These Nasty Nelsons were spot on

Hannah Johns joins Pickleballers to discuss early days of pro pickleball

June 11, 2026

 

Hannah Johns was employee No. 4 at the PPA Tour. In the early days she wore many hats — arranging player housing, working on the broadcast, making sure the pros had what they needed at the venue and much more.

This week she joins the Pickleballers Podcast to discuss what it really took to turn pickleball into a legitimate professional sport. She also shares some behind-the-scenes stories about Ben and Collin Johns that you won’t want to miss. Learn more below.

Also in this issue:

  • These Nasty Nelsons were spot on 🎯

  • Pickle Money Ball amateur tournaments changing status quo 👀

  • Can New Jersey win second-straight MLP event? 🏆

  • The ultimate drilling partner 💪

  • Father’s Day pickleball gift guide 🎁

Let’s get cookin’. 🧑‍🍳

HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK

Not one, but TWO Nasty Nelsons on the same player 🥶

Today’s clip gives us a variation of the Nasty Nelson we’re not sure we’ve seen before.

The woman standing off court to the left is stacking on defense, so instead of moving across the court in front of her partner after the serve, she’s just going to take a couple steps to her right and be in position.

That’s all well and good, but the problem here is she’s kind of trapped by the fence. So when her opponent goes for the Nasty Nelson, there’s not a lot of room for her to get out of the way.

This happens not once, but TWICE in this situation. Brutal!

🔗 Check out these clips on Instagram, Facebook or TikTok

PICKLEBALLERS

Hannah Johns: Growing the PPA and pickleball's wildest early days

In this week’s episode of Pickleballers, Hannah Johns sits down with Roscoe and Jared to pull back the curtain on the Johns family, the wild early days of the PPA, and what it really took to turn pickleball into a legitimate professional sport. It's part origin story, part behind-the-scenes tour, and entirely worth your time.

Hannah gets into the grind of being PPA employee No. 4 — arranging player housing, getting screamed at when a pro peed in a host's garden, and the relentless skepticism from networks and fans who said tickets would never sell. She shares what she's most proud of: Helping prove every single naysayer wrong.

🔗 Check out the full episode on YouTube, Spotify or Apple Podcasts

PICKLEBALLERS GIVEAWAY: Each week we’re doing a giveaway to celebrate the latest episode of Pickleballers. This week we’re giving away a LIMITED-EDITION JOOLA Rally Rocket Ben Johns Perseus Pro V! Enter here!

FEATURED STORY

How Pickle Money Ball amateur tournaments are changing the status quo

For years, amateur pickleball players have been playing for the same prize in the vast majority of tournaments: A medal, and usually a pretty cheap one at that.

Pickle Money Ball is on a mission to change that status quo, offering big payouts in several major tournaments this year, with more planned in 2027 and beyond. In Pickle Money Ball events, players ranging from 3.5-5.0+ have the opportunity to earn thousands of dollars by winning or medaling in their division, or at least get their entry fee back with a good showing.

HOW IT WORKS

Players can “nominate” any competitive pickleball game beforehand in order to receive Pickle Money Ball points for that event. This includes:

  • Weekly matches

  • League games

  • Local tournaments

  • PPA Tour or APP Tour tournaments

  • Open play

By nominating those events and earning points (for a fee of $25 or $50, depending on the type of event), players will climb the Pickle Money Ball leaderboard, which will determine event seeding and qualification for future major Pickle Money Ball events.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Pickle Money Ball currently has several events on the calendar for the remainder of 2026 and early 2027.

June 27-29: Carrollton, Texas | $320,000 Payout | Super Series Event
Aug. 8-10: Boston, Massachusetts | $140,000 Payout | Super Series Event
Oct. 22-25: Fort Lauderdale, Florida | $600,000 Payout | Regional Event
Nov. 20-22: Seattle, Washington | Payout TBA | Super Series Event
February 2027: Mesa, Arizona | $600,000 Payout | Regional Event

THE PROS

Major League Pickleball Austin: Pools, schedule, viewing guide and storylines

Major League Pickleball returns to one of the sport’s original hot spots this week: Austin, Texas. The league itself started in nearby Dripping Springs, and MLP events have been held annually in the Austin area ever since.

Matches started Thursday from Austin Pickle Ranch, which also hosted an event last season. Here are the teams in the field this week:

Group A: California Black Bears, Carolina Hogs, Columbus Sliders, Miami Pickleball Club, Socal Hard Eights.

Group B: Atlanta Bouncers, Bay Area Breakers, Dallas Flash, Florida Smash, New Jersey 5s, Texas Ranchers.

MLP AUSTIN STORYLINES

Here are a few of the biggest storylines to watch this week:

Who will win the Lone Star showdown? The Dallas Flash and Texas Ranchers find themselves in the same pool this week, and the Ranchers will be debuting a new lineup — last week they traded Dylan Frazier to Miami for Nico Acevedo. To this point we’ve only seen Acevedo play the left, which is also Eric Oncins’ preferred side, so it will be interesting to see how they fit together in men’s doubles.

Can New Jersey win two in a row? After a disappointing fourth-place finish in their first event of the season, the 5s bounced back with an impressive win at MLP Columbus. They have all-new mixed doubles pairings this year — Noe Khlif/Anna Leigh Waters and Will Howells/Jorja Johnson — and those duos looked much better in Week 2 than they did in Week 1. Can they keep improving?

FATHER’S DAY PICKLEBALL GIFT GUIDE

The best paddles and accessories for dad this year

Father's Day is right around the corner (June 21 this year), and if you’ve got a dad who plays pickleball and are looking to get him a new paddle or some gear this Father’s Day, we’ve got you covered.

We’ve put together a list of great paddles as well as some accessories that every pickleball-playing dad is sure to like. In many cases, using code “KITCHEN” at checkout will get you a discount — using our code also helps us continue to produce this type of content.

HATS

Our Kitchen hats come in several styles, colors and materials. We bet you can find something your dad would like. Shop here.

PADDLES

JOOLA Pro V: This is one of the most popular paddles on the market right now. Buy from The Kitchen Shop and get a FREE Kitchen hat (under $30).

RPM Friction Pro V2: This paddle truly has it all. Great power and pop, as well as great feel and spin. Shop here — use code “KITCHEN” for 15% off.

Honolulu J6CR: We think this is the best full foam paddle on the market right now. Shop here — use code “KITCHEN” at checkout for 10% off

TRAINING

Level up with the Erne Pickleball Machine

The ERNE Pickleball Machine was developed and brought to market by three diehard pickleballers who simply wanted more from their pickleball machines.

They wanted a larger hopper, so they could spend more time hitting instead of picking balls up. They wanted better precision and control. They wanted more of a game-like feel and less predictability. They wanted a longer battery life, better portability, sturdier materials, etc.

So, what did they do? The ERNE Team developed the ultimate drilling partner.

Late last year the company also released a smaller version called the Dink + Drop Pro, which allows everybody from beginners to pros to practice in their garages, basements, driveways, living rooms, studio apartments and of course pickleball courts.

🔗 Shop all ERNE ball machines here — use code “KITCHEN” at checkout for 5% off!

QUICK HITS

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