular feature at the club, more and more members began to join in, including those completely new to racquet sports. Poric observes, “We noticed that while some of our regular golfers were out on the course, their partners were looking for something to do, and many found themselves drawn to pickleball.”
With pickleball gaining traction, CCR now hosts more beginner clinics than ever before, with higher participation rates than tennis clinics. These clinics serve as a gateway to the club’s various league offerings.
For CCR, league play has been a game-changer, offering members the convenience of competitive pickleball without the need to travel far. Poric emphasizes that league play has been instrumental in driving growth, offering a competitive gameplay. The club’s Wednesday ladder league, where points are earned just for showing up, has become a hit among members. Combined with Joinpickleball.com leagues, these initiatives have firmly established CCR as a pickleball hotspot in the area.
Country Club of Roswell’s strategic embrace of league play has not only elevated its pickleball program but also demonstrated a forward-thinking approach to sports engagement within a club setting. Poric commented that he thinks the efforts made by the club to help foster the interest in pickleball were worthwhile and that other clubs would benefit from investing in the sport. He noted that it would be especially worthwhile “if you can get multiple courts together to host events/tournaments”.
