Hey!

Before we keep going, welcome back to another edition of the blog. If you’re new to the blog and want to go back and check out past editions, go here!

Today’s edition has three parts: 

1. A Helpful Tip (Video) – Film Breakdown You Can Learn From.

2. For the Pickleball Nerds – Don't run through your shots.

3. My Journey Playing Pro – PPA Cincinnati.

A Helpful Tip (Video):

Imagine this. You just hit a 3rd shot drop and you’re watching the ball fly through the air.

As your opponent goes to hit their 4th shot, you’re running toward the kitchen line (the most advantageous position on court). The problem is, as your opponent hits their 4th, you never slow down or stop before you make contact. You run right through the shot.  

And listen, this isn’t just a beginner's mistake. I STILL focus on this in my training! I have to remind myself, “Split step on balance and don’t run through the ball.”

When you run through your shots on the way to the kitchen, you get off balance and have less control on the ball. This leads to pop ups, balls hit into the net, and ultimately, lost points. 

It’s like trying to throw a dart on the move or trying to nail a putt while jogging. It just won't work out as well, unless you're Happy Gilmore 😉.

And as you play better competition, getting to the kitchen line only gets harder because players are better at applying pressure back toward you. 

That’s why split stepping is so important. So here’s what you need to remember:

• Slow down. 
• Split step (on balance).
• Execute the next shot with poise and then,
• Evaluate the quality of your shot and reposition yourself based on that. 

So, what's a split step?

It's what Roger Federer displays in this video here.

Watch his footwork before he makes contact with the ball. That’s a split step. 

It’s like the second part of a jumping jack, when your feet go wide. It gets you in an athletic stance, on balance, ready for whatever ball is coming your way. 

In closing, the split step is not talked about enough. But gosh, if you implement this into your game, things will change. Trust me!

PS: I’m going to make a video soon on split stepping, so stay tuned.

We played our training partners back from phoenix (again). I’ve played tournaments with all four guys on court. We all know everything about each other.

We lost 11-7 , 2-11 , 11-9. It was tough. Really tough. 

Had we won, we would have gone on to play the johns brothers, which is always a great experience. 

After the heartbreaker, we won the next and lost the one after.

It was really tough to get over that first round match because we looked back and felt like we shoulda won. 

After that, we won our next match and then lost to a tough team in our third match! 

That’s all for today! On the road visiting family, so gotta get some rest, because I'm playing some pickleball with my mom in the morning :)

Until next time,

Kyle

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