600 matches, 1,000 players: First OCBC-Great Eastern Pickleball Open sees vibrant turnout

[SINGAPORE] The inaugural OCBC-Great Eastern Pickleball Open – one of the largest pickleball tournaments in South-east Asia – wrapped up over the weekend with more than 600 matches played across three days of competition.

Over a thousand players – with some of them flying in from countries such as Australia and India – turned up at the OCBC Arena at The Kallang, with the youngest being 13 and the oldest at 75.

After three days of play from Friday (Oct 23) to Sunday, four pairs of champions were crowned across the Novice, Open, Bank of Singapore Corporate Challenge and the Bank of Singapore Invitational Championship categories. There were prizes worth more than S$100,000 that were presented to the winning teams.

The oldest player, a grandfather named Sam Ho, picked up pickleball just a few months ago. Among 10 beneficiaries from Care Corner Seniors Services, he was selected to compete in the Novice category. This after he participated in the OCBCCares Seniors Pickleball Programme that provides free training to a group of 100 seniors.

The Bank of Singapore Corporate Challenge was won by the pair of Basil Yeo and Ng Ka Wei from Zenith Education Studio. The duo of Jeffrey Kuok and Loy Chye Meng from Seagate Singapore was the runner-up.

OCBC’s head of group brand and communications Koh Ching Ching said the vibrant turnout showcased the popularity of pickleball across generations and nationalities.

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“This perfectly captures what we were aiming for: Community, inclusivity and fun for everyone. (The) successful conclusion of our inaugural event signals a strong start to our support of pickleball,” she said.

In the months leading up to the tournament, the bank also launched the OCBC-Great Eastern Pickleball Series, comprising four weekends of “learn to play” sessions to introduce players to the fundamentals of pickleball.