What Is Pickleball? I Took a Lesson to Find Out!

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Pickleball is a fast-paced paddle sport where most points are won at the net (the ‘Kitchen’). For beginners, success comes from keeping the ball low, loosening your grip for better spin, and wearing proper court shoes to handle the quick lateral movements. While similar to tennis, it requires less running but faster reaction times.

I took my first one-on-one pickleball lesson this week to answer America’s favorite recent question, “What is pickleball?” I thoroughly enjoyed learning more about the fastest-growing sport in America. It is clear that I have a ton to learn, but the 60-minute session left me confident that my tennis skills will translate well on the pickleball court. However, there were a few surprises for this brand new player. If you’re considering picking up a pickleball paddle, here are a few things that my instructor shared with me, as well as a few things that caught me off guard.

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Who Won MLP Orlando 2026? New Jersey 5s Beat St. Louis Shock 3-1, Secure #1 Playoff Seed + 12-Team Playoff Bracket Set

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The MLP regular season just ended with an absolutely unforgettable Super Sunday in Orlando. The New Jersey 5s got revenge against St. Louis with the most dramatic mixed doubles game in league history, securing the #1 playoff seed, the playoff bracket is now set, and we’re officially one week away from everything that matters. Let’s dig in.

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The Two-Handed Backhand in Pickleball: When to Use It, How to Learn It, and Which Paddles Fit

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Player hitting a two-handed backhand in pickleball at the kitchen line

The two-handed backhand has gone from a tennis-transplant quirk to a legitimate weapon at the 4.0+ level, and in 2026 it is close to mandatory if you want to survive a kitchen-line firefight. Adding your non-dominant hand gives you stability on fast hands battles, real topspin on the third shot drive, and a roll volley that actually dips.

I need to start with a confession.

For my first two years in this sport, I was a one-handed backhand guy and proud of it. I came from tennis, I had a slice I liked, and I genuinely believed the two-hander was something tennis converts did because they hadn’t bothered to learn a proper pickleball backhand yet. I said this out loud. To people. Repeatedly.

Then I spent about six months getting handcuffed at the kitchen line by a 4.5 who did nothing but speed up at my right hip. Every single time, my one-handed backhand volley would either float or die. He knew it, I knew it, and by the fourth game he had stopped even pretending to hit anywhere else.

That’s when I finally added the second hand. And I want to be honest about the timeline: it made my game noticeably worse for about three weeks, and then it made my game dramatically better forever. If you’re on the fence, that’s the trade you’re actually considering.

Here’s everything I’ve learned since, including the gear mistake that made my first attempt miserable.

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USA Pickleball Was MIA at FanaticsFest 2026. Padel Showed Up. Here’s What Pickleball Can Learn.

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padel fanaticsfest

I spent time at FanaticsFest 2026 this year, two out for the four days at the Javits Center in New York City, and joined over 200,000 fans moving through the doors between Thursday and Sunday. Superstar athletes everywhere. Panels, autographs, brand activations the size of small cities. It’s become one of the biggest fan festivals in the country, and it just added a whole extra day to keep up with demand.

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Chaos in Grand Rapids: How St. Louis Broke ALW’s Streak and Won the Mid-Season Tournament

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MLP midseason

The MLP Mid-Season Tournament just wrapped up in Grand Rapids, and it was absolute chaos. The St. Louis Shock just dethroned the New Jersey 5s from their perch atop the league, Anna Leigh Waters suffered her first loss of the season in the most surprising way possible, and we got a blueprint for how to actually beat the world’s most dominant player. Let’s dig into what went down.

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The Dink: Release Date, Cast, Trailer & Why Hollywood’s New Pickleball Movie Feels Personal

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the dink movie poster

Pickleball just got its own movie, The Dink, and Ben Stiller is involved, which means two things are now true: the sport has officially arrived in the mainstream, and I am contractually obligated as a child of the 90s to have an opinion about it.

The Dink premieres July 24 is out now on Apple TV. It stars Jake Johnson as a washed-up former tennis prodigy who gets pushed into pickleball during rehab, Ed Harris (never ages!) as his pickleball-skeptical father, Mary Steenburgen (never ages!) as the partner who pulls him into the sport, and Stiller himself in a supporting role as the doctor who hands him a paddle in the first place. The trailer just dropped, the internet has takes, and I have a personal reason to care about this one beyond the usual “my hobby is famous now” excitement…but we’ll get there.

Here’s everything worth knowing, plus the part of this story I genuinely did not expect to write about myself.

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Summer Pickleball Tips 2026: How to Beat the Heat, Stay Hydrated, and Protect Your Game in Hot Weather

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To play your best pickleball in summer heat, start hydrating the day before, drink 16 to 20 oz of water about two hours before you play, then sip 6 to 12 oz every 15 to 20 minutes on court. Add electrolytes once you pass an hour or sweat heavily. Play early morning or after 6 p.m., wear light-colored moisture-wicking clothing, and stop at the first sign of dizziness, cramps, or a pounding head. Those are warning signs, not “push through it” signs.

Last winter I wrote a whole guide on surviving the cold court. Now the pendulum has swung the other way, and the bigger danger most rookies face isn’t a cracked ball. It’s a cramped hamstring at 2 p.m. in July with no shade in sight. Summer is when our local courts get packed, and it’s also when I see the most people quit early, gas out mid-match, or worse. So let’s fix that.

This guide answers the questions I get asked most once the temperature climbs. Simple, thorough, and ridiculously helpful, just like always.

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Speedup Tide 14L vs. Selkirk Boomstik: The Foam Core Power Struggle

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Speedup Tide 14L

The Selkirk Labs Boomstik is the gold standard for “limitless” power and a massive sweet spot, but it comes with a premium $333 price tag. The Speedup Tide 14L ($170) is the underdog that offers a unique, more connected feel with a thinner 14mm profile that surprisingly mimics the dwell time of a thicker paddle. Choose the Boomstik for raw, forgiving offense; choose the Tide 14L if you want a fast, high-spin weapon that doesn’t feel like a hollow “pop” machine.

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11six24 Hurache-X Power 2 vs. Volair Shift EL

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11six24 Hurache-X Power 2 vs. Volair Shift EL

If you’ve been following my journey, you know I’ve been a die-hard Engage Pursuit Pro MX (13mm) user for a long time. I lived for that “pingy” pop and the raw power it delivered on drives. But as my game moved into 4.0+ territory, my Engage MX started to feel like a liability. In fast-paced kitchen exchanges, the stiff 13mm core was just too “hot”—I was popping up dinks that should have been dead.

I needed a “cheat code”: a paddle with explosive drive power, elite spin longevity, and a handle longer than 5.5 inches for my two-handed backhand. Most importantly, I needed to fix my soft game without losing my identity as a power player.

After weeks of court testing, two Gen 4 monsters emerged as the top contenders: the 11six24 Hurache-X Power 2 and the Volair Shift EL.

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