Sad news today. Matthew Perry, beloved actor known for his role in Friends, has passed away at 54 years old.

Matthew truly lived the pickleball life. He reportedly played every day, sometimes twice a day, and was even playing the day he died.

RIP Matthew.

In This Issue:
 
😵‍💫 Make the court feel BIG
🗺️ APP’s plan for global domination
🔍 Can I get a line judge?

Onward.

APP Houston Open Results

Create Space on the Court

Pickleball is commonly called a mini version of tennis. The court size makes the game more accessible and keeps you in close proximity to your opponent.

What high-level opponents do is make that little court feel big.

Kyle Koszuta is one of the top pros in the Arizona Pickleball League. He broke down some key points from his last match and demonstrated how you can create space on the pickleball court:

• Kyle is engaged in a cross-court dink rally

• Nico, his opponent directly ahead, wants to get involved in the point

• Kyle breaks up the pattern with a middle dink that causes Nico to move his feet left and squeeze the middle

• Kyle’s partner Cooper sees an opportunity to take the next ball out of the air to remove their opponent’s time to recover

• Cooper pushes the ball back to Nico’s right and sends him scrambling

• An off-balance dink provides Kyle the perfect opportunity to erne and finish the point

On most points, Nico has no trouble covering half or even the whole court. The right combination of shot placement and timing caught Nico out of position.

This is a prime example of how to win a point methodically, instead of trying to overpower your opponent.

Tune in tonight to see Kyle and the Tempe Tornados in action against the Gilbert Gladiators in a special Monday Night edition of the Arizona Pickleball League.

Healthy Hydration

Drinking enough water isn’t just about keeping your blood pumping or your body properly hydrated.

You literally need water to stay smart and strong on the court. If you’ve ever asked yourself if you’re drinking enough water, the answer is: probably not.

Click here to find the best water bottle for you. Their bottles keep fluids cool all day, whether you’re practicing with friends or competing for gold.

A Change in Scope

In June, the APP changed the second "P" in its acronym from "Professionals" to "Players."

The change seemed subtle at first, but with a couple of recent new hires at the organization, a story is emerging about how it will operate in 2024 & beyond.

Bolstering that change in scope, the APP just announced two additions to the team:

• DeAnne “Dee” Davison will serve as the director of recreational play, overseeing all aspects of the APP’s amateur player experiences.

• Nicole Hobson joins as the director of tournament operations, providing a consistent experience for APP tournament guests.

Recreational play? Tournament operations? We asked APP’s Chief Marketing Officer Tom Webb to clarify.

"We do of course maintain our focus on professionals, but increasingly we are looking to engage players worldwide and in America," he told us.

“I can’t comment quite yet on the specifics, but it’s only a matter of weeks until we unveil some exciting new programs.”

Event schedule for players ages 50+

In the meantime, APP recently announced one of the largest pickleball events ever for its AARP Champions (ages 50 and over) and Masters (ages 60 and over) Divisions, which will have a minimum of 15 competitions in 2024 on the APP Tour.

The AARP U.S. Champions Cup is scheduled to take place Feb. 1-4 in Daytona Beach, Fla., and open to all skill levels.

AARP Champions and Masters Divisions events scheduled for 2024:

• Jan. 17-21: Punta Gorda, Fla.

• March 6-10: Sacramento, Calif.

• March 20-24: Miami, Fla. (Major)

• April 3-7: Delray Beach, Fla.

• May 8-12: Cincinnati, Ohio

• May 22-26: New York, N.Y. (Major)

• June 26-30: Southern Calif. (Major)

• Sept. 25-29: Boca Raton, Fla.

• Oct. 9-13: Dallas, Texas

• Dec. 4-8: Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (Major)

Details for a few other special events, including the APP Women’s Open and Indoor Championships, are available here.

Can I Get a Line Judge?

Line judges surrounded the Championship Court to start the gold medal matches yesterday. Megan Fudge's call for a change was heard and the APP Tour had extra eyes watching Salome Devidze and Judit Castillo compete for the women's singles title.

Devidze finds herself at the heart of the line call commotion, but this seasoned tennis pro was undeterred by some extra attention. She pounded groundstrokes into the back third of the court and made quick work of the final 11-7, 11-1.

Quang Duong followed suit in the men's singles final. He wiped out Ronan Camron 11-3, 11-4.

The hot streak of Rob Nunnery and Andrei Daescu continued in Houston. The duo won their fourth straight men's doubles title and seventh together on the year.

Things got tighter in the mixed and women's doubles finals. Susannah Barr was the common thread between the two. She won gold medals in both categories and both came via a double dip.

• Barr and Daescu were upset in the mixed quarterfinals by Allison Harris/Austin Gridley.

• The one-seed won 5 back draw matches to make it back to the final.

• It was business as usual in the final, where they took down John Cincola/Tammy Emmrich 11-8, 11-1, 15-4.

Vivian Glozman and Alix Truong are one of the hottest women’s doubles teams in the second half of this year. But the Megan Fudge/Susannah Barr duo still has the edge in this matchup and secured the women’s doubles title 11-8, 11-8, 15-11.

The APP Tour has one more event this year. Their 2023 slate ends with the APP U.S. Indoor Championships Nov 29 - Dec 3 in Chicago.

Learn Spin the Fun Way

How do the pros hit the ball so hard but still keep it in? The answer is topspin.

The TopspinPro makes it easy to learn because it lets you feel what it’s like to “roll” the ball. 

It’s the fastest way to learn the topspin volley & the topspin serve. And groundstrokes that dip back into the court.

Practice anywhere, anytime - on court, in the office or at home in front of the TV!

Master your pickleball topspin for 10% less!

Tuesday Night Pickleball… on a Monday?

Since Halloween is on a Tuesday, the Arizona Pickleball League decided to do a solid for all the parents and move TNP to Monday, October 30th.

In Week 5, on Tue Oct 24, the undefeated Gilbert Gladiators faced off against the undefeated Peoria Pythons… The Gladiators triumphed!

In Week 6, the Gladiators will test their luck against the undefeated Tempe Tornadoes. The winner will stake their claim for first place.

HOW TO WATCH: Tune in to The Dink’s YouTube Channel – Mon Oct 30 @ 9pm ET / 6pm PT or get your tickets here to experience it live.

Headlines & Quick Hits

• Bring a Picklr facility to your hometown

• On-court pickleball rituals: How do yours stack up to the pros?

• ICYMI: 65% of paddles failed deflection testing at MLP Atlanta

Highlights

• Somehow avoids the net post at the end 😱

• The fastest serve on tour?

• Imagine THIS but having ALW’s vantage point

• Probably better not to comment

A review from the Dink Fam...