Happy Monday. Is your license plate up for renewal? If so, we have some ideas for you:

You gotta love the creativity and simplicity of these vanity plates, courtesy of some members of Pickleball Forum.

If you also want to rep pickleball on your vehicle, we recommend avoiding any use of the word “pickle.”

It’s likely already taken…and even if it’s not, you may be giving the wrong idea to other drivers. “PCKLME” is liable to cause an accident.

Are you the Head Honcho pickleball player in your area? There’s only one way to find out. Join our pickleball league — coming to a city near you.

In This Issue:

🧠 Play with your opposite hand
🥇 SO. MUCH. GOLD.
🛕 Pickle in Bhutan

Reb drim di tang! (“Let’s go!” in Dzongkha, spoken by many in Bhutan)

APP New Jersey Open Results

PPA Cincinnati Open Results

Play With Your Opposite Hand

In racquet sports, your non-dominant hand is frequently neglected. The paddle in the dominant hand can add spin and power with ease. With it, you can put the ball on a dime and have total control.

Switch the paddle to your non-dominant hand, and you’re lucky if the ball lands in the right court.

Zane and Thomas discuss how training with the non-dominant hand adds to their game on the PicklePod.

The biggest benefit? Developing the two-handed backhand:

• All of the power is derived from your non-dominant hand

• Developing a better non-dominant forehand adds power and consistency to your backhand

• It prevents pulling motion with your dominant hand

Drills with the non-dominant hand also help in case of emergency. When the ball is out of reach, you might be forced to switch hands in order to save a point.

Without practice, this will almost always end in failure. If you spend a little time with your paddle in the wrong hand, you can save yourself in those scenarios.

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101 Gold Medals

Everybody knows Ben Johns is the GOAT. But this weekend, he set a record that no other men’s player will likely repeat.

Johns won his 100th gold medal yesterday. He has completely dominated the PPA since its inception and raced to this major milestone. Next in line is Collin Johns at 24 golds, and all of his golds came as Ben’s partner.

Johns walked away with two golds on Sunday, capturing both doubles titles. He won number 100 alongside Collin in a four-game showdown with JW Johnson and Dylan Fraizer.

A special on-court ceremony recognized the moment between matches. Johns and Anna Leigh Waters then captured the mixed doubles title, Ben’s 101st.

Waters completed another triple crown in the women’s game. She added a women’s doubles title with Catherine Parenteau and a singles title against Parenteau.

• Federico Staksrud broke up Ben’s triple crown and beat the top seed for men’s singles gold

• Vivienne David and Thomas Wilson made an unexpected run to Championship Sunday and finished with silver

• The Kawamoto’s proved again they’re a force to be reckoned with and took silver in women’s doubles

The PPA Tour is off until October. They will pick up again in Las Vegas.

Fill In for Gold

Allison Harris grabbed her first gold on the APP Tour alongside Simone Jardim. Harris subbed into Parris Todd’s usual partnerships and had a double-medal weekend.

Andrei Daescu got back to his winning ways after missing out on gold in Chicago. He and Susannah Barr reclaimed the mixed crown. They sent Hunter Johnson and Allison Harris home with Silver.

Daescu and Rob Nunnery teamed up for their fourth men’s doubles title together. It was again Hunter Johnson on the receiving end this time with brother Yates.

Hunter Johnson did reach the top of the podium in men’s singles. He took care of Eduardo Irizarry 11-4, 11-1.

Megan Fudge was unable to compete in the women’s singles final due to injury. This gave Salome Devideze the day off and another gold medal.

Catch the event highlights on CBS Sports Network tonight at 8 pm ET.

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Highest Elevation Court

If life were a game of Risk, pickleball would be winning. We’ve “taken” 63 countries so far, many more if you count the nations where courts were first set up in the last year alone.

Recent efforts have been made to establish pickleball in Bhutan, the South Asian nation known for Buddhist monasteries and stunning scenic vistas.

Pickleball Unites, Bhutan Cultural Exchange, and a group of dedicated pickleballers from the United States are working to build pickleball courts in Bhutan this month after an initiative raised over $25,000.

The "Pickleball in Bhutan" program raised enough funding to build 6 total courts:

• 3 courts at Woochu Sports Arena under the guidance of Paro Football Club (FC)

• 2 courts at Dechencholing Higher Secondary School, one of the oldest institutions in Bhutan

• 1 court at Talakha Goemba, a monastery perched at a little over 10,000 feet above sea level home to 25 monks

Almost 5k in additional funds have been raised through a GoFundMe campaign.

Why Bhutan? Why not is a better question…but consider that the country’s Olympic Committee has expressed their support for the nationwide development of pickleball.

It’s not too late to place pickleball in its rightful spot on the 2028 Olympic roster. Now, we only need to court interest from 205 other nations’ Olympic Committees.

Learn more about the initiative here.

Tales from the Court, Part 10

This unusual pickleball experience comes to us from Penny E. Send in your own interesting pickleball stories here.

Headlines & Quick Hits

• Veloz QUADRA 16mm review: A maxed-out carbon paddle

• You DO need to drink more water during pickleball - here's why

• ICYMI: We bet on every pickleball match - Mixed Doubles day

Highlights

• Ladies reign, fellas complain

• Amazing shots

• “Nobody ever did that” 🥹❤️

• Just….unfair

A review from the Dink Fam...