Happy National Pickleball Month! Sounds like there is only one way to celebrate...

Who's ready to hit the courts?! 👋

#1. LEARN TO PLAY BETTER PICKLEBALL WITH PICKLER & USA PICKLEBALL

We have some exciting news and we want you to be the first to know!

To celebrate National Pickleball Month, Pickler and USA Pickleball teamed up to create a free video series and e-book available to help players learn to play better pickleball. 🔥

​Click here to access this free resource, which will be invaluable—whether you are a beginner or long-time player—as you can learn from a mix of pro pickleball players (including (i) reigning USA Pickleball National Champions, Leigh Waters and Anna Leigh Waters, (ii) pro players, Dylan Frazier, JW Johnson, and Jorja Johnson, and (iii) senior pro players, Julie Johnson and Mircea Morariu), top pickleball coaches, and other pickleball enthusiasts.

We will also feature 3 of the 19 pickleball videos in this newsletter below 👇. If you like the content, be sure click here for more and share with your friends, partners, and newcomers on the court! 🗣

#2. "MAYOR OF PICKLEBALL" HAVING COURT TROUBLES & POTENTIAL FELONY CHARGES

The biggest pickleball story in Denver these days is happening in a court of law.

Arslan Guney, a 71-year-old pickleball evangelist, who is known as “The Mayor of Pickleball”, landed in jail recently in a case that has spawned national headlines and highlighted the sometimes all-too-common tension created by the increasing popularity of the sport.

​Click here to learn how small markings on a court almost resulted in felony charges against Guney. 🚨

#3. PICKLEBALL TIPS ON VOLLEYS

As you know, a volley is where you hit the pickleball out of the air without the pickleball bouncing. Most volleys are hit when you are at the Non-Volley Zone Line. Click here (and watch the video below 👇) to learn the different types of volleys in the sport of pickleball, as well as some pickleball tips for you to hit the perfect volley on the court. 💪

If you liked this video, click here for more and please help us by subscribing to our YouTube page, so you never miss another one.

​A MESSAGE FROM OUR SPONSOR: VISTA TRAVEL & ROYAL CARIBBEAN​

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Who wants to go sailing with us? 👋

#4. MURMURS FROM THE LOSERS' BRACKET: WHAT'S YOUR PICKLEBALL NAME?

Have you ever considered giving yourself an on-court pickleball nickname?

​Click here to learn the backstory of a few of the best nicknames in the sport and have a laugh reading Murmurs from the Losers' Bracket's perspective on these pickleball nicknames (*for those new to Murmurs, this is a humorous tongue-and-cheek opinion piece - don't take us too seriously... we are trying to have fun, just like we do on the pickleball court). 🤣

#5. PICKLER THE PODCAST - JORJA JOHNSON IS DREAMIN' OF OLYMPIC PICKLEBALL

As a 15-year-old, Jorja Johnson is not just playing pickleball... she is tearing up pro pickleball. Now, Johnson joins Pickler The Podcast co-hosts, Stacie Townsend and John "The People's Champ" Davison to discuss her goals, pickleball in the Johnson family (with brother, JW Johnson, and mother, Julie Johnson), and what is in store for Jorja next. Tune in and get to know pickleball's rising star, Jorja Johnson. 🎧

Do you have any questions that you would like Stacie and John to address? Or, do you have any ideas for a guest? 💡 Let us know by emailing stacie@thepickler.com!

And, don't forget to subscribe to Pickler's YouTube page, so you never miss another Pickler video - whether it be a podcast, pickleball tip video, or other can't-miss video.

#6. QUICK TIP - PLAY THE BALL

Oftentimes, we find ourselves across from our friends on the pickleball court. When this happens - particularly, in competitive play - it can be easy to be thrown off. We can lose our mental edge, get nervous, or otherwise not play "our game."

When you find yourself in these situations, or otherwise anxious or nervous about playing your particular opponents, it is important to remind yourself to focus on the pickleball and "play the ball." In other words, make the best shot based on the circumstances, and don't play your opponents. Play the ball and not your opponents. 🧠

#7. RULES REFRESH - WATCH YOUR FEET ON THOSE OVERHEADS

Do you see the foot fault in the point below?

When players are at the Kitchen line, and one team sends the pickleball high into the air for a lob, the opposing team has a tendency to step forward before stepping back to retrieve the lob. This is even true if the opposing team can hit an overhead off of the lob. However, this tendency to step forward leads to an inadvertent foot fault, as the step forward touches the Non-Volley Zone (and we all know that there are no volleys allowed in the Kitchen). 👣

So, when you find yourself ready to crush an overhead off of a lob, be careful not to step forward before pushing off of the court (rather, push off directly from your parallel stance at the Kitchen line). If you step forward too much, you could commit an inadvertent foot fault if you step on the Non-Volley Zone line.

For a deeper breakdown on all of the rules of pickleball, check out Pickler's Ultimate Guide to the Rules of Pickleball.

Have you had an interesting rules issue on the pickleball court? Send it to us at stacie@thepickler.com, so we can share with the rest of the pickleball community in a future newsletter.

​REVIEW OF MY PRO PICKLEBALL COACH SERIES: "BEST VALUE IN ONLINE LESSONS"​

Check out this review of Pickler's My Pro Pickleball Coach pickleball video collection, which features Coach Steve Kennedy in over 140 video lessons (or over 7 hours of lessons!), as well as a corresponding e-book, that breaks down every aspect of the sport of pickleball, including pickleball mechanics, fundamentals, strategy, advanced concepts, and drills:

​Click here to learn more about the best value in online video lessons and improve your pickleball game now!

#8. HEADLINES FROM THE COURT

Serving up your latest pickleball headlines... 🗞

• Pickleball has officially been named the state sport of the State of Washington. Washington is the 16th state to name an official state sport (some others include surfing for Hawaii, ice hockey for Minnesota, and dog mushing for Alaska).
• ​USA Pickleball sat down with the Morning Brew to discuss its re-branding efforts to modernize the sport of pickleball beyond the baby boomer generation (which include its refreshed logo, shown below).

• ​Learn how pickleball compares to some of the other sports (like padel, disc golf, and others) working to claim the "fastest growing sport" title.
• ​The Standard is developing its first residential project in the heart of Miami. This project will include none other than an indoor pickleball court (with a disco ball!). 😍

• ​Major League Pickleball (MLP) announced a team expansion, from 8 teams to 12 teams, for its next event in June 2022. MLP also announced one of the new team owners, Gary Vaynerchuk (a media entrepreneur, but first known as a wine critic 🍷), which could help bring more publicity to the MLP and its events.
• Over the last two weeks, there were two pro pickleball tournaments - one PPA in Austin, Texas and one APP in Mesa, Arizona. The key takeaways include:
  • Familiar faces topped the men's doubles and women's doubles podiums in the PPA, as Ben Johns and Collin Johns got back on top of the podium and Leigh Waters and Anna Leigh Waters claimed back-to-back gold medals in the last two PPA tournaments.
  • New faces - Catherine Parenteau and Riley Newman - topped the PPA medal stand for mixed doubles in a bracket that had a few partnership shake-ups (including Ben Johns and Anna Leigh Waters - a duo that is unbeaten - playing with different partners on the weekend).
  • Speaking of Anna Leigh, she grabbed gold 🥇 again in women's singles, making her unbeaten for the 2022 season.
  • Familiar faces also took home top spots on the APP tour, as JW Johnson claimed four medals, Zane Navratil was on fire 🔥 in men's singles, and Dekel Bar and Vivienne David reclaimed their golden place in mixed doubles. Vivienne David also took home a gold in women's doubles with her partner, Andrea Koop.
  • A new face to pickleball (but a former tennis pro) - and one to watch - Salome Devidze, grabbed her first gold 🥇 in women's singles.
  • Andrea Koop and Jorja Johnson are the only two pro players to medal in both of the events these past two weekends, as they took home medals and money from both tours.
• Mark your calendars 🗓 for live pro pickleball the rest of this National Pickleball Month!

#9. PICKLEBALL BASICS FOR SUCCESS

There are some basics for success on the pickleball courts that you should know. Click here (and watch the video below 👇) to learn these pickleball basics, including where to start on the pickleball court, the basic rules of pickleball, how to get to the Kitchen line, and other pickleball tips to win points!

And, don't forget that, if you liked this video, click here for more and please help us by subscribing to our YouTube page, so you never miss another one.

#10. DOUBLES PICKLEBALL STRATEGY TIPS

Strategy is so important in the game of pickleball, as pickleball is not only a physical game, but also a mental game. Your strategy on the pickleball court could be the difference between a win and a loss.

Some say pickleball is like chess—easy to play and hard to master. Click here (and watch the video below 👇) to learn pickleball strategy tips to get you started on the right track for your road to mastery of the sport of pickleball.

And, don't forget that, if you liked this video, click here for more and please help us by subscribing to our YouTube page, so you never miss another one.

#11. ASK PICKLER - COURT POSITIONING ON THE LOB

Question: If my partner has to run back and let the lob bounce before hitting it, where should I be on the court? Running back with my partner? Switching sides? Staying up at the Kitchen line? I am not sure where the best place to be is.

Answer: Unfortunately, there is no easy answer and like all good answers, it depends. A few rules of thumb, though:

• Generally speaking, you want to move back with your partner, as you want to stay in tandem to avoid giving the opposing team gaps to hit the pickleball into. With that said, if you trust your partner will make a good shot, and you like to play aggressive, you could charge the net to continue to apply pressure. But, the safer, higher percentage move would be to move back and stay linked with your partner.
• You should switch sides if your partner’s momentum is taking him/her to the other side of the pickleball court. For instance, imagine that I am on the left-side of the court and you are on the right-side of the court, and I chase a lob down on my forehand side, which takes me from the left-side of the court to the right-side of the court. In this scenario, we should switch sides.

One key to success in this circumstance is to communicate with your partner. And, if you get beat on one lob, learn from it and communicate and strategize about what to do for the next one, so that the next lob doesn't cost you another point.

Do you have a pickleball question? Ask Pickler. Reach out to stacie@thepickler.com. Plus, your question may be featured in the next newsletter.

GRAB 10% OFF YOUR PICKLEBALL PURCHASES

Our friends at Fromuth Pickleball give all Pickler subscribers 10% off any purchase (some exclusions apply). Use the code “10PICKLER” to claim your 10% off on new paddles and other pickleball gear to help you celebrate National Pickleball Month! 🙌

SHARE THE SPORT & THIS NEWSLETTER DURING NATIONAL PICKLEBALL MONTH!

Did you like this pickleball newsletter? If so, please share it 💗 with your pickleball friends and community (or better yet, invite others into the pickleball community by sharing the sport and this newsletter with them). The easiest way to share is to click the blue Facebook icon below and share to your Facebook page - plus, you can grab awesome rewards:

We provide this newsletter for free and rely on word-of-mouth to grow our audience, so that we can continue to help you learn to play better pickleball and entertain you with stories and headlines from the court. Thanks in advance for your support! 🙌

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BALL'S IN YOUR COURT...

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