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Remember the chaos of the tour wars? Frantic signings, emergency podcasts, outrageous player contracts… ahh simpler times.

Well, it might not quite be an outright war but yesterday’s announcement from the PPA could be considered a well-executed attack on the APP tour. More on that below 👇

By the way, does your newsletter get cut off by your email client? If so, look for the ‘View entire message’ option at the top or bottom of your issue.

In This Issue:

🚦 3 Strategies to Starting Your Games Right
🏆 The Science Behind Playing with the Wind
📣 PPA Announces Challenger Tour

Engage 🖖

Our Picks ☝️

🤑 $3 million Prize Purse

Pickleball World Rankings announced their 2025 schedule featuring 22 flagship events across the year and over $3m in prize money. Could we see some PPA players making the leap for some cash overseas next year?

🐦 Tweet: Hips Don’t Lie but The Ball Definitely Does

This recent tweet from APP and MLP-pro Erik Lange brought back all our trauma:

💬 Connor Pardoe: “No one’s more committed to growing MLP than me”

The CEO of PPA addresses the rumors that the PPA still has some residual beef with the Major League Format. What do you think about his take?

3 Critical Strategies to Start Your Games Off Right According to a PPA Pro

Coming off a paddle rack cold and only having a 30-second warm-up for a challenge court can be a recipe for disaster. Fortunately, top 20 PPA Pro Eric Roddy shared with us some strategic advice on how to start your games off the right way to maximize your chances of winning.

Maintain Scoreboard Pressure

Maintaining a tight scoreboard early on keeps your opponents on their toes and stops them from getting too much confidence from an early sizeable lead. The best way to do that is to start the game by playing the highest percentage of pickleball you possibly can.

Keep the ball in play as long as possible and use that time to assess your opponent’s strengths and weaknesses. If you make errors, you give your opponents the momentum and lose valuable information that you can use against your opponents.

In short: save your riskier, “A” game for later in the game.

Shoot Down the Middle Early On

Here’s a hot take for you: hitting angles in pickleball should be almost entirely avoided. I see way too many amateurs (and pros honestly) try to hit winners by hitting extreme angles.

Working the middle as your primary location early on in games:

• Reduces unforced errors as it's almost always the higher percentage shot

• Prevents your opponents from executing the erne successfully

• Helps you execute your third-shot drops and transition to the non-volley zone

• Extends long rallies, forcing your opponents to communicate and open up crosscourt dinks that move your opponents around and lead to offense for you and your partner

If You Get in a Hole, Slow Things Down

I can’t tell you the number of games to 11 that I have started down 0-4 or 0-5. It happens to everyone, even the best players in the world. Pickleball, not unlike basketball, is a game of momentum and runs.

When you are winning, keep the gas pedal down and play fast. Use your momentum to try to score as many points when you have the hot hand as possible.

When you are on the losing end of a quick start and a big deficit, slow the game down.You and your partner must do everything you can to stop this momentum. Use timeouts, take more time before you serve, tie your shoelaces.

Read the full list of tips on our website

Take Charge of How You Age

Ever think about how aging affects your game on the court? You might not notice it day to day, but those little signs start creeping in as early as our 30s.

We begin feeling a bit slower, a tad more fatigued, and it’s not just about losing a step or two during your matches—it’s about how these changes impact your everyday zest for life.

That's where Timeline steps in with something pretty groundbreaking. Their Mitopure® isn’t just any supplement; it’s specifically designed to dive deep into your cells to revitalize them.

It’s backed by science to help boost your cellular energy, which translates into not just feeling stronger but actually enhancing muscle strength and endurance—without having to amp up your workout routine.

Take aging into your own hands. Grab a bottle with a special 30% off using the code 30DINK, while supplies last!

Is It Better to Play With or Against the Wind in Pickleball According to Science?

I think we’ve all had moments where we try to decide with our partner which side we want based on wind direction. For me, that decision often comes down to gut instinct or how well I’ve been playing. But lucky for us, we now have science to help us with that decision!

Researchers at Simon Fraser University conducted some experiments on pickleball flight dynamics to test how the wind affects the game and recommendations on which gives you a competitive edge.

Surprising Findings

Playing against the wind introduces an interesting paradox: even though the ball slows down due to wind resistance, it often reaches the opponent faster in certain situations.

This happens because the wind forces the ball into a steeper, more direct downward trajectory. A steeper descent shortens the overall distance the ball needs to travel horizontally, making it arrive more quickly at the opponent's position.

On the other hand, When playing with the wind, the ball maintains a flatter, more extended trajectory. While this may carry the ball faster over long distances, it often results in a slightly slower descent in shorter exchanges, giving opponents more time to react.

Advantages of Playing Against the Wind

Drive Shots: The ball reaches the opponent faster, particularly in short-to-mid-court exchanges. This can catch opponents off guard.

Drop Shots: The wind helps “push” the ball down, reducing the chance of unintentional high pops that invite smashes.

Advantages of Playing With the Wind

Smashes: A trailing wind aids these high-speed, high-arc shots, making them more effective and harder to defend.

Long-Distance Drives: Over greater distances, the wind ensures the ball travels faster to the back of the court, challenging opponents who stay at the baseline.

The Verdict

While both scenarios have their merits, the research suggests that playing against the wind offers a slight strategic edge, especially for common drive and drop shots.

Tour Wars Returns? PPA Launches Challenger Series

The PPA has just announced a new ‘challenger series’ that will accompany the main pro tour and allow up-and-coming pros a chance to bid for wild card positions and player contracts.

With over a dozen tour stops, anyone outside the top 20 current PPA pros can register and earn points to a national leaderboard. Those at the top of the leaderboard will eventually battle it out for an official PPA contract at the end of the year.

This new format aligns very closely with the APP tour, which is known to be a more attainable entry point for aspiring professionals. Will we see some of the top APP pros like Will Howells, Yana Newell, and Bobbi Oshiro shift over to this new tour? Time will tell.

Read more about the format, including all the stops and points system in our full article.

Pack Your Paddles for the French Riviera or Tuscany

Do you have plans for 2025? How about smashing balls on the sun-drenched courts of the French Riviera or serving under the Tuscan sun? Pickle Away is whisking pickleball aficionados off to Europe's most stunning locales for a mash-up of sport and luxury that even your paddle would approve of.

From May 5-10, the French Riviera is calling. Only four spots left to master your strokes with coach Brett Noel, sip champagne on the beach, and maybe learn a thing or two about Provençal wine.

Tuscany steps up from September 8-13 with its own pickleball charm. Seven spots remain for you to delve into the art of Italian cooking post-game, explore ancient towns, and yes, more wine. Because what's a backhand without a backdrop of rolling hills?

Spots are limited—don't miss your chance to play on some of the world's most breathtaking courts.

Unpopular Opinions About Pickleball

In perhaps a welcome break from all the thanks given at Thanksgiving, some users on the pickleball subreddit took the time to say “no thanks” and share some of their more unpopular opinions on the sport. Over 500 submissions were made but we’ve distilled them down to a handful to see what you think.

For legal reasons, we cannot agree with the first submission but we’re pretty convinced that the fourth in the list was Zane Navratil’s alias.

Headlines & Quick Hits

• The SpinPro Has Entered the Chat

• New trending technology helping pros with recovery

• NCPA Fuels Growth of College Pickleball

• The best place to aim your serves

Highlights

• I play for fun, not competitive at all 👀

• The best erne defense 🛡️

• Grip it and rip it 🫴

Missed a recent issue? We've got you covered

• Ben John’s teaches the shuffle drop

• Dink better while on the move

• Dekel Bar cures your erne blindness

A review from the Dink Fam...

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