Try out for our MLP Team!

Think you can play pro? Here's your chance.

February 06, 2025

Remember back in the fall when we announced that The Kitchen is taking over an MLP team?

Well, we have some more major news on that front: We’re relocating the team to Nashville and rebranding it as “The Nashville Chefs.”

We’re also holding an open tryout for MLP, a first in pickleball. Sign up here.

Also in this issue:

  • Incredible 56 shot rally 💪

  • Pro plays with a paddle in each hand ⚔️

  • The best drills to get faster hands ⚡️

  • These hurdles hold back pickleball betting 🚧

  • Expert review of the new Proton Flamingo 🦩

Want to support those directly affected by the LA fires? Check out our limited-edition blue LA Fire Relief Kitchen hat.

Let’s cook. 🧑‍🍳

GIVEAWAY

FIFTEEN Proton Project Flamingo paddles!

We are excited to partner with Proton to give away 15 of their brand new Series Three Project Flamingo paddles! This is the FIRST dual stamped paddle with certification for UPA and USAP!

THIS IS A NEWSLETTER ONLY GIVEAWAY… so CLICK HERE and follow the steps to enter! 

BONUS MULTIPLIER: INVITE 5 friends to this newsletter to earn additional bonus entries!

HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK

If I could just have ONE rally like this…

If this 56-shot rally doesn’t energize you to go play pickleball, maybe you’re reading the wrong newsletter.

One commenter wrote, “Great point! This is why pickleball is so cool! I’ve played like three times and I’m already at the same level as them!”

Thanks for the comment there, champ, but when you’re out there returning ATPs from Riley Newman, we’ll be more inclined to believe you.

POLL

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INSTRUCTION

Practice like the pros to get faster hands

If you've ever watched pros or high-level amateurs play pickleball, you've likely been mesmerized by their reflexes when they get into a hands battle at the kitchen line.

Their composure and ability to keep countering even as the ball keeps flying back at them comes from hours of practice, and James Ignatowich recently revealed in his newsletter a few of the top drills pros use to practice hands.

Drill No. 1: Bad dink → speed up

In this drill, you feed your partner a “high” dink (one that they would normally speed up) and your job is to practice making the counter. This will help with your reaction time and holding the line.

It is important to remember that you should not be cheating one way or the other in this drill. Make sure your elbow is tucked in and that you are maintaining a neutral ready position.

Drill No. 2: The wall (or, better yet, the Dink Master Pro)

The wall is a great place to practice hands to improve reaction time and comfortability at the kitchen line.

You can also use the Dink Master Pro and Dink Master from Enhance Pickleball, which are durable hitting surfaces that provide accuracy targets for you to practice placing dinks, speedups and chicken wing attacks.

To start, you can simply try to switch between backhand and forehand volleys repeatedly.

Another drill is called "dink, speedup, reset." Feed yourself a dead dink, speed up to a specific spot and be ready to reset the next ball softly. With this drill you are able to work on multiple shots along with your ability to control your paddle in speedup situations.

FEATURED STORY

Why isn’t anyone betting on pickleball?

Sports betting is everywhere. From the NFL to table tennis, there’s a market for putting money on just about anything. So why isn’t pickleball consistently in the mix?

The short answer: the sport isn’t ready. Yet.

Right now, pickleball has a few hurdles that make sportsbooks hesitant to jump in:

There’s the competition gap ➡️ Until recently, top pros dominated, making betting lines predictable (& bad for the house).

The rules are still evolving ➡️ If refs aren’t calling every shot & rules change every year, betting agencies see too much risk.

All of this will change. The PPA Tour and MLP are already tweaking rules and adding tech to make pickleball more betting-friendly.

TRENDING

The roadside empire with a beaver mascot has officially entered the picklesphere.

→ Buc-ee’s, the popular gas station/convenience store in Texas and across the South, teamed up with Diadem Sports to drop a beginner-friendly pickleball paddle set, including two carbon fiber paddles (honeycomb core) and two pickleballs.

Naturally, the paddles are embossed with Buc-ee’s legendary Bucky beaver.

PADDLE REVIEW

An in-depth look at the Proton Series Three - Project Flamingo

We were excited to get our hands on the latest release from Proton this week. The Series Three - Project Flamingo features a more powerful core and a more textured hitting surface than the original Series Three, delivering elite spin and power.

Our paddle experts tested it in all areas of the game in order to put together an in-depth review.

The overall consensus ➡️ This is a paddle that will benefit a lot of players, and it’s sure to be a popular pick at all levels.

We also spoke to the folks at Proton to learn more about how they designed this paddle and why it performs the way it does.

THE KITCHEN HQ

Pro with two paddles vs. two 5.0s

Jack Munro is one of the only players we’ve seen who can play with both hands.

So, we challenged him to face off against two 5.0s…while holding a paddle in each hand. This resulted in one of the craziest points we’ve ever seen with our own two eyes.

🔗 Don’t miss this absurd point filmed at The Kitchen HQ.

ORIGIN STORY

The hat brand shaping pickleball style

You or someone you know probably has an Imperial hat somewhere in your wardrobe.

Over a century after they got their start in 1916, the brand finds itself on the heads of players at over 75% of the top 400 golf courses in the United States. And that's just one of their key markets.

With seven consecutive years as the #1 headwear brand recognized by the Association of Golf Merchandisers, it’s clear the company’s influence in golf runs deep. But, as any golfer will tell you, the best shots often involve a good pivot.

For Imperial, that pivot is pickleball. 

QUICK HITS

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