Beach volleyball heavyweights, Olympians hitting KC sand for George Brett showdown

Serial entrepreneur Lance Windholz hopes a high-profile weekend beach volleyball tournament — showcasing 24 professional players, including seven Olympians — will encourage more Kansas City athletes and enthusiasts to dig the sport he loves.

The George Brett 4v4 Volleyball Showdown arrives Saturday, Sept. 13, at Shawnee Mission Beach Volleyball. Two amateur teams are set to compete alongside six elite teams, featuring Olympians Phil Dalhausser, Taylor Crabb, Taylor Sander, Nick Lucena, Chase Budinger, Alex Ranghieri, and Carli Lloyd.

Shawnee Mission Beach Volleyball; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News

Windholz, owner of the beach volleyball complex in Shawnee, aims to make it an annual event, he said. For the inaugural showdown, he’s teamed with AVP Hall of Famer Steve Obradovich and Kansas City Royals legend George Brett.

“If you are even somewhat interested in volleyball, and you come watch these games, you’re going to fall in love with the sport,” Windholz said. “It’s like a heavyweight boxing match with just big plays back and forth, such a fast tempo. So what we want is to just make more fans of the game.”

“This is the highest level of volleyball in America and it’s coming to KC,” he added. “I think that’s just really cool.”

Click here to purchase tickets for the George Brett 4v4 Volleyball Showdown.

Beach volleyball is a sport on the rise at the national level, Windholz noted.

“You’ve got the AVP Beach that’s growing,” he continued. “You have indoor professional leagues that are growing. Colleges are expanding scholarships to include beach now, even several in the Kansas area. So there’s just a lot more opportunities to play at the next level.”

Shawnee Mission Beach Volleyball; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News

When Windholz bought Shawnee Mission Beach Volleyball in 2023, he said, he wanted to bring more professional events to the facility. Then through “dumb luck,” he connected with Obradovich — a professional beach volleyball player in the 1970s and 1980s — who runs a similar tournament in Newport Beach. 

“It was just a way to help these players make some money, grow the sport that he played and loved, and just kind of give back,” he explained. “After doing that, he knew he wanted to expand it.”

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Obradovich also happens to be childhood friends with Brett, Windholz noted. So when looking for places to take the tournament, Kansas City came to mind. Then when Obradovich saw the eight-acre Shawnee beach facility, which features 18 volleyball courts, a full service bar and grill and a two-tier courtside deck, a partnership was formed.

“He was like, ‘This is incredible; this is awesome,” Windholz recalled. “”You have all the courts right here. You got this whole deck for a VIP area. This is amazing. I’m going to bring this to Kansas City.’”

Shawnee Mission Beach Volleyball; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News

On top of the 24 professional players, there will be eight amateur players — one men’s team and one women’s team — competing, after they won a qualifying tournament in August.

“They get to play in front of all the fans against the best in the world and test their skills,” Windholz said. “It’s going to be intense. The pros are not holding back.”

​​”For those amateurs to play against people they watch on TV, their idols and Olympians, it’s pretty awesome,” he added.

Food trucks, vendors, a kids area with bounce houses, and a pros vs. joes area — where fans can test their skills against the professionals — are planned.

“We’re super excited,” Windholz noted. “We’re really bringing a new professional sport to Kansas City. These are Olympians, and people who have won major AVP tournaments this year. So really the best in the country are coming out to do a one day tournament for us. It’s gonna be awesome.”