Welcome back to The Pickleball Clinic Newsletter!

We all know that pickleball is addictive, but is it really like a drug? Today, we'll look at how much some people need to play, hear about some new rules that people want on the courts, discover a new pickleball curfew, and a whole lot more.

Let’s do this! 👇

"Pickleball is a drug." At least that's what Dr. Timothy Charlton, an orthopedic surgeon in Beverly Hills, California, recently told the New York Post.

“Bone will be sticking out of the skin and the person who had the accident will be like, ‘Hey, doc… how long until I can get back on the court?’”

Now that's the kind of pickleball commitment we like to see! 😂 But seriously, pickleball is social, tons of fun, and like any exercise, it releases endorphins. So of course it's addictive!

If pickleball qualifies as an addiction, a cult, or anything else like that, then great, we're proud members of that club. 💪

Evidently, some doctors have also noticed that it's not just the sport that's addictive, but also the style.

Dr. Michael Dakkak, an orthopedic surgeon in Palm Beach, Florida, says that it was very important to one of his patients that her shoes match her paddle.

In fact, it was so important that she neglected to wear the right shoes, which led to her having knee arthritis flare-ups after a recent tournament. 😲

Granted, the doctors above have patients in Beverly Hills and Palm Beach, which are about as fancy neighborhoods as they come. So maybe those pickleballers have to dress the part to fit in?

What about all of you? Does fashion play a role in your enjoyment of pickleball? Reply and let us know.

If you Hit a Bad Third Shot Drop, Stay Back!

So many players are taught to rush to the net after the third shot, no matter what. You NEVER want to do this! If you hit a high third shot drop, you're a sitting duck if you move up, but if you stay back you can try again on the next shot. It's almost always easier to return slams from behind the baseline than it is in transition or even at the net. If you stay back on the high thirds, you'll end up with a much higher percentage of getting to the net successfully and working the point, therefore scoring more points.

Now that’s a good pickleball point. 👇 (And listen to the footwork throughout. 👣)

Why We Love Sports

Even though pickleball is the best sport ever created 😃, we're not going to pretend that it’s the only great sport out there. After all, people have been playing sports for thousands of years. There's just something about the thrill, immediacy and competition of sports that attracts people to them.

But it's 2025, and no matter what sport you're playing, you want to be playing it the right way. That means using the best clubs in golf or the best shoes for running. And in our sport, it means using the best pickleball. After all, the whole sport is named after it! 😉But seriously, it all starts with the pickleball, so make sure you're using the best. 

We know you like pickleball, but do you like natural beauty? What about national parks? If so, then it won’t get much better than playing on the pickleball courts of Springdale Community Park, right next to Zion National Park in Springdale, Utah.

Evidently, the giant red rock cliffs surrounding the courts glow in the sunlight and echo the sounds of the ball. So try not to get distracted by the truly awesome surroundings of these four public courts. But if you do, we'll forgive you.

What Rules Would You Change?

Do you know what time it is? It's time for another round of "What Did You Say?" (We actually don't have a name for this, but we just wanted to feel like a game show for a second. 😉)

Anyway, as most of you know by now, we like to pose pickleball-themed questions to all of you on our Instagram and Facebook accounts, as well as our Facebook group. 

We recently asked the question, "If you could add, remove or change one pickleball rule, what would it be?" As always, you gave us some incredible answers. Let's take a look...

Many people took issue with the serve. "2 chances at the serve" came up a few times. Hmm. It would slow the game down a bit, and make pickleball more like tennis with an aggressive first serve and safer second serve. Interesting thought.

Still others said variations of "All lines should be 'in' on a serve, including the kitchen line." Good point — it seems like the creators could have easily gone either way on that rule.

Others said there should be service lets (also like in tennis), where you would replay a serve if it hits the top of the net and still goes in.

What the heck is going on around here? 😃 Why are we trying to be more like tennis? Aren’t we doing our own thing with pickleball!

Then there were the funny comments, although a few may not have been intentional. 

For example, one person wrote, "Increase the winning score to 12." Now we would understand suggesting 15 or 20. But just one more point to 12? Clearly, this person's lucky number is 12 and believes it will help them out. 😃 

Another person wrote "Play with paddle in each hand." We're also not sure if that was supposed to be a joke. It would certainly look silly, but it could be kind of cool.

Then we got, "Well purely based on my own struggles: Bigger court. Lower net. Ball can bounce multiple times before hitting it. 😂" Love it! But not far enough. How about no net, and people have to hit it within one foot of where you're standing?

That's all for now. We'll keep asking these questions, and you keep giving your great responses!

We’re not sure about this guy’s hands, but there’s no doubt his pickleball footwork would be amazing! 😂

So you've been getting better at pickleball, but you're not yet an expert. That probably means you're at the intermediate level. Well, it's a good thing we've got Matt here with the ultimate guide to being a successful intermediate player. From technique fundamentals to game strategy and everything in between, this video has it all. Check it out below. 👇

Key takeaways:

• When you’re up at the kitchen, try to take balls out of the air. But that doesn’t mean you attack all of them. It all depends on the height at which you are making contact with the ball: high = attack / low = defend.

• To avoid popping up dinks: make sure that you don’t take a big backswing, use a very light grip pressure (like 3 out of 10 strength), lock your wrist, and try to avoid reaching — instead get to the ball early so you can hit from behind the ball.

• Play smart. By that we mean adjust your game to the opponent you are playing. Test your opponent with shots like dinks and speedups to find out what their strengths and weaknesses are.

In Winter Park, Florida, a new rule has been put into effect. If you are in a residential community and have a private pickleball court, you can only play on that court between the hours of 8am to 8pm. The ruling was made so as not to bother people at night or early in the morning. But it got us thinking, which hours of the day do you prefer to play pickleball?

Hope you enjoyed the read. See you next week!

- Your Friends at The Pickleball Clinic

Join the conversation below! ⬇️