GPC Mission Statement

Gwinnett Pickleball Club is dedicated to growing the sport of pickleball in Gwinnett County through both open play and competitive events. We want to encourage new and casual players to enjoy this wonderful game, and we also want to encourage more competitive players to build their skills to become more competitive. We will encourage a sense of community amongst players within Gwinnett County, regardless of where they play.

Why join GPC?  

We already have some free courts and open play, right? I think there are several reasons to join GPC, and hopefully you find at least a few of them compelling enough to join.

• COMPETITIVE PLAY - Members have the opportunity to play in regularly scheduled competitive events, rather than just doing open play all the time. Open play is core to the culture of our sport, but competitive play is also great fun, and is a great motivator to improve your skills.

• OPEN PLAY - I’ll continue negotiating on your behalf to ensure that we have courts available for open play. If funds allow, I’ll also reserve courts for additional open play at other times during the week.

• FREE STUFF - You'll get some kind of SWAG annually. Maybe a keychain, bag tag, magnet, sticker…who knows, but something unique each year that's only for members.

• MORE PICKLEBALL - Members help support the growth of pickleball in Gwinnett in general. I (Brian) put in a lot of time and effort to help build-up the sport here: petitioning government agencies to improve facilities (county and cities), putting in work order requests for maintenance, engaging/encouraging new players, ensuring we have open play time, etc. Supporting GPC helps ensure that I can continue doing these things.

• MORE POWER - I can’t strengthen your backhand flick, but as a club we will have a more powerful presence before Gwinnett County. I won’t just be Brian saying that they need to build more courts, offer more open play, etc.. It’ll be 100+ members of GPC who are saying that we need space for more leagues, open play, etc.  

Membership Cost

Membership in the GPC will begin at only $30/yr!!! I know we all love the fact that we’re able to play so much pickleball for free, but when it comes to organized play, there are some costs that must be addressed.  Based on a club of about 150 members, the annual cost to operate the club (per player) includes:

$7 Liability Insurance

$8 Pickleball Den Subscription (GPC will renew or pay for your subscription)

$7 Ladder events (2x/week, no more $1 donation requested)

$3 SWAG

$3 Business fees, website, signage, etc.

$28  Total     

I’m going to start the club by charging only $30/yr.  This should cover the costs listed above, and allow a little bit of margin for any unforeseen expenses.

It is definitely my goal to offer additional programs, including the weeknight DUPR events, larger round robins on weekends, etc. Those other programs will likely involve a small additional cost for those that participate.

Founding Membership

UPDATE: due to the fast and generous support of 36 local players, Founding Membership is no longer an option. Thanks to those of you who supported us so quickly!!!

Several kind players have acknowledged the need for some startup funding, and I would like to be able to offer some additional benefits to the folks that are able to help cover some startup costs (initial insurance purchase, business registration, etc). Therefore, I’m going to offer a Founding Membership option. 

Founding Members would pay an initial membership of $130 for the first year, instead of the standard $30; renewals would be at the standard rate. As a way of saying thank you for supporting GPC, Founding Members will receive:

• A special bag tag to show your extra dedication to building up this great community

• 2 exclusive events this spring/summer just for the founding members, at no charge. Maybe a round robin, a 3-game-guarantee elimination bracket, a DUPR Waterfall, or something else fun, depending on skill levels of our founding members (everyone welcome!!)

• My eternal gratitude :) 

Let’s Go!!!

I’m as anxious as you are to get things started, so what’s left to do?!?!

1. I’m now accepting members to the club. In order to make the initial club insurance purchase, I need some help with funding; this insurance bill is big. Club membership will be managed through Pickleball Den. People who chose to join GPC will remain in our Den club, others will be removed.
   
   Members will need to initially pay with one of the links below, but then future renewals will be made through Pickleball Den.
   
   Click here for Standard Membership
   
   

2. As soon as I have enough players, I’ll submit the paperwork to purchase the insurance, so that Gwinnett will let us run activities. This process will take a couple days.
   
   

3. Then I’ll be able to register with Gwinnett Parks & Rec so that they’ll let me run events and reserve blocks of courts in advance (rather than just 1 week in advance). Again, I expect this to take a few days to complete.
   
   

4. Finally we’ll be able to reserve courts and get rolling. 

You know I’ll do my best to move things along quickly, so sign up soon and let’s get going!

Questions/Comments/Concerns

If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to email me at info@gwinnettpickleball.org  There are a lot of moving parts here, and I’ve never formed a club like this, so if I’m missing something important, I’d love to hear from you about how I can make this club great.

Thanks so much!!!

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Brian