Boca Raton will now feature its own franchise for Pickleball Pros in National Pickleball League™
BOCA RATON, FL, UNITED STATES, March 3, 2023 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The World Pickleball Group, led by Carl Foster and Rick Retamar and his team of partners, is proud to announce the launch of the Boca Raton Picklers, South Florida's first professional pickleball franchise as part of the new National Pickleball League™ (NPL™.)
The Boca Raton Picklers will be one of six new franchises in the National Pickleball League (www.nplpickleball.com), which is a professional pickleball league for Champions Pros (defined as players that are 50+). The WPG team is set to make a big impact, having already staged two of the largest tournaments in pickleball in South Florida - The Boca Raton Pickleball Masters and the upcoming 3rd Annual Delray Beach Pickleball Open in May 10-14, 2023. The Boca Masters was recently one of the most watched pickleball tournaments, with over 50 thousand viewers surpassing Major League Pickleball, APP, and PPA tournaments.
To celebrate the launch and new team logo of the Boca Raton Picklers, a press event will be held on Friday, March 3rd at Maggiano's Little Italy Boca Raton located at 21090 St. Andrews Blvd, Boca Raton, FL 33433.
Boca Raton Mayor Scott Singer, a pickleball aficionado himself, will be in attendance along with executives from the Palm Beach County Sports Commission and NPL executives Michael “Hammer Mike” Chen and the #1 ranked Men’s Champions Pro, Rick Witsken, along with some of the country’s top Champion Pros.
"We are thrilled to bring the first professional pickleball franchise to Boca Raton and South Florida," said Carl Foster, CEO of The World Pickleball Group and co-owner of the Boca Raton Picklers, LLC, which will be the company that owns the pickleball team.
"It’s a fact that pickleball is one of the fastest-growing sports in the world, and we're excited to be at the forefront of helping grow the sport along with the development of the NPL,” added Rick Retamar, Florida attorney for 33 years and co-owner of the Boca Raton Picklers, LLC.
“We launched NPL in December 2022 as a home for Champions Pros, by Champions Pros. We wanted the league to be a grassroots effort and honor the Champions Players,” NPL co-founder Michael Chen explains. “Pickleball would not have had the explosion of growth it has today if it wasn’t for the commitment that this demographic gave to this game over the years. We are thrilled that the Boca Raton Picklers are joining us on this journey.”
“Carl, Rick and their team at the World Pickleball Group are well-connected partners who are focused on growing the great sport of pickleball,” added #1 ranked Champion Pro and NPL co-founder Beth Bellamy. “We are very excited about working with the Boca Raton Picklers to make the NPL the best it can be.”
The Boca Raton Picklers will bring together some of the top talent in the sport and create a world-class team that will compete at the highest level. The NPL draft will be held in April after a two-day player combine March 25-26, 2023 at the Chicken N Pickles Oklahoma City indoor location.
There will be 6 events in 2023 at the host partner of Chicken N Pickles locations and schedules are available online at www.nplpickleball.com. Foster and Retamar will be working with the NPL to host at least one home match in Boca Raton for 2024.
“The NPL is so excited for Boca Raton to be a landing pad for Champions Pros to showcase their abilities and to vie for the top prize,” commented #1 Ranked Champions Pro and NPL™ Co-Founder, Rick Witsken. “The men and women who play for the Boca Raton Picklers will be committing themselves to excellence in their training, competitiveness and sportsmanship, along with striving to get their share of the largest ever Champions Pro Prize Pool of $100,000!”
MEDIA ADVISORY:
Press Event will promptly start at 11am followed by interviews with Mayor Scott Singer, NPL Executives Michael Chen and #1 Champions Pro Rick Witsken, and new Boca Raton Picklers owners, Rick Retamar, and Carl Foster.
A complimentary lunch will be served from 12pm to 1pm at Maggiano’s Little Italy.
Maggiano's Little Italy Boca Raton
21090 St. Andrews Blvd
Boca Raton, FL 33433
Rick Witsken and South Florida top Champions Pros will be playing an exhibition from 130pm to 2:30pm at Patch Reef Park for media to gather action footage on the pickleball courts.
Patch Reef Park Pickleball courts at: 2000 Yamato Road. (10 minutes west of Maggiano’s)
For more information, please visit the NPL™ website at https://nplpickleball.com/.
Media Contact: Carl Foster Email: carl@worldpickleballgroup.com Phone: 561.440.0941
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ABOUT NATIONAL PICKLEBALL LEAGUE™ (NPL™)
NPL was founded in December 2022 as a home for Champions Pros (Age 50+) by four Champions Pros. The league in 2023 will consist of six teams across the country and will play on six different weekends from June-October culminating in Championship Weekend at Chicken N Pickle’s new facility in Glendale, Arizona. A Players Combine will be held in March 2023 for Champions Pros to showcase their talents in the hopes of increasing their chances of being drafted at the inaugural Draft in April 2023. The Combine and all League matches will be played at Chicken N Pickle’s thrilling indoor entertainment facilities located in Arizona, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas.
National Pickleblal League™, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
ABOUT RICK RETAMAR. (Co-Owner of Boca Raton Picklers, LLC)
Rick was born and raised in Miami, a Native Floridian, has been a Florida Practicing Attorney for 33 years and is a partner with Retamar & Millian, P.A. Caught the pickleball bug during the pandemic with his family and instantly the entire family was hooked and now are obsessed by the sport of Pickleball. Rick grew up playing many sports including basketball and tennis (where he met partner, Carl Foster over 25 years ago) honing his athletic skills that would unknowingly prepare him for a return to competition on the pickleball courts and playing tournaments locally and nationally.
He has worked his up the ranks winning multiple Gold Medals in singles in all divisions from 3.5 to 4.5 and now has ventured into the Champions Pros ranks playing his first Senior Pro Singles event at the Boca Masters in 2023 and winning several matches with the determination to reach the Gold Medal stand at the highest level.
Married to his lovely wife, Susan for 32 years they have three athletic sons, Zander, Grant and Spencer, also all Picklers. Rick has worked for several non-profits but currently the Chairman of the Board of the Caridad Center, the largest free clinic in Florida. Rick has been a philanthropist and servant leader loving to give back to the community and help others.
ABOUT CARL FOSTER (Co-Owner of Boca Raton Picklers, LLC)
A 40 year Veteran of TV and Radio Broadcasting, Carl served our country faithfully as a Vietnam Veteran and was the broadcast voice for American Forces Radio and Television for 7 years. After his military service he went on to build an illustrious and impressive career in broadcasting and the event business.
Currently founder and President of Foster Events Group, LLC, since 2014. Carl has been a trailblazer in the creation of television shows and corporate and nonprofit branding events. Always at the cutting edge was he first to market the blossoming sport of Pickleball and has become a national figure in the Pickleball community by producing the Inside WORLD Pickleball television shows airing on FOX Sports and CBS Sports. The 3rd season Amazon PRIME’s PICKLE TV. His expertise and knowledge has been at the forefront of Pickleball management and consulting companies for the past four years.
He now heads up a consortium of pickleball companies with his business partners forming the World Pickleball Group including Tier One level pickleball events, National Expos, the 3rd Annual Delray Beach Pickleball Open, the first South Florida professional event with the finals airing on CBS Sports. In 2022 he added two more APP Tour events building the largest national event in Boca Raton, Florida, with the Masters, and over 1,000 players and airing finals on ESPN. In 2023 he purchased both tournaments 100% from the APP and are now sanctioned by USA Pickleball and operated by
He is currently still the "Voice" of the ATP Delray Beach tennis tournament for the past 25 years, and hosts and produces USTA Tennis specials for Tennis Channel. Carl has served faithfully on the board of advisors of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA), the Boca/Boynton YMCAs, and Match Point Tennis Ministries. Pickleball with a Purpose is his philanthropic mission serving such charities as the First Responders, Wounded Warriors, Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital and NFL’s Athletes in Recovery.
Also, addicted to Pickleball the past 4 years Carl has been competing in singles and doubles and medaling at various levels. Married to Nancy Foster and together they have 5 grown children. Camile, Brittany, Carla, Nicole, and Chase.
Kristen Noffsinger
Kreps PR & Marketing
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