When aggressive poaching ACTUALLY works

MLP heads to Miami. Alshon vs tennis greats on PicklePod.

October 23, 2024

History was made last night in the NBA. LeBron James and his son Bronny James became the first father-son duo to play together in an NBA game.

Fittingly enough, another father and son duo were in attendance. The MLB’s first-ever father-son teammates, Ken Griffey Jr and Ken Griffey Sr, took in the Lakers’ first regular season game.

But missing from the crowd was pickleball’s most prolific mother-daughter duo.

Leigh and Anna Leigh Waters not only played together but were a dominant force in the women’s doubles game prior to Leigh’s knee injury. We will see if LeBron and his son can hoist a trophy together before their time is done.

In This Issue: ‍

‍🏟️ Clinging to a playoff spot in Miami
🌅 The APP is going back to Cali
🎙️ Alshon vs tennis greats on a new PicklePod

Shout out to all the parent-child pickleball teams out there.

Our Picks ☝️

🗞️ Article: How I Became a Professional Pickleball Player

Eric Roddy was training to be a pro pickleball player before pro pickleball was a thing. His preferred style of doubles tennis, full of drop volleys and sliced groundstrokes, translated perfectly to pickleball.

🏢 Facility: Oregon’s Largest Pickleball Facility

East County Pickleball Courts hosted its ribbon-cutting ceremony last Saturday. The 12-court, 36,000-square-foot facility is located just outside of Portland.

🏈 Video: Terrell Owens Celebrates His First Pickle

Hall of Fame NFL receiver Terrell Owens is well known for this touchdown celebrations. After completing his first pickle, Owens takes a lap around the court and looks ready for a Lambeau Leap.

🚗 Quote: Spreading Mental Health Awareness with Pickle in 50 States

“It’s not about how good you are or what level of player you are. It’s not about, you know, just how amazing you are at pickleball. It’s about the community.” Chong Kim is on a journey to play pickleball in all 50 states while sharing the mental health benefits that a pickleball community offers.

What You Can Learn from Watching the Best

Christian Alshon, who was recently featured on the PicklePod, shared a video breaking down five key factors that explain why Ben Johns and Anna Leigh Waters dominate mixed doubles pickleball. We’re going to dive into two of those factors here.

1. Aggressive Poaching

Anna Leigh’s aggressive poaching off Ben’s drives is one of their biggest strengths. Her confidence in cutting across the court creates constant pressure, a tactic rarely seen in mixed doubles from the female player.

When you know your partner drives low, don’t be afraid to poach aggressively

Whether you play mixed or gender doubles, what you can adopt from their strategy is understanding that aggression, especially early on in a rally, can force your opponents to make quick decisions that can get them in trouble.

If your partner is good at driving the ball low and to a particular spot, you can sprint to the kitchen as soon as they hit the ball. Sure, you might get yourself into trouble sometimes, but being indecisive will typically cause more problems for the other team.

2. Keeping Opponents Back from the Kitchen

Perhaps the most important factor in playing dominant pickleball is keeping your opponents back at the baseline and preventing them from getting to the kitchen.

Ben and Anna Leigh excel at keeping opponents back. Their deep returns and constant pressure (taking balls out of the air and aiming their shots at their opponent’s feet) ensure their opponents never catch up in the point.

Notice the relentless barrage of pressure

If you only do these two things, you will win a lot of matches:

  1. Apply extra pressure when you’re on offense by sprinting to the line and poaching attackable balls

  2. Focus on keeping your opponents back as long as possible when they’re the serving team

Best $18 You’ll Ever Spend?

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It All Comes Down to MLP Miami

Major League Pickleball’s final regular season event of the year gets underway tomorrow in Miami. Three playoff spots remain up for grabs, and one team has a chance to play their way into a first-round bye.

Still A Lot of Ball Left for the 5s
The New Jersey 5s can secure a first-round bye this weekend in Miami. With five matches and 15 points on the table, the 5s can pass the second-place Flash by securing 6 points. Also, they could potentially jump past the Shock into first place by snagging 12 or more points.

Who’s In and Who’s Out
As of now, the last three playoff spots belong to the (4)Texas Ranchers, (5)D.C. Pickleball Team, and (6)NY Hustlers. The (7)AZ Drive is best positioned to steal one of those remaining spots.

The Ranchers are frozen at 38 points on the year and have no matches remaining. They are at risk of being passed by the Hustlers, D.C., or Drive, who all have at least five matches left to play. Also in the hunt are the Orlando Squeeze and Carolina Pickleball Club.

The Playoff Bracket
The MLP playoffs will be held over two separate weekends. Each round will be in a best-of-three-matches format. The quarterfinals are set for Nov 1-3 at the UPA World Championships in Dallas. The semifinals and finals will be held Nov 22-24 at the USTA National Tennis Center in Orlando, FL.

Find out the remaining schedule for each team on the bubble and read the in-depth predictions on how the top six will shake out at the Premier and Challenger Levels.

Lace Up Like the Pros

Ever wonder what powers a pro on the pickleball court? Meet the shoes making strides alongside top players like Travis Rettenmaier. He doesn’t just wear K-Swiss for the brand—he wears it for the performance. The Pickleball Supreme and Express Light models are specifically designed for pickleball, supporting every step you take on the court.

Decked out in vibrant colorways, from the men's electric blue and yellow combo to the women’s striking turquoise and purple, these shoes don’t just perform—they turn heads. And with Travis Rettenmaier's stamp of approval, it’s clear these shoes are built for those who take their pickleball seriously.

Step into a pair of K-Swiss court shoes, and feel the difference quality footwear can make to your game.

The APP Returns to Newport Beach

The APP Tour set attendance records at its Newport Beach Open in July. The event was so popular that it was doubled up with another stop in Newport Beach this week.

Chris Haworth is on a Roll
The number one singles player on tour is looking to make it five straight titles. Chris Haworth can bring home his seventh gold of the year with a win in Newport.

The Start of Something New(ell)
Yana Newell won her first APP singles gold two weeks ago in Dallas. Look for her to start a winning streak of her own this weekend.

Find a full preview of the event including predictions from our guy Erik Tice here. You can tune into the Newport Beach Open starting tomorrow at 1 pm ET on APPTV.

APP Collegiate Qualifier

Last weekend, the APP hosted its Midwest Regional Qualifier for the APP U.S. Collegiate Championships. Nine schools made the trip to Chicken N’ Pickle in St. Louis to compete for a bid to the Championships in March.

Winner: Drury University
Runner-up: University of Wisconsin, Whitewater
Third Place: Purdue University

How Pickleball's 'Bad Boy' is Changing the Narrative

Christian Alshon is the special guest on a new PicklePod. We uncover more details on Alshon's Twitter battle with James Blake, Nick Kyrgios, and the rest of the tennis world.

Alshon shares why tensions have been high between him and the Johns bros at recent PPA events. He also explains his plans for creating content while still competing at the game’s highest level. Watch the new episode here.

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