Your pickleball game really needs a twoey. You know it. We know it. Your last opponent definitely knows it. So what’s stopping you?
Sure, the technique takes some time to master. But you also need a paddle with a long enough handle to make it feel comfortable instead of clunky. We round up our seven favorites below.
In This Issue:
— Zane reads mean tweets
— 5 drills you can do at home
— Predictions: MLP Newport Beach
Smooth like butter.
Our Picks 👆
🌎 Top 10: Fastest-Growing Countries by DUPR
You know pickleball is exploding around the globe. Some new DUPR data helps put it into perspective, showing the 10 countries that have added the most users to the platform in the past year. See any trends?
❤️ Some Things: Are Bigger Than Pickleball
On this week’s PicklePod (watch here), we get to know Solomon Boltes, an incredible young man whose life tragically ended far too soon. Now, the power of pickleball is helping keep his memory alive. Learn more, and get involved.
🎾 Power Down: Tennis Habits Hurting Your Game
If you’re a tennis convert looking to compete in pickleball, there are certain skills that translate and others that should be left in the doubles alley. Baseline rallies. Slice volleys. Sprinting through transition. Some adjustments need to be made.
🗒️ Rule Check: Less Arguing, More Playing
We’ve all witnessed rule spats on the court. Was the ball in or out? Is that serve legal or questionable? What is a hindrance, anyway? A Reddit thread is rounding up the most ridiculous rules arguments. And it’s a lot.
5 Pro-Approved Drills You Can Do at Home
Not everyone has a few spare hours every week to hit the courts and drill their weakest shots. Heck, some people don’t even have access to a court as often as they’d like to just get out and play.
We get it. So does pro and coach John Cincola.
All you need is a paddle. A bit of tape. And a wall somewhere — garage, tennis backdrop, the side of a building. A few balls go a long way, but even those aren’t mandatory to get some reps in.
You can get better without a court. John shows you the way.
Continuous wall volleys. Stand 7 feet back, paddle up, and rally against the wall below a marked 50-inch line. Count contacts. Two hundred without a miss is a real session. This is the core of any pickleball wall routine. Light feet, loose grip, short swings.
Target dinking. Chalk a 12-inch box just above a 34-inch line (mirroring net height). Alternate forehand and backhand, soft hands, ten in a row per side. Aim small, miss small. This is all about quality reps.
The fridge and toaster. Two targets at chest and shoulder height, alternating hands. You’re training the two body-bag targets you'll actually attack in a match.
Serve toss repetition. No wall needed. Twenty toss-and-contact reps in the driveway, no ball flight, just consistency in the release point. Anyone weaponizing the serve built it on a repeatable toss.
Shadow resets. Paddle out front, knees bent, absorb an imaginary drive into an imaginary kitchen. Sounds silly. Looks silly. Surprisingly effective for long-term muscle memory.
John is a coach the pros trust for a reason. Heed his advice, and you’ll get better before you know it.
She's #1. The Paddle Has to Keep Up.
Anna Leigh Waters helped shape the Franklin C45 before she ever competed with it. Then she kept playing it.
That's not really a stat about her. It's about what a paddle has to do well before the best player alive is willing to put her name on it.
For most players, it comes down to a couple of things.
A textured carbon face that grips instead of skidding. A foam-layered core that flexes on contact for a forgiving feel and real pop. And a build that shows up at the net, where fast hands matter more than raw power.
You don't need her game to notice the difference. You just need yours.
Predictions: Who Wins This Round at MLP Newport Beach?
MLP Newport Beach kicks off this Friday. If you’re new here, let’s refresh.
The top seeds got to choose their opponents, beginning with #1 New Jersey 5s and working down from there. That puts the matchups here:
#1 New Jersey 5s vs. #7 Palm Beach Royals
#2 St. Louis Shock vs. #8 Texas Ranchers
#3 LA Mad Drops vs. #6 Dallas Flash
#4 Columbus Sliders vs. #5 Brooklyn Pickleball Team
Nobody knows MLP more than our pro expert Erik Tice, who, as always, has put a full event preview together for your viewing pleasure.
We’ll cut to the chase for you, though. Here’s who Tice thinks will win out (read: these are just predictions) and advance to the MLP Finals in New York City:
🏆 New Jersey 5s (2-0)
🏆 St. Louis Shock (2-0)
🏆 Los Angeles (2-1)
🏆 Columbus (2-1)
We’re down to crunch time. Every match matters, every game is do-or-die. The eight best teams in all of MLP are about to battle it out for four spots and a chance at the championship trophy.
What could be better than that?
➡️ Check out Tice’s full event preview.
Zane Reads Mean Tweets
On this week’s PicklePod, Zane and Nico get into the scream heard ‘round the pickleball world, beginning with Zane acknowledging he probably went too far and ending with Nico reading a bunch of mean tweets about the incident.
A few of our favorites:
🔥 “Zane was that kid in high school who always got stuffed in his locker.”
🔥 “He doesn’t get on Championship Court much in PPA; he has to take advantage of the spotlight when he can.”
🔥 “Was the scream as high-pitched as his talking voice?”
The guys didn’t stop there, though, delving into a range of other topics:
The “fat-shaming” posts from Memes of Pickleball
The biggest beefs in pro pickleball
The ultimate fast food draft
And of course, they break down all the matchups heading into MLP Newport Beach this week.
This one’s got something for everyone.
➡️ Listen now.
A Recovery Routine For People Who Never Skip The Court
Four games in and your knees have thoughts about it. You need some cellular renewal ASAP.
Mimio was designed from 10 years of clinical research to recreate the metabolism-boosting and recovery-enhancing benefits of fasting, without needing to fast.
Clinically shown to help speed muscle recovery, boost cellular energy, and control exercise-induced inflammation.
Hit the refresh button on your cells and put the pep back in your step. Use code DINK20 for 20% off at checkout.
7 Paddles with Extra-Long Handles for Any Budget
Drives. Resets. Blocks. Roll dinks. Disguised down-the-line speed-ups...
More and more, pickleball's faster, more aggressive new meta requires you to put two hands firmly on the paddle. And to comfortably do that, it helps to have a longer handle — think 5.5” or above and you’re in the ballpark.
Longer handles can increase a paddle's swing weight and power potential without sacrificing control or sweet spot. Above all, they provide the necessary room to add that all-important second hand when the situation calls for it.
Better yet, you're not relegated to an elongated shape when seeking a long-handled paddle. Plenty of hybrid and widebody paddles offer long handles as well.
There are lots of options if you're looking for such a paddle. Here are seven we've hit over and over and keep coming back to.
11SIX24 Power 2 Hurache-X
Enhance EPP Turbo
Honolulu J6CR
Paddletek TKO-X
Selkirk Omni
Six Zero Coral Pro
Volair Shift
From $105 to $300, there’s something to love at any budget. (And remember to try the code THEDINK at checkout for a possible discount.)
Headlines & Quick Hits
6 Third Shot Drop Techniques Every Player Should Know
How Seniors Can Build Core Strength for Better Balance
Hit the Short-Hop at the Net Like a Pickleball Pro
Highlights
A walking highlight reel
Zane offers an apology
Learn this: Inside-out volley
Missed a recent issue? We've got you covered
A review from the Dink Fam...
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