Inside PB's most notorious (& anonymous) voice

The safest place to hit the pickleball. Injured MLB All-Star spotted on court.

June 21, 2024

Want to see pickleball dedication? MLB All-Star Mookie Betts fractured his hand recently when hit with a 98-mph fastball. Luckily for his pickleball game, it was his left hand.

Betts was spotted on the courts yesterday with a splint on his injured hand. He will be out for 6-8 weeks which leaves plenty of time to polish up his dink game.

In This Issue:

⏰ The Ranchers get their guy
🎯 There’s always a safe place to put the ball
🧑‍🔬 New paddle technology to hit the market
 

Cheers to the weekend.

The Safest Place to Hit a Pickleball

In a recent podcast episode, James Ignatowich discusses his experience playing on the right side with Ben Johns at PPA Sacramento.

He says he learned a lot about playing that side – typically, he plays on the left in doubles – including how challenging it is for a right-side player to be aggressive on a ball that bounces in front of their inside (left) foot.

(The spot is highlighted in the image above)

Why the left foot?

The left foot of a right-handed player in this position is their backhand. When you make a ball bounce there, the player only has a few options of where to hit the next ball.

A speedup down the middle, off the bounce, is a bad shot choice because you’re hitting directly into your opponent’s forehand. 

A cross-court dink is also risky because leaving this ball high and attackable is easy to do.

The only good option is hitting a dink to – you may have guessed it – the right-side player’s inside (left) foot.

In the video clip below, you can see James Ignatowich making the wrong choice, giving Riley Newman an opportunity to attack.

After Ben is pulled out wide, Tardio does a great job of hitting a dink out of the air (taking time away from Ben to get back) to James’ inside foot – a spot Ben usually covers with his forehand.

As a side note, this is one reason the left-side player should be allowed to take up more of the court in doubles.

While on his back heels, James tries to dink to the middle but leaves it up, and Riley Newman attacks it. James and Ben end up winning the rally, but that’s not the point.

James made the mistake because he didn’t know what to do with this particular ball—he all but admits this in his podcast episode.

And, if someone as great as James Ignatowich doesn’t know, you can bet that most players you play against don’t know either.

See the play unfold here:

The point begins at the 10:54 mark

How to use this strategy in your games

Hitting to this spot is almost always a positive choice. Not only is it a safe spot for you, it’s a troublesome spot for your opponent.

Also, it’s not just great for dinking. Hitting third- (or fifth-) shot drops and resets here is also a smart strategy.

If you spent the entire game aiming shots at the right-side player’s left foot, you would create fewer attacking opportunities for your opponents and more for you and your teammate.

However, there is one important caveat.

This strategy will not work against lefthanders (assuming they are playing on the right side) because instead of this being their backhand, it’s their forehand, and they can attack from there.

So, if you’re up against a lefty, find another safe spot to attack instead. Perhaps that’s an Up Your Game for another day.

Feel the Aloha Spirit

Hey Dink Fam, it’s Alina again, bringing you the latest scoop from the pickleball courts.

You all know OluKai for those super comfy sandals that practically scream beach vibes, but guess what? They've just made a smooth slide into pickleball with their new 'Anau shoes, and I think you’re going to love them.

Why am I hyped about their shoes? Because they're designed for pickleball players, merging lightweight agility with durability — perfect for quick moves on the court. Plus, they exude that effortless OluKai style, bringing a touch of Aloha spirit to every game and enhancing our sense of community every time we play.

Slip into the OluKai 'Anau and add a dash of island style to your game.

Ranchers Get Their Guy During MLP’s Waiver Period

The Major League Pickleball Waiver Period got underway at Noon yesterday, but before any teams claimed a player, several trades were made.

  • The Bay Area Breakers traded Vivian Glozman to the D.C. Pickleball Team in exchange for Allyce Jones and cash considerations

  • The Texas Ranchers traded Pablo Tellez to the Brooklyn Aces in exchange for Martin Emmrich and cash considerations

  • The Utah Black Diamonds traded their first overall Waiver Position to the Texas Ranchers for their seventh pick and an alleged $100K cash consideration

It was clear that the Texas Ranchers were set on acquiring one player and were willing to pay a premium to do so. When the waivers opened at Noon, they used their first pick to select Quang Duong.

Duong had just filled in for the team in D.C. while Christian Alshon was out with an injury. Martin Emmrich was waived by the Ranchers and is eligible to be claimed by a Challenger Level team today.

There were no other selections made at the Premier Level. The Challenger Level Waivers open at Noon ET today and will undoubtedly have some movement. Follow along here.

Proton Bonding with Top Talent

Proton paddles broke onto the scene with their unmistakable bright-colored designs. You might have recently seen Andrei Daescu wielding their bright pink and blue paddle.

Proton has expanded its roster of pro players. The list now includes:

  • Meghan Dizon

  • Travis Rettenmaier

  • Donald Young

  • Andrei Daescu

  • CJ Klinger

  • Pesa Teoni

  • Kaitlyn Christian

  • Angie and Alex Walker

Proton founder Charles Darling also confirms their interest in signing multiple local players across the U.S.

The paddles are known for their ability to create spin using Proton’s Nanotec surface, which is unlike anything we have seen in pickleball before.

The Dink recently visited Proton HQ to learn about the new line of paddles that will soon hit the market. While visiting, we got to feel what it’s like to win a couple of points against pro players and play alongside pickleball creators.

Learn from investing legends

Warren Buffett reads for 8 hours a day. What if you only have 5 minutes a day? Then, read Value Investor Daily. We scour the portfolios of top value investors and bring you all their best ideas.

Pickleball's Most Popular Anonymous Account

In a world of tour wars, paddle delistings, and ever-changing partnerships, there's one thing pickleball pros fear the most.

Ending up on Memes of Pickleball.

For the uninitiated, Memes of Pickleball (MoP) is an Instagram account that has amassed over 23k followers by simply posting memes of professional pickleball. It touts itself as "The largest & funniest Pickleball memes page on the internet."

We were happy to learn more about the anonymous creator and their favorite moments along the journey thus far. For their safety (and for ours), their identity remained anonymous.

See what they consider their most popular meme and a surreal moment when one of their memes resulted in a pro player arriving to the courts in bubble wrap.

A review from the Dink Fam...

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