Rick Freeman reaches for a pickleball during a game Friday at the Laurn Grove courts in Hancock. His teammate Paula Nutini prepares to back him up on the play. (Daver Karnosky/Daily Mining Gazette)

HANCOCK — The pickleball courts at Laurn Grove will be bustling this Saturday as the local club, the Copper Country Pickleball Club, hosts a tournament starting at 10 a.m.

For a nominal fee of $10, individuals will be assigned a number at check-in at 9:30 a.m., and then they will hit the courts after a warm-up.

According to Rick Freeman, who acts as a pickleball ambassador for the Copper Country, the games will get very interesting for one major reason.

“We’re going to have everybody play with a different player each game,” he said. “We found that that’s better than a team coming in and just taking the whole thing. We want it to be friendly and get everybody involved.”

To sign up for the tournament, players are encouraged to contact the city of Hancock, either through City Hall, or on the city’s website. Those who would prefer to call can do so at 482-2720.

The registration fees go towards keeping the club stocked with balls and other equipment necessary to play the game regularly three times a week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.

“We’re going to have trophies for first, second, and third place,” said Freeman. “We’re hopefully not scaring off people with the tournament thing, so we’re trying to maybe figure that out for next time.”

Freeman loves the game, and he brings that passion for it with him every time he comes to the courts. The only thing that seems to be more important than playing, for him, is teaching it to others.

“I started playing in Mexico when I was visiting my son down there, and I was horrible, but I loved it,” he said. “I just loved it, and some people aren’t nice on a pickleball court. I was getting, not ridiculed, but ‘do this, do that.’ They were, in their own way, trying to be helpful. I understand that. Then, I just kept with it, and brought it back here.”

Freeman was not alone in his love of this new-to-him game, as he soon found out.

“Jerry Parker brought it back from Florida, just happened to be on the same year,” said Freeman.

The beauty of pickleball, according to Freeman, is that new players do not even need previous paddle experience.

“You can practice that at home just to get the feel, because it feels different than any other game you’ve played,” Freeman said. “In tennis, you have a rebound off the rackets. You have a rebound off the ball. These balls are solid, (but they) have holes in them. The rackets are solid, made out of different material.”

Freeman admits he is still learning about the game, and that is another reason why it is so much fun to play.

“As you watch the games being played here, there’s just a variety of skill levels,” he said. “What’s fascinating about it is you can get better every game. You can learn something every game, even.

“I’ve been playing six years, and there’s things I learn every game, mistakes I make every game, (the) same mistakes. Then you go, ‘Whoops, I feel like a rookie now.’ Then you switch and you learn.”

Another aspect of pickleball that has helped it grow as a game is the social aspect of it.

“That’s one of the best things about it, is it’s an opportunity to get some exercise,” said Freeman. “It’s an opportunity to do something that looks a little bit like table tennis, a little bit like tennis, but it has its own thing. People seem to really enjoy it, and it’s social.

“The people that are waiting to play are chatting about all kinds of things, (like) where they live. There’s a lot of people from out of the area that are visiting here. We have a website that we’re on, places2play.com. I keep that up with changes and whatnot. I get calls almost every day. I get text messages every day, from people that are traveling through, that are camping, that are visiting, and they want to come and play.”

What Freeman loves about the social aspect of the game is that everybody locally goes out and wants to get better, so they share what they learn from doing that with newer players, in order to help them learn quicker.

“When you see a stoppage in the game, and two players are getting together to talk about something, it’s just to help that player,” he said. “‘Maybe you should have been closer to the line,” just to give them positive suggestions on how to play the game. It’s very cool.”

Freeman is thankful that Hancock has fully embraced the pickleball club, and helped get the old tennis courts at Laurn Grove resurfaced for pickleball, and that they helped find the right people to paint the courts and reset the fencing around the courts. With all of the city’s help, and that of the various contractors who did the work, the courts are in great shape as the club prepares for the tournament.