Pickleballers aren't athletic?

Weird to think that “Papa” James Ignatowich only picked up a pickleball paddle in November of 2021. But part of what propelled him to the top may have been his journaling skills, according to his recent tweet.

“I’m glad I was weird enough to keep a journal of my pickleball since I started. Looking back at this stuff is absolute gold,” his tweet reads.

Nothing weird about staying focused and documenting your journey. Aspiring pros, take note — literally.

In today's issue:

• Ben Johns teaches us how to read

• US Open’s Singles Sunday

• Pickleball’s college rivalry

• A bad take on athleticism

Onward.

It’s Either Up or Down

Ben Johns has no problem navigating the most complicated aspects of pickleball. Whether that’s paddle technology or doubles strategy, Johns can talk circles around almost anybody.

Lucky for us, he took one concept and simplified it to an A or B option.

While studying Riley Newman, one of the game's great defenders, Johns noticed Riley defaults to two options for defense:

A) If the ball to his opponent is high, Newman lowers his paddle to his two handed backhand ready position. He waits in a defensive posture, ready to get back one of many impossible resets that he always sends back.

B) If the ball is low, about net height or lower, Newman gets breakfast ready. He waits with his forehand pancake up and in position. He knows that if an attack is coming from that height, he will be able to answer with a pancake.

In simple terms: if the ball is down, his paddle is up, and if the ball is up, his paddle is down. 

Johns explains Riley’s defense and what doubles pickleball will look like in the future on the PicklePod.

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A Singles Party

No, not that kind of singles party. We’re talking pro singles at the Biggest Party in Pickleball, the US Open.

Fans out of the loop were unpleasantly surprised to see some of their favorite players missing from this year’s event. PPA-contracted players were not permitted to play. They were, however, treated to a quarterfinal appearance from tennis legend Sam Querrey.

As Querrey noted on Instagram, he is the first player in history to appear in the quarterfinals at the US Open in both pickleball and tennis. Querrey fell in the quarters to young pickleball vet, William Sobek.

Similar to the APP Tour events this year, singles day was dominated by Parris Todd and Hunter Johnson. Johnson defeated his brother Yates in the men’s final leaving bronze for Frank Anthony Davis.

Todd on the other hand met a relatively unknown foe. Judit Castillo Gargallo hails from Spain and played tennis at Northwestern State University. Yesterday, she turned six months of pickleball practice into a silver medal at one of pickleball’s most coveted events.

Gargallo upset the top seed Salome Devidze in the semifinal round but did not have enough juice to close out Todd in the finals. Todd and Johnson won their first gold medals at the US Open Championships and will have the shot at a few more throughout the week.

Watch the replay of Singles Sunday here.

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A Good Old Fashioned College Rivalry

DUPR hosted their first ever Collegiate Individual National Championship last weekend. In the college ranks, there is a budding rivalry between the University of North Carolina and Utah Tech. The two schools have dominated DUPR’s three collegiate events and split the championships in this individual event.

The top finisher on the weekend was the Cinderella Story from last month Collin Shick. The med student from UNC who made a historic run to the PPA Florida Open final and took a game off Ben Johns.

Shick won gold in all three events over the weekend. Looks like DUPR will be cutting the check for next semester's med school tuition.

Also, hoisting some jumbo checks from DUPR was Dylan Ciampiani. She won in both women’s singles and women’s doubles.

Mixed Doubles - University of North Carolina
Sarah Carpenter & Collin Shick
Women’s Doubles - Utah Tech University
Dylan Ciampiani & Katelyn Naudault
Men’s Doubles - University of North Carolina
Collin Shick & Hunter Boyd
Women’s Singles - Utah Tech University
Dylan Ciampiani
Men’s Singles - University of North Carolina
Collin Shick

DUPR will host regional qualifiers throughout the year leading to the team National Championships Nov 17-19 in Peachtree Corners, GA.

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Bad Take, Riley

Adam here. You may have seen this clip passing through social media lately of musician Riley Green talking about his “problem with pickleball.”

“I don’t like games that someone less athletic than me can beat me in…I want to be able to show up to something and have an advantage because I’m taller, faster, in a little bit better shape, and I don’t like it when someone a little nerdier can just beat me.”

I admitted to you in our last issue that I never cared about sports until I discovered pickleball, and I think part of the reason involves attitudes like this.

I’m sure Riley was just trying to be funny for the sake of a good sound byte, but I reject the notion that anyone who does not look like him isn’t “as athletic.”

I’ve seen countless people on the pickleball court who have spent a lifetime in sports (and more years than I in pickleball exclusively) – and though they may not have the bodies of Greek gods, I have to push back against the idea that they aren’t great athletes.

I’ve also seen chiseled people lose against them, so I guess Riley is right about one thing: that anyone can be successful in pickleball with enough practice. Athleticism requires strengthening the mind just as much as – if not more than – the body.

Which leads me to the final part of today’s rant: one of Riley’s points was that one can practice pickleball “at their house” and become incredibly skilled, even if they don’t have his body.

When I tell you my jaw dropped at the stupidity of this comment…What, so NFL receivers don’t go for runs? No NBA point guard ever had a backyard hoop to play with?

Give me a break. All of this coming from a musician is pretty rich – and they’re the people I typically relate to more than athletes.

We want to know what you think — let us know in the comments here.

Headlines & Quick Hits

• Check out the 3x-weekly newsletter that gives you "the gist" on the business side of sports. Bite-sized, curated, fun to read. Check it out! 

• This is the pickleball machine you’ve been waiting for — use ‘DINK100’ for $100 off here 

• Is a pro pickleball shot clock a bad idea?

• Is your Mom a 5.0 Mom? Celebrate her this Mother’s Day

Highlights

• How many times has your partner given you THAT look?

• Easily the best tournament prep

• Lee Whitwell doing ALL of the work

• Pickleball gambling is coming

A review from the Dink Fam...