The Dink Newsletter: Pickleball's Official Sandwich, PPA Red Rock Open Results, and Split-Second Reads on Your Opponent
The Dink Pickleball
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Pickleball has endured its share of pickle-based puns over the years. Just look at the sponsor of today’s newsletter above (love you, B&B<3) to see what we mean.
So it was only a matter of time before a fast food chain took advantage of the connection between “America’s fastest-growing sport” and “America’s favorite sandwich topping.”
Hope you’re hungry, pickle fans.
Let's dink in!
PPA Red Rock Open Results
$5 Foot Fault
What?won’t?a fast food chain do for attention? They’re not opposed to leaning on America’s fastest growing sport for a promo.
Subway , the sandwich purveyor, has spun up a “pickleball club” complete with “new, more flavorful honey mustard and thicker, crunchier dill pickles,” the sandwich chain says.
And what good would a random fast food crossover sandwich be without a celebrity endorsement? In this case, it’s from tennis star Andre Agassi, who pickleball fans recently witnessed playing – and defeating – fellow tennis legends John McEnroe and Michael Chang during the first Pickleball Slam event.
We could?make a joke about ordering a $5 Agassi foot fault with?McEnroe meltdown ?cheese…but that would be far cheesier than this new Subway sandwich. That’s saying something, considering the new creation features “double the American cheese,” Subway says in a press release.
No, they did not specify to which sandwich they were drawing that comparison. It’s just “double,” apparently.
If you feel so inclined, you can score one of these pickleball clubs at your local franchise beginning April 27th.
Read Your Opponent
Deciding who, when, and where to attack occurs within a hundredth of a millisecond, as does knowing who, when, and where?not?to attack.
Recognizing "tells" in that split second takes practice and often happens unconsciously. You'll learn to pick up on multiple cues that lead to the highest percentage decision.
Most amateurs:?"See ball, hit ball... hard!"?Avoid this. In a given attack, certain cues can indicate the highest percentage shot.
Scenario:
Ex. The attacker's lean can reveal vulnerability to a counter-attack. He's reached far enough to the side that his left foot has come off the ground—his momentum is ultimately going to fall to the right, leaving him vulnerable to a counter-attack.
By examining the posture of the attacker’s opponent, we can see that?he is anticipating an attack down the line?(because the attacker is reaching wide). This is probably the correct read. His weight and his paddle have already shifted to respond with a backhand counter, and he’s locked and ready.
But the attacker also sees that the middle looks open. However, the cross-court opponent's left foot is already over the centerline preparing to cover - he might be baiting a middle attack.
If I'm attacking here, I'll need to see this, and before starting this hands battle, in that hundredth of a millisecond, I want to know three things:
My cross-court opponent would have to have a weak one-handed counter, be a natural resetter, or I'd need to know I can effectively hit a great low roller for me to have confidence in winning this exchange through the center.
领英推荐
Lastly, the attacker needs to have a partner with above-average hand speed because, from this ball position and angle of attack, it could easily be countered to him.
I know, I know... It's challenging to process all options, but with practice, decision-making becomes faster and more intuitive. This skill develops after investing hours in intentional rehearsal and training.
Your biggest and easiest competitive advantage comes from doing this type of work. Your opponents, like 98% of those reading this, will not want to put in this level of effort. They lose. You win. Next.
(Via Senior Pro Dayne Gingrich , edited by ChatGPT )
Red Rock Royalty
Brendon Long?just pulled off an all-time pickleball feat. This guy joked about being left out of the featured players graphics and decided to produce his own:
Most people's response: "Good one Brendon, glad to see you're playing this weekend." If they only knew what would happen next.
After entertaining the pickleball internet, Long followed it up with an unforgettable performance on the court.?Tyson McGuffin?was dumped by his partner (James Ignatowich) prior to the event and turned to Long as a substitute.
The unlikely pair, both with a chip on their shoulders, could not lose in Utah.
Fueled by revenge, they gritted out a win against?Riley Newman?and?James Ignatowich?in the semis. On Championship Saturday, they went five games with?Dekel Bar?and? Collin Johns . The underdogs squeaked out the 13-11 victory in game five and took home the title.
Tyson McGuffin followed up the big men's doubles win with his first singles title of the year over Pablo Tellez.
Major League Pickleball Champs?Etta Wright?and?Meghan Sheehan-Dizon?have solidified a partnership and everyone should be worried. The duo snagged their first PPA Tour title together on Saturday. In the finals, they defeated Dizon's former partner?Allyce Jones?and?Lea Jansen.
Catherine Parenteau brought home another title for team Selkirk (the event's title sponsor). She defeated?Salome Devidze?in convincing fashion 11-2, 11-6.
The team of? Anna Bright Anna Bright?and?James Ignatowich?won their first and unlikely to be their last PPA title together (see: Lea’s tweet above) in mixed doubles. They finished off?Jessie Irvine?and?AJ Koller?in straight games.
That's a wrap from Utah. The PPA Tour Tour is back in two weeks with the Newport Beach Doubles Shootout.
Screaming in your Face
Major League Pickleball Challenger Level runner-up?Brandon French?joins?It Feels Right. Frenchy has a unique take on the game and will definitely let you know he is in the building.
His Dallas PC came close to the title and he shares the memorable moments along the way. He provides insight on training with tennis greats?Jack Sock,?John Isner?and?Sam Querry. Get to know Frenchy on the all new episode.
Headlines & Quick Hits
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