Novi, Northville pickleball duo competes in Irish Open

NOVI — Novi and Northville are now home to two internationally renowned pickleball players after they made their mark in overseas play.

For the past year, Novi’s Don Patterson, 65, and Northville’s Cormac Wright, 62, have competed as a strong pickleball doubles team with a special chemistry.

Six days a week at Wildlife Woods Park in Novi, Patterson and Wright, who are both retired, show why they’re the park pros as they compete in pickup games each morning.

“A lot of the players will come to us and ask for advice, but when we play together, we very seldom get beat,” Patterson said.

The duo took their talents to Grosse Ile and Livonia to compete in tournaments, where they did not make it out of the round robin in Grosse Ile, but then they skipped the nationwide circuit and went straight for international play.

Wright, who is from Ireland, noticed a tournament, the 2023 Irish Open, was taking place in Dublin, Ireland, close to where his family resides, and that was when the plan came to fruition. The Irish Open took place June 22-25.

“We happened to just be looking for tournaments to play in, and I saw this post about this one playing in Dublin, so I looked at Don and said, ‘Hey, you interested?’” Wright said. “We kind of didn’t take it seriously at first, but then we realized, ‘Why the hell not?’”

Patterson and Wright became crowd favorites early with their humorous on-court personalities, skilled play and even their customized T-shirts.

“We have these shirts that say ‘yes’ and ‘no,’ and Cormac’s of course says ‘no,’” Patterson said. “When he was first starting, he was hitting a few balls into the net and he would always go, ‘No,’ and I would laugh and go, ‘Yes.’ When we go to tournaments, he wears a ‘no’ T-shirt and I have a ‘yes,’ and we get the biggest following of the tournament.”

The ‘yes’ and ‘no’ squad reached the quarterfinals of the open before being eliminated by the eventual winners, facing off against teams from Ecuador, Italy, Ireland and the United Kingdom in the 55-plus age bracket.

Patterson and Wright said it was a thrilling experience — especially for Wright, who was able to have a hometown fan base — to take part in an international tournament after playing in two local tournaments.

While their play was impressive on the court, both men agreed that they showcased their strongest performances throughout the city of Dublin.

“I was there with a tour group in 2019, but it does not compare to being with a local traveling around Dublin,” Patterson said. “We could’ve got a gold medal for drinking Guiness.”

“Let’s say he got to see more of the underbelly,” Wright said.

Although their pickleball partnership has only reached the year benchmark, their friendship has been going on for over 30 years, since Wright first came over from Ireland in 1983.

Wright began working for Ford Motor Co. in 1986, where he met Patterson’s wife, Shelly, and Wright said, “It’s been downhill ever since.” They have played indoor soccer and racquetball together.

Patterson was the first to take on pickleball after having total knee replacement surgery and then looking to get back into something competitive.

“I needed something to get me back in the game quick, so I started playing pickleball and found out that you got to be able to move pretty good in this,” Patterson said. “I get the old man warmup of putting on all the Icy Hot and put on the knee braces, and off you go.”

“He’s like the Six Million Dollar Man by the time he’s finished,” Wright said.

From there, it was all about recruiting Wright to give the game a chance, and it didn’t take long for Wright to become a self-proclaimed “pickleball enthusiast.”

“It’s very forgiving, as it allows for every style of person and every style of athletic ability to get out,” Wright said. “Obviously it’s exercise, so it’s good.”

Patterson competed in the National Senior Games Association Tournament earlier this month in Pittsburgh, but was without Wright.

It’s not the first time the pair split up for a tournament this year, and Wright is always quick to remind Patterson about it.

“For me, I’ve been lucky where I was able to go to Puerto Rico and play in the Puerto Rico Open with another partner without Cormac, who I felt like I was cheating on,” Patterson said.

“He was off being unfaithful to me,” Wright said.

When Patterson is being a loyal pickleball partner and the two are competing side by side, they’re a tough team to beat on the court.