COCKEYSVILLE, Md. — They call him 'The Pickleball Patriarch.'
WATCH: 91-year-old 'Pickleball Patriarch' competes in Baltimore County tourney
Ninety-one-year-old Darrell Edwards is the oldest competitor in the Baltimore County Department of Aging's Pickleball Palooza, a round-robin tournament for seniors being held this week at Dill Dinkers in Cockeysville and White Marsh and Bounce in Pikesville.
He's joined at the Cockeysville courts by friends from the Bykota Senior Center in Towson, where he took up the sport four years ago.
“I can't go out and play tennis anymore and I don't play softball, don't play baseball,” says Darrell. “It's a wonderful exercise for a man of my age and condition.”
Darrell's taking on players who are decades younger than him. He's teamed up with 62-year-old Pam Trainor. Tournament rules require the duo to compete in the younger player's age group.
“I look like I maybe did pretty well for my age group,” he says. “I have this young lady as a partner, so she drops me down, but we, we get along together.”
He says his new hobby keeps him active and fit.
“I have to be doing something,” he says. “I move around a lot. If I was sitting at home watching television, I wouldn't be in the condition I'm in now. For me, somebody in the nineties, I think I do pretty well.”
His daughters, Cindy and Laura, say they've seen the positive impact it's had on his health.
“Pickleball has really helped Dad,” says Laura Edwards. “With his balance and coordination, and even a little bit with his reflex.”
Darrell plays four days a week at the senior center. He also participates in the writing club and shoots pool, and afterwards, he goes out for a beer at his favorite bar, The Raven Inn.
“I wouldn't have any social life ever if it wasn't for my family and the senior center,” he says. “That's all I got.”
Something his daughters say has become even more important since their mom died a few years ago.
“They were best friends,” says Cindy Glass. “They did so much together. So now having a social outlet where he gets to see people and talk to people that aren't his daughters (laughs). That's been really wonderful.”
While Darrell and Pam didn't win their slot, Darrell says he'll keep playing as long as he can get out on the court.
