For the past few summers the Norwood Curling Club has put away its curling stones and brought out the pickleball paddles. The local sports complex has become a popular hub for the Norwood Pickleball Club, hosting several games each week.

Bob Henzie was a well-known and well-liked member of the Norwood and Hastings pickleball community. Bob’s sudden death in December of last year was an unexpected shock for his family and many friends in his pickleball circle.

Although Bob played to win, winning always took a back seat to having fun. As a tribute to Bob and his love for the game, a fun-day memorial pickleball tournament was held in his honour at the Norwood Curling Club on Sept. 12. While most of the players were friends and members from the Norwood and Hastings pickleball clubs, there were also several out-of-town friends and relatives taking part.

The tournament included round robin play in the morning followed by a double elimination tournament in the afternoon, leading up to semifinal and final playoffs. Entry was singles with no partner required, however all games were played mixed doubles. Sign-up was limited to 16 women and 16 men. The morning schedule included round robin games based on two pools with eight men and eight women in each pool. Each player was paired with a different partner for each game and played seven games with, for the most part, different opponents. Scores were tracked (wins and points spread) and tallied with the winners declared based on games won and total won games point spread.

After a morning of heated competition players took a welcome break for lunch, provided and catered by Norwood’s own Sweethearts Bakery.

Afternoon........

© Peterborough Examiner