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The pickleball world is bursting with buzzy news right now. There’s a very convincing fake JOOLA paddle for sale on Walmart’s website. Internet trolls are coming for Anna Bright. And one prominent paddle brand has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against another.

And that’s not even the half of it. Buckle up, buttercups. It’s not holiday break just yet.

In This Issue:
— Anna Bright: ‘feminist punching bag’
— Master the first four shots, then have fun
— CRBN files suit against Vatic Pro

Extra, extra!

UPA-A President Jason Aspes, the guy in charge of pro paddle regulation, just posted a video unboxing a fake JOOLA Pro IV he bought on Walmart’s website for less than half its retail value. “What a deal, right?” he joked. It’s pretty darn convincing — but there are a few small tells if you know where to look.

Tanner Tomassi has amassed a large and loyal following for his creative, insightful pickleball strategy videos, often explained in 60 seconds or less. We just learned there’s a pretty good reason: Tanner has posted at least one video online for an astonishing 850 days straight. His 2026 goal? Never miss a day.

Your paddle grip is just like learning to make new friends as a kid: it’s what’s on the inside that counts. Yes, an overgrip is good for added grip and sweat absorption. But adding a Hesacore underneath is a literal game-changer. Better feel, more control, all comfort. There’s a reason a ton of top pros won’t hit the court without one. Intrigued, we tested one for ourselves.

If “urban country club” sounds like your kind of playground, this one’s worth a look. St. Pete Athletic is a hospitality-first, multi-sport hub (pickleball, padel) and is looking for an athletic director to lead programming, people, and daily operations. This is a dream job for anyone who’s ever said, “I could run this better.”

We all know to serve and return as deep as possible. To hit thirds and fourths that either help us get to the kitchen line or keep the other team from doing so.

But how often do you consciously think of this sequence while you’re playing? Are you reacting to whatever comes your way, or hitting each and every shot with intention to gain the upper hand at every possible turn?

Top coach Jordan Briones preaches the fundamentals. These first four shots are where matches are won or lost. They're not glamorous or flashy, but they're everything.

Every match, every game, every point is different. That’s the wonderful unpredictability that keeps us coming back for more. The next time you hit the court, think of the first four shots of every point as your foundation.

Whether you’re serving or returning, memorize and execute this blueprint and see what happens:

Before you scroll, think about that for a second. How often are you driving your third from rote muscle memory? Or casually pushing a dead dink back on your fourth when you could have attacked?

There’s plenty of time for flash later in the point. Ample opportunity to go for that down-the-line flick or feathery mid-court lob. But you’ll never get there if you don’t earn it the smart way.

➡️ Watch the video.

SLAMIT is making a serious push into pickleball, and it’s doing it with people who actually shape the sport.

The newly launched performance hydration brand has signed a wave of top pros and creators, and one of them is right here. Shea Underwood has been working with SLAMIT as part of its growing roster, pictured with SLAMIT FOCUS in hand.

Their hydration lineup is built specifically for pickleball, packing more than double the electrolytes of most powders and using Baja Gold Sea Salt, the premium stuff loaded with 90 trace minerals. The goal is simple: better hydration, better focus, fewer fades late in matches.

You can try SLAMIT HYDRATE or FOCUS and save 10% with code DINK10.

There’s a downside to fame, as they say. Anna Bright is experiencing that firsthand.

Days after her the heated singles match against The Dink’s founder Thomas Shields — premiering on both Anna Bright’s and The Dink’s YouTube channel on Monday, 12/22 — the people want to know one thing and one thing only: How bad did she lose?!

Anna’s competitive and sarcastic sense of humor has perhaps been lost on a shady but volatile subset of the internet. By joking that her favorite pastime is “humbling men,” she inadvertently became an “anti-feminist punching bag” (her words).

The Dink contributor, Nico the Lefty, posted a video hyping up the match, including all the “trash talk.” And well, it went viral, amassing more than three million views (and counting) on TikTok alone.

As Anna stated in her recent newsletter: "Overnight, I became an anti-feminist icon… or perhaps enemy? Target? A misandrist? I can’t lie, I do like being iconic, but I think I reached a corner of TikTok that is a relatively dark place.”

The best part: the haters are convinced, without a shred of evidence, that she lost to Thomas. In their defense, there is this clip of Thomas hitting a pretty gross backhand winner that leaves Anna begging for a timeout.

So, is it possible the world #2 women’s pickleball pro underestimated her (debatably) 5.0 media empire CEO opponent heading into their Miami matchup?

The anticipation has never been higher. Make sure to open Monday’s issue for a link to the full match video (and all the crazy stuff that happened). In the meantime, subscribe to Anna Bright’s newsletter here.

Haters gonna hate.

The 2025 paddle landscape has been defined by two big developments: full-foam cores and the tireless pursuit of maximum allowable power.

In January, CRBN launched the TruFoam Genesis, the first commercially available full-foam paddle core and the result of extensive research and development efforts.

Elements of their core design are protected by a patent. And that patent is now at the heart of a lawsuit the brand filed against competitor paddle brand Vatic Pro in a California Central District Court on December 17.

More specifically, the suit pertains to Vatic's V-Sol Power paddle, a full-foam core model that debuted this September and features “indents” throughout the core.

“After the patent was granted, we again sought to engage in a constructive discussion to resolve the matter without litigation,” CRBN owners Garrett Gosselin and Kyle Goguen, told us. “Unfortunately, those attempts did not lead to any discussion or cooperation, leaving us with no alternative but to take steps to protect our intellectual property.”

Vatic’s CEO Daryl Wang told us via email that the brand “takes all intellectual property issues seriously and intends to respond through the appropriate legal process.”

The V-Sol line has been proven popular with consumers and paddle reviewers alike. Is its production in jeopardy? We’ll have to wait and see.

➡️ Get the full story.

We mentioned VKTRY earlier this week, and there’s a reason for that. We know you’ve got energy. A whole lot of energy once you’re on court.

And VKTRY’s carbon fiber insoles return energy with every step, giving back what most insoles simply absorb so you can move more efficiently and stay springy deeper into sessions.

What we like is how personalized the process is. You answer a few quick questions and VKTRY builds a pair based on how you move and play.

Players like Tanner Tomassi and Grayson Goldin have been using them, which tracks. In a sport where movement matters, small upgrades add up fast. They’re super functional and on court, that extra energy adds up.

Counterfeit paddles are a growing issue impacting player safety and the growth of the sport. A new campaign taps some top pros for a lighthearted look at a serious problem.

The campaign – "Don't Trust a Fake" – takes AI composites of top UPA and PPA Tour pros like Andrei Daescu, Kate Fahey, Hayden Patriquin, Tyra Black, and Jack Munro, and reimagines them in professions far, far from the pickleball court.

The message: Don’t trust a fake.

➡️ The resulting images are pure gold. Check out a few of our favorites.

A review from the Dink Fam...

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