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Paul from Pickleball Daily
February 27, 2026
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Tip of the day
Pro player Tanner provides seven essential shortcuts that helped him transition from a 4.0 level to a 6.0 DUPR and professional tournament winner.
The key to dodging out balls starts with keeping your paddle at belly button height when you are at the kitchen line.
As you move away from the net toward the baseline, your ready position should gradually lower to protect against attacks.
Lazy footwork is the primary cause of simple errors, such as hitting the ball into the net on an easy dink.
Engaging your pelvis and keeping your feet active adds deception to your shots and ensures you are balanced for every strike.
A highly deceptive speed-up involves using side spin on a dead middle ball to catch your opponents off guard.
Instead of only trying to add new skills, focus on subtracting two negative habits from your game to see immediate improvement.
Running around your backhand to hit a forehand dink allows you to turn your body sideways and hide your intended target.
When resetting from the midcourt, keep your paddle sideways rather than horizontal to involve your whole body and keep the ball low.
Anticipating a pop-up after you hit an aggressive dink allows you to lean in and finish the point with fast hands.
Thinking two steps ahead during a rally is what separates high-level pros from intermediate players who are just reacting to the ball.
Key Points:
Position your paddle at belly button height at the kitchen to better identify balls that are headed out.
Remain physical and active with your feet on every shot to eliminate unforced errors and add deception.
Use side spin speed-ups on neutral balls to disrupt your opponents' court positioning and create openings.
Subtract negative habits like early speed-ups or discouraging your partner to improve your overall match performance.
Lean into the kitchen after hitting an aggressive dink to anticipate and capitalize on weak returns.
Deal of the day
Meme of the day
Can we hire this guy?? 🤣
That’s it for today! As always, thank you for reading. 🙏
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Happy pickling,
Paul