Joseph Ballard - Tennis and Pickleball Director josephb@delnorteclub.com
Joseph was born in Santa Rosa, California and has grown up in the Sacramento area since the age of 3. In his childhood, he was very involved in Scouting, receiving his Eagle Scout award at the age of 16. He was formerly a soccer player and transitioned to tennis where he really found his place. After high school, he was assistant coach for the Roseville High tennis team and began as an assistant coach at Sierra View Country Club. He quickly moved up, taking on the role of Director of Junior Programs and Head Coach, which led to growing the junior programs, tournaments, and leading competitive USTA teams. He has coached beginner players as young as 3, advanced college players, as well as senior players. He received his Elite Professional USPTA certification at the age of 22, Racquetfit Certification, USPTA pickleball certification, and is a Certified Tennis Performance Specialist. His passion for tennis, pickleball and coaching continues to grow. He is excited to bring a wave of growth to the net sports community at Del Norte for years to come!
Laura Sax - Tennis and Pickleball Coordinator lauras@delnorteclub.com
Laura grew up in Bend, Oregon and began playing competitive tennis on her high school varsity team. She worked as a bankruptcy attorney in Los Angeles and then relocated to Sacramento and a career in corporate law until her oldest son was born. After many years away from tennis, Laura returned to the game when her three children reached school age. She is delighted to be playing again! She joined Del Norte’s tennis and pickleball staff in 2016 and has taught juniors and adults in group and private lessons, as well as leading several USTA junior tennis teams. Laura is a USPTA-certified Tennis Instructor and is the head coach of the Rio Americano High School boys’ tennis team. She loves sharing her enthusiasm for tennis and pickleball with players of all ages!
Tim Nevins - Pickleball Assistant
Tim was born and raised in Sacramento, California and began his sports interest at age ten in the world of golf where he began to consistently participate in First Tee Tournaments within the Sacramento area. At the age of fourteen, he and his brothers began to take a liking to tennis. Over the next two years tennis was their primary sport playing as 4-6 times a week. While going to college Tim become an employee at Del Norte in June of 2021. Beginning his time here as a front desk employee, Tim developed fantastic relationships with the members of the club as well as pickleball players, which led to him checking out the sport everyone was talking about. His first time out was a disaster, but he immediately fell in love with the sport. Over the course of the past three years he has been playing and studying both the game Pickleball and Tennis with hopes of both tournament play as well as completing his instructor certification for both sports.
Watch our ‘How to Use’ Video for our Pickleball Machine Here
Questions? Check out our Sport Court FAQs
Pickleball is booming at Del Norte! Over the past few years, we’ve seen tremendous growth in our pickleball community, which is made up of players of all ages and levels. Our member-run email list is over 100 players strong! We are proud to offer a wide variety of programs, events, and member-run play, with even more to come!
If you’re a brand-new player and want to see what the fuss is all about, check out the free Intro to Pickleball class, held on the first Saturday of each month. Run by Pickleball Ambassador Chris Jaggers, the class covers basic pickleball shots, scoring, position, and strategy. You’ll also learn about opportunities to learn and play pickleball at Del Norte and how to become a part of our dynamic and fun community.
If you’re looking for a more competitive experience, one of the highlights of the week is the Sunday morning Progressive Challenge, hosted by Pickleball Ambassador Ed Smith. Players move up or down from court to court depending on their wins or losses, followed by open competitive play. Spots fill up fast, so register early (on www.playtimescheduler.com)!
Our week-long junior pickleball camp this summer was a blast! We had so much fun, we are looking forward to planning more junior programs and events in the future. Stay tuned!
If you want to learn more about how you can get in on the fun, contact Tennis & Pickleball Director Joseph Ballard at josephb@delnorteclub.com.
