Bill O’Sullivan

Bill O’Sullivan stays active: golf, pickleball, bocce ball, racquet ball, tennis and a whole lot of other ball games.  Plus stretching exercises to remain fit. He loves his sporting life and the people it’s introduced him to.

Bill started playing Pickleball about five years ago.  While biking by Golden Gate Park, he heard the noise and laughter, and accepted Carolyn Harvey’s invitation to “just try it.” Now he plays Pickleball three or four times a week, often at Presidio Wall or Golden Gate Park, and recently at Rossi. You’ll see Bill arrive early to help set up the nets, and play before it gets too crowded.

Nine Pickleball “regulars” play on Wednesday mornings at GGP. “We just mix it up.” Sometimes, visitors join their game, including out-of-town grandparents visiting grandchildren in SF. “They spend so much time on the court, I wonder when they see their grandchildren?”  Recently, Bill got paired with Henrietta, a small, thin 80+ year old from Canada. He anticipated a gentle game. “She was a fireball. I didn’t expect it.”

Bill loves the Pickleball community and finds that wherever you go, everyone is accepting.  Summers in New York, he plays with snow birders from Florida. That’s part of the pleasure of Pickleball.

Research says that social sports like tennis, pickleball, and ping pong extend your life. Bill agrees. But adds “Yeh, it extends your life because they won’t give up the court,” he jokes.  When he’s waiting for a court, he juggles pickleballs. And on those rare occasions, when he’s at the court, without a ball or a paddle, he’s taking pictures and helping to maintain our local group’s visual history.

- Judy Goddess