Category Archives: Pickleball

pb – home drills

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  1. Backhand to forehand in air
  2. Backhand to edge to forehand in air
  3. Backhand to forehand on ground
  4. Toss and catch
  5. Drink, speed up and reset
  6. Backhand to forehand volley
  7. Slow to faster volley until mistake

Note – complete each drill for 1 minute

pb – back hand like Anna Leigh waters

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  1. Grip is eastern style with non dominant hand on top with pointer or trigger finger in the center of back face the paddle. Gives your more touch, feel and ensure paddle is facing correctly
  2. Do a “unit turn”. Your are rotating your body to the side . Perpendicular to the net.rotating hips
  3. Keep head still for a millisecond when making contact with the ball. Don’t look where you are hitting or up.
  4. Offensive ball – step with dominate leg and hit
  5. Defensive or on the run – step and hit at same time
  6. Transition paddle from to facing out to down to ground to wind shield wiper
  7. Use windshield wiper when coming up to put top spin
  8. Cross court – paddle wraps around neck
  9. Down the line – paddle finishes in front
  10. Practice

Pb – Serving mistakes

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  1. Not pointing front foot where you want the ball to go. Pointing your toe towards your target forces your chest to face the target. Then you will no longer serve across your body . Allows your back leg to come forward and help you drive the ball with your body
  2. Not moving back behind the baseline after your serve, resulting in a misread of the serve return and losing the point
  3. Holding the ball in the wrong spot for the serving hand to hit. You should let arm rest naturally at your side and then lift.

Best AZ tournaments per ChatGPT

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World of Pickleball – Arizona

Scheduled for January 17-19, 2025, in Mesa, this tournament is part of the World of Pickleball series, attracting a wide range of amateur players. 

https://pickleballbrackets.com/ptd.aspx?eid=41437B14-998D-4824-B718-60922C66E554

When – January 17-19th

Cost $65

The Arizona Masters

Hosted by the Amateur Pickleball Association (APA) at Pickleball Backyard, this event is open to players ranging from 2.5 to 5.0 skill levels. Participants are guaranteed a minimum of five games, with divisions organized by skill and age. 

The Arizona Gold Cup

Also organized by the APA, this tournament takes place at the Kino Sports Complex. It welcomes players of all skill levels, with events categorized accordingly. 

When -October

Cost – 65 for 1st event

The Mesa Amateur Open

Held at the Arizona Athletic Grounds, this event is part of the APA’s extensive tour, which plans nearly 150 tournaments for 2025. It’s a significant event for amateur players nationwide. 

The Mesa Amateur Open @ Arizona Athletic Grounds

When – January 11-12, 2025

Cost – $75

USA Pickleball National Championships

While this premier event attracts top players, it also offers opportunities for amateurs to compete. The championships are held at the Arizona Athletic Grounds in Mesa. These tournaments provide excellent platforms for amateur players in Arizona to compete and enhance their skills.

Mesa Golden Ticket Event 2025

April 9 -13, 2025

Cost – $150

pb – Going to 5 from 4 by avoiding these 5 mistakes

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  1. Drop shot instead of driving to keep opponent away from kitchen . Keep them back. Don’t give them a chance
  2. Driving two shots in a row from the baseline. Drive at 70% power with max spin to setup for next shot
  3. Dink without intent . Need to dink into the pressurized zone vs dead zone to force indecision of opponents . Don’t try to win the point with spin. Prioritize with placement to force opponents to move. Hit in the middle and front of opponents bodies for the first 5 dinks. Hit dinks in different spot every two shots

4. Not knowing who covers the middle. Middle line is not a force field. Cover the middle if you are hitting diagonal. Use shading and paddle tracking. Shading means taking a step toward where ball was hit.

5. Hitting balls that are going out.

    PB – “Modern” pickleball

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    1. 3rd shot drive (vs drop)
    2. Attack at mid court if ball is above knee (vs reset when at feet)
    3. Aggressive dinks, like using two handed back hand with top spin to force pop up
    4. Focus drilling vs ad-hoc with no purpose). Check pballdrills.app for drills (I have no affiliation and haven’t reviewed)