High IQ attacks

Top seeds dropped in Houston. Your weekend is covered.

Death, taxes, and pickleball. The three things you can count on in life.

Have any members of the Dink Fam found a creative way to write off pickleball expenses? Those lucky enough to play pickleball at their gym might be able to write off the cost of membership.

Maybe pickleball networking has been a hit for your business. It can justify your trip down to Naples for this year’s Minto US Open Pickleball Championships.

Reply to this email if you’ve found a loophole to fund your ‘hobby’.

Do you add any additional weight to your paddle and if so, how much?

In This Issue:

🧠 High IQ Speedups
🗓️ Your weekend plans
🏆 Parker’s breakout performance

Fire it up.

High IQ Speed Ups

Where you attack from can be just as important as when you attack. Your position on the court dictates which shots are possible.

Christian Alshon explains some of the limitations in a new video.

The width of the court is the limiting factor when it comes to attacks. There is not much room to miss laterally in pickleball.

When attacking from the middle of the court, your options are limited. You basically have to attack straight down the middle or at the body of an opponent.

Anything aimed wider than that will likely sail out.

Your options for an attack increase when hitting the ball from the sideline. You can use the full width of the court to your advantage. This opens up the opportunity to speedup down the line or cross-court if desired.

You can use this info to dictate where you should target speedups and how to defend them. If an opponent attacks from the middle, prioritize defending the middle. Let balls aimed toward the sideline sail wide.

Special Delivery for Pickleball Players

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Sign up for The Essentials Box or The Pro Box and receive a ton of pickleball gear for nearly half the price. You can save even more this week with code BoxFumble.

Looking for Something to Do This Weekend?

Besides taking advantage of warmer temps at your local, there is plenty going on in the pickleball world this weekend.

Minto US Open Pickleball Championships
Leigh Waters announced on the PicklePod that she would make her return to pickleball at the US Open. She and Anna Leigh will team up at “The Biggest Pickleball Party in the World!” in Naples, Florida.

The week-long event starts tomorrow with amateur competition. Pros will take the court on Sunday for Singles Day. Split-age events will be held Monday and Tuesday. Pro doubles can be found on Friday and Saturday.

National Pickleball League Draft
Fresh off a recent expansion, the NPL (50+) will launch its second season with the NPL Draft on Sunday. The now 12 teams will follow a snake draft to choose from a bulked-up player pool.

Additions to the league this year include Dave Weinbach, Danny Wuerffel, Jennifer Dawson, and more. The season opener will be held in Chicago, May 17-19. You can tune into the draft on the NPL Facebook page.

Upsets Galore at PPA Houston

Yesterday was a rough day to be a No. 1 seed in Houston. Both of the top-ranked players lost early in yesterday’s singles action.

Duong Does It Again
Quang Duong made a name for himself at the PPA Masters when he upset Ben Johns back in January. Since then, he’s been climbing in the pro singles ranks.

Yesterday he was able to beat Johns again and added this sick ATP in the process. This time, he carried the momentum to another win over Jaume Martinez Vich to setup a matchup with Federico Staksrud in the finals.

Hello, Mrs. Parker
Samantha Parker is fresh off a college tennis career at the University of Texas at Dallas and knocked off Mary Brascia and Lacy Schneemann to earn a spot in the finals, where she will play Lea Jansen.

Another Tennis Breakthrough
Donald Young’s entry into pickleball has flown under the radar when compared to some of the other tennis-turned-pickleball players, such as Jack Sock and Genie Bouchard. He has quietly been putting together better results but turned things up a notch in Houston.

He was down early to Jay Devilliers in the round of 32 and looked as if his day would end there. Young found his stride in game two and was unstoppable the rest of the day. He beat Devilliers, Cason Campbell and No. 3 seed Connor Garnett before falling to Staks in the semis. Young will still have a shot at bronze on Sunday.

Catch the rest of the event on Amazon Prime and PickleballTV starting noon ET.

Your Turn to TOUR

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Locking in Against Better Competition

Better competition helps raise your game to new heights. The best way to level up in pickleball is to get reps in playing at a higher level.

Most players find that their level of play is actually raised when playing against higher competition. That can happen for a number of reasons.

The competitive spirit takes over. You work harder to win each point and play with a higher level of focus.
Better players tend to have longer rallies. Those longer rallies lead to more touches by each player, which helps you get into the game's rhythm.
You know you can’t get away with being sloppy so bad habits and lazy play are minimized.
Better partners can help set you up for success and keep you in points. Hopefully, better opponents also come with a stronger partner.

Playing at the right level of competition optimizes the pickleball experience. That’s why a rating system like DUPR is helpful in matching up players. Read more on why you play better against good players here.