Good morning. Back in March, Lea Jansen tweeted about singles pickleball.

“Least watched event, most damage on body, and no monetary gain,” she said. 

Now, Lea announces she’s played her last singles tournament. Mind you, she cited other, more personal reasons for the decision this time, chief among them her struggle with diabetes.

Quite a few pros seemed to agree with her in the spring. We can’t help but wonder if more will decide to forgo singles events in the future.

In This Issue:

🧠 Height is everything
⚖️ Pickleball offenses > consequences
🎾 The Ambassador we need

Happy Friday. Let’s move.

Attacking Off the Bounce

Height is the most important factor in determining if a ball is attackable. That means both the height out of the air and off of the bounce.

Just because a ball lands in the kitchen doesn't mean it's unattackable. Just ask Morgan Evans — he outlines how to attack off the bounce in a new video.

The keys:

• Anticipation. Ask yourself if the last shot you hit was challenging for your opponent. If so, get yourself up to the line, knees bent and ready to reach forward.

• Footwork. Use proper footwork to create ample space between you and the ball. That could include a shuffle step to the side, a cross step into the kitchen, or a pivot step back off the line.

• Balance. A sudden step for the ball can leave you off balance. An attack from that position will likely end in error. Regain proper balance before pulling the trigger.

• Apex. Wait until the ball reaches its apex. Remember, height is everything.

As with any attack, always assume it will be returned. Paddles up, folks, paddles up.

Make Money off Your Home Court

As if you need another reason to add a homecourt to your backyard, now you can share your court with local players when you aren’t using it.

Swimply allows court owners the chance to rent out homecourts and players the opportunity to reserve a private court for their game.

Punishable Offenses

On Monday, we channeled Catherine Parenteau and asked you: what are 3 codes the pickleball rulebook should sanction consequences for when violated?

Obviously, Parenteau's tweet was talking about pro-level play, but the responses we receive seem to apply to all tournament play and some rec play, too.

At the pro level, our audience feels bad line calls should result in a penalty.

One person suggested 3 bad line calls in a row should result in an automatic penalty, while another said even arguing an out call should be punished.

Many pickleball players indicated that they feel pros should never argue any line call made by an official, period.

Foul language, verbal intimidation, slamming the ball at people, and temper tantrums comprised some of the most common responses.

But by far, the most-common thing you told us should be punished if seen on the court? Paddle throwing. Sorry, DJ Young.

See our full blog for more pickleball offenses you indicated are worthy of punishment.

Dinking in the Stratosphere

Pickleball has reached new heights, literally. The PPA took over the Space Needle in Seattle and the tour's biggest stars were dinking over 600ft in the air.

Ben Johns and Anna Leigh Waters took the elevator back down to earth, but even near sea level, their games are still head and shoulders above. They have both qualified for another Championship Sunday and are on pace for dual triple crowns.

Connor Garnett pushed Johns to the limit in the semis but came up short in game three, 10-12, 14-12, 11-8. Garnett settled for bronze.

The performance of the day went to the relatively unknown Ryan Eveloff. The 42-year-old started his day in the qualifier and fought his way to the semi-finals. Eveloff upset AJ Koller, Pablo Tellez, and JW Johnson before losing to Federico Staksrud.

In women's singles, we will see another meeting of the top two seeds, ALW and Lea Jansen. Jansen is playing inspired pickleball in front of a hometown crowd, but can she walk away from the singles game as a champion?

Waters' semifinal match with Judit Castillo was highlighted by SportsCenter this morning. It appears pickleball has achieved 'real sport' status in the eyes of ESPN, at least during the dog days of summer.

Yana Newell had an excellent showing and finished the day in third. She defeated Castillo in the bronze medal match for the last spot on the podium.

Doubles play begins today at 1:00 pm ET on PPATV. You can find the full broadcast schedule in our Wednesday issue.

Pickleball Apparel Reinvented

Performance materials in styles you want to wear on and off the court.

Dilly Life is reinventing how pickleball apparel looks, feels and performs. With moisture-wicking materials, UV protection, and an ultra soft fleece collection, Dilly Life embodies the PB lifestyle while setting you up for success on the court.

Get 20% off your first order with the code DINK20 and free shipping on orders over $75.

Pickleball’s Ambassador

Penny Eifrig is probably one of the most interesting people in pickleball.

With 33 years translating and proofreading, 28 years running the outdoor company KNÜTES, 18 years of publishing, 9 years heading the literacy non-profit, Random Acts of Reading, and other experiences under her belt, she also found time to become an international pickleball ambassador.

Earlier this summer, she traveled to Germany and Croatia to spread the good word. Here are some highlights from her hometown’s media site:

• She took center stage at the World Special Olympics Expo in Berlin to teach the game to a diverse range of participants

• In Makarska, Croatia, she offered a clinic at the first-ever pickleball event in the nation

• She also took part in Croatia’s inaugural tournament, where players joined up with a new partner each game

• On the island of Brac, Penny introduced pickleball to passersby near the country’s first permanent courts

• Penny helped introduce 100 pickleball newbies to the game on Pickleball Day in the nation’s capital, Zagreb

She’s not done there – Penny plans to travel to Greece and across the Adriatic shores later this fall on a similar pickleball excursion. Good luck, Penny, you’re doing the Good Work.

Headlines & Quick Hits

• Shoulder height and its impact on your pickleball game

• ICYMI: $28 Million midtown unit features its own outdoor pickleball court

Highlights

• Don’t mess with the net lord 🙌

• The scream off

• Titanic: pickleball edition

• Stay on your side!

Homecourt Havens

This brand-new beauty has it all. It’s totally fenced, has a permanent net, and is tri-color with a light blue kitchen. Bravo!

If you have a homecourt that you’d like to start paying the bills, sign up today for Swimply’s pickleball feature.

A review from the Dink Fam...