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A new collegiate champion was just crowned. The pros are in Northern California for PPA Sacramento. Tens of thousands of amateurs are swarming Naples, Florida, for the US Open. And in two days, Anna Leigh Waters takes on Andre Agassi in a historic battle of the sexes.

It’s a big week for our humble little sport. Buckle in, we’re going for a ride.

In This Issue:
— Tune in: Agassi vs. Waters
— The complete short-hop guide
— Storylines: the US Open

Are you not entertained?

The Florida Atlantic University Owls won The College Pickleball Tour Nationals over the weekend, besting Utah Tech in the finals. FAU came in with the highest combined team DUPR at 21.937. Congrats, Owls.

It’s being called “Pickleball’s Most Anticipated Match Ever.” Will it live up to the hype? This Wednesday, it’s Anna Leigh Waters and Genie Bouchard vs. James Blake and Andre Agassi in the Pickleball Slam 4. On the line: a cool $1 million.

There’s a clip of Gabe Tardio going around where he’s demonstrating the “Snake Shot” — a.k.a. “The Kyle.” It’s a quick and devilishly deceptive shot, and nobody hits it better than Gabe. But crazier still: watch how insanely quick his hands move.

The PPA Tour rolls into Sacramento this week, the second-to-last stop before the PPA Finals next month. The big story: No Anna Leigh Waters at all (she’s at the US Open), which all-but-guarantees a host of fresh faces atop Sunday’s podium. We’ll have a full event preview on Wednesday.

Last week, we introduced the importance of the short-hop shot and a few tips on how to hit it effectively.

Thousands of you gobbled up that article, so we thought we’d come back with a few more tips and tricks.

✅ The short hop is your best weapon for getting from the baseline to the kitchen line. And you’re probably hitting it far more often than you realize. Flaws in technique are also, undoubtedly, related to many of your unforced errors.

✅ Short hopping a slow ball is actually harder than short hopping a fast ball. If the ball is really soft, consider slicing it instead. If it's medium to heavy pace, that's your sweet spot.

✅ You're really only looking to short hop when the ball is close to your feet and hit with pace. Remember: when the ball bounces, it loses a lot of speed. If it’s bouncing out in front of you, take a step back and hit a proper dink (or speed-up or lob) instead.

Think of it this way:

That’s a collision course for lots of shots landing with pace at your feet. And that’s where the short hop shines.

➡️ Master it.

There are levels to showing up prepared.

Some people bring a paddle and call it a day.
Some bring backups, shoes, snacks, grips — the whole system.

Where you land on that spectrum should decide your bag.

Pickleball Central has options for all of it — from lightweight backpacks to full-capacity duffles and everyday totes — across a range of brands, styles, and setups.

So whether you’re keeping it simple or packing for everything, you can find something that actually fits how you play.

No one-size-fits-all. Just the right fit for you.

Shop through our link to browse and unlock exclusive pricing across a wide range of gear!

[The below was contributed by The Dink’s pro writer, Erik Tice. Check out the full article here]

With only two events to go before the PPA Finals, anticipation is growing and spots are on the line.

The two remaining events on the PPA Tour before the Finals are:

The Finals have historically been in December, ending the traditional calendar year on the PPA Tour. However, since announcing the 2025-2026 season in September, the Finals will be in May for the foreseeable future. 

The event is worth 2,000 PPA points for the winners (equivalent to a Slam), but not everyone can play.

The top eight teams/players qualify for the Finals. Here is the breakdown:

As for doubles pairings, the top seed gets to choose their partner from anyone who qualified for the event.

✅ After the first seed chooses his/her partner, the second seed then chooses, and so on.
✅ In mixed doubles, the first woman seed chooses her male partner and then the second woman seed chooses hers, and so on.

The PPA Finals take place in San Clemente, California, from May 4-10.

➡️ See our full PPA Finals predictions.

The self-proclaimed “Biggest Pickleball Party in the World” is back in action this week in Naples, Florida — this year marks the tenth anniversary of the inaugural US Open Championships.

Last year’s event made headlines as tennis legend Andre Agassi’s first foray into professional pickleball.

This year’s storylines focus more on current top pros:

Here are Erik’s full event predictions:

🥇 Women’s Singles: Seone Mendez
🥇 Men’s Singles: Dusty Boyer
🥇 Mixed Doubles: Anna Leigh Waters and Jay Devilliers
🥇 Women’s Doubles: Anna Leigh and Leigh Waters
🥇 Men’s Doubles: Jay Devilliers and Ryan Fu

There are a ton of other great players competing in this year’s event: Sofia Sewing, Vivian Glozman, Roos Van Reek, Bobbi Oshiro, Jack Munro, Kyle Koszuta, Tanner Tomassi, Richard Livornese… and many more.

➡️ For more information, including how to catch the action, go here.

Most brands give you one discount and call it a day.

Luzz said… stack it.

Their April Sale is live with 15% off select paddles (and $20 off options) — and you can still take an extra 15% off with code THEDINK.

That means real savings on paddles like the Pro 4 Inferno and Cannon — two of their most popular builds right now.

If you’ve been waiting to upgrade, this is the window.

Shop the April Sale and stack your savings with code THEDINK.

Since the news dropped, some questions have arisen about the financial motivations behind JOOLA's patent infringement actions against 11 other paddle brands.

One line from the press release stood out:

“The action, filed with the International Trade Commission (ITC) on April 7, 2026, reflects JOOLA's long-standing commitment to protecting the original engineering that has defined the modern era of pickleball paddle performance.”

What consequence does filing with the ITC have in regards to how this all might be resolved going forward? Is this just a money-grab, like so many online are blindly alleging, or is it more nuanced?

We reached back out to JOOLA CEO Richard Lee and asked. Here's what he said:

“The ITC does not award monetary damages — its remedy is exclusionary, meaning it can block infringing products from entering the U.S. market,” he said.

That makes sense. But JOOLA seems to have a backup plan in place as well.

“As is standard practice in ITC cases, we are currently filing companion suits in federal court to preserve the option of seeking damages in the future,” Lee continued.

The company’s current priority, he stressed, remains focused on IP protection of their patented technology.

➡️ Get the full story.

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