Welcome back to The Pickleball Clinic Newsletter!

Have you been to all 50 states? That's impressive. But have you played pickleball in every state? Today, we'll take a look at a man who is planning to play pickleball in all 50 states, an indoor facility that will be the largest in the world, the best way to get power on your shots, and a lot more.

Let’s do this! 👇

A man from Texas, Chong Kim, recently set out to play pickleball in all 50 states in a period of 50 days. (And you thought your goal of playing 50 days in a year was impressive. 😀) But back to the story…

It actually started because of a personal tragedy that involved Kim losing a friend from his local pickleball league.

The tragic loss made him realize the power of pickleball from a social standpoint and the fact that it can be a lifeline for many people.

“This is what pickleball really is,” said Kim. “It’s not about how good you are or what level you’re playing at. It’s about the community.”

Kim’s journey started on September 27th in Alaska, and as of yesterday, he is a little past the halfway mark at state #27.

The purpose of his trip is to raise awareness around mental health and to make sure that people are checking up on themselves and others.

Kim just played in Missouri, Indiana, and Kentucky, and he plans to finish his journey on November 12th in his home state of Texas.

Good on you, Chong, and have a great rest of your trip! You can follow Chong’s journey on his Instagram account.

Leave Your Non-dominant Arm Up on Overheads

Some players will drop their non-dominant arm early as they are lining up to hit an overhead. This will cause the entire motion to drop, and is likely to cause the ball to go into the net. Instead, players should try to leave their non-hitting arm up and only bring it down as the paddle begins to rise towards the ball.

One trick that I teach to remember this is to point at the ball while it is in the air. This will ensure that your non-hitting arm stays up!

Patience, power, touch, finesse, and a scorpion? Yup, this point has it all.

Your Balls Are Important!

Balls are a really big part of sports. All eyes are on them, and they are the center of attention. That’s why you shouldn’t just use any ordinary ball when you’re playing. You should use one that has been carefully crafted and rigorously tested to give you the best performance.

That ball is the Franklin X-40, the official pickleball of USA Pickleball and The Pickleball Clinic. Get some for yourself, and use code “clinic15” at checkout for 15% off.

Over the past couple of years, several tall buildings have had fun putting in temporary pickleball courts on high floors. They may brag that their court is the highest in the region and has the best views — and they probably do. But if you want to play on the world’s highest pickleball court outside in nature, then you’ll need to head over to Colorado.

Located at the five-star Broadmoor Resort in Colorado Springs, this Rocky Mountains pickleball court is 9,200 feet above sea level, making it the highest-altitude court in the world. The court is part of the resort’s Cloud Camp experience, which in addition to pickleball, includes hiking, disc golf, and star gazing.

The Pickleball Arms Race

It feels like everywhere you look, a new pickleball facility is being built that's bigger, better, and has more amenities than its predecessors — which is great news for us picklers!

The latest bid in the pickleball arms race comes from Kevin J Berk and Brett Warner, founders of PURE Pickleball & Padel, who plan to build the world’s largest indoor pickleball facility in Scottsdale, Arizona. Check out a full sketch of it here!

The plan for this country club-esque facility is to include not only a restaurant, bar, jacuzzi, and sauna, but also childcare and study rooms for older kids so they can do their homework while their parents play.

Oh, and let's not forget about the pickleball courts. There will be 48 courts at this facility — yup, 48!

When do you think the first 100-court indoor facility will be built? 2030? What about 1,000 courts? 2031?😂

At some point, maybe there will be enough courts in America for every single person to be playing doubles at the same exact time. 😀 That would be a little less than 100 million courts, but until then, let's keep on building!

The only issue is what will we do with these enormous spaces if we oversaturate the pickleball court demand? Here are a few suggestions:

1) An indoor 18-hole golf course. 2) The world's biggest trampoline. 3) The first indoor city. 4) An indoor lake with indoor water skiing.

Come on, let’s not hustle people out on the courts. 😀

It’s Time to Rhyme

They say if you snooze you lose. But what about shoes? Well, if you snooze on Diadem shoes, you definitely lose and should start playing the blues. 😀 

So we’re going to keep spreading the news that you should certainly use the best pickleball shoes that come in many hues, the Diadem Court Bursts. Those are our views on what you should choose.

OK, enough rhyming. But we strongly suggest you get yourself some Diadem Court Bursts because they’re stable, fast, and comfortable. Plus, they now come in even more sizes! Use code “clinic10” at checkout for 10% off.

Having trouble putting the ball away on high volleys up at the kitchen line? Well, in order to put those balls away, you’re going to need to be able to create power. Good thing Coach Matt is here to show you how. 👇

Key Takeaways:

• If the ball is in the green zone (above your shoulder), attack it! This is not a ball to just tap back lightly to your opponent.

• Take a big backswing. You want to wind up so you can unwind and create power. Think of it like a slingshot effect — the more you coil, the greater the uncoiling, a.k.a. the more power you create.

• To create that coil, do these things: get your paddle back, turn your shoulders, swing out, and hit the ball in front.

• Stay loose! You cannot create acceleration if you are stiff and tight.

Pickleball courts are being built everywhere these days, but now we can add a new location to the list — basements. A house in Fairfield, Connecticut is currently on the market for $1.8M, and it has its own pickleball court in the basement.

Hitting a lob probably isn’t the best idea. 😀 But a deep serve and return should get you some free points. 👍 All joking aside, it would be fun to play pickleball without taking a step outside your house. And despite the court limitations, you should definitely be able to practice your dinking.

Hope you enjoyed the read. See you next week!

- Your Friends at The Pickleball Clinic

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