ABOUT KAREN
Karen Thomas is a certified pickleball coaching professional with a passion for helping others discover the joys of pickleball and improve their pickleball skills. With over a decade of pickleball experience and PPR training and certification, Karen brings a wealth of knowledge and a personalized approach to coaching. Her background and accomplishments as a national medalist in pickleball and former competitive tennis player ensure that her students receive top-notch training and support.
SPREADING THE JOY OF PICKLEBALL
Lessons - Private & Group
Whether you have never played pickleball (or any other racquet sport) before and are wanting to learn the rules and fundamentals so you can get started, or you have been playing for a while and want to improve your stroke mechanics, shot selection, court positioning, strategy and competitive success in doubles or singles, I can help you take your game to the next level. Bring yourself, your partner or a few friends, and get ready to learn, expand your skills, and have fun!
Strategy Sessions
One of the many things that makes pickleball so engaging is the strategy. As your skills advance you learn to develop patterns that make the game interesting, fun and challenging. Working with your doubles partner to develop optimal teamwork, court positioning, shot selection and communication (verbal and non-verbal such as signaling and stacking) is a key aspect of being a good partner and improving competitive doubles play. Bring two or three similar-level players and we’ll work on strategy together.
Skills & Drills
The best way to improve your skills is to drill, not just to play. Repetition through drilling develops muscle memory so that then when you are in a game situation your body will naturally remember the correct way to execute the proper shots. There are many drills that can be used to practice different shots. Let’s work on the shots you want to improve so that you’ll feel more confident in your next games or tournament.
Tournament Prep
Thinking about playing in a tournament but not sure how to prepare, where to find tournaments or what level to register for? We’ll work on partner strategy, drilling, looking for your opponents weaknesses, mental toughness, and deciphering all of those acronyms and rating systems (UTR-P, DUPR, APP, PPA, USAP, USSP, etc.) so that you’ll feel ready to enter the competitive landscape of pickleball and enjoy the fun that comes from playing in tournaments.
Special Events
Pickleball is an ideal activity for social and corporate team-building events, auction fundraisers and other group outings. It’s easy enough to learn that anyone can pick it up quickly and have a good time while learning something new or enjoying some fun casual competition. Contact me to discuss how I can help you organize and facilitate a fun event that will bring your group closer together and leave everyone smiling and in good spirits!
Pickleball Marketing
I have been working as Director of Marketing & Communications for pickleball companies large and small since 2017, and for tech companies long before that. If your pickleball business needs Marketing/Communications, Operations or Project Management support from an experienced and well-connected pickleball industry expert who can help you stand out above the rest, let’s talk!
Partial pickleball client list includes:
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Pickleball Central
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Pickleball Tournaments
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Seattle Tsunami NPL Team (formerly Seattle United)
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US Senior Pickleball (USSP)
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Professional Pickleball Association (PPA)
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Association of Pickleball Players (APP)