Terri Graham and Chris Evon sat down with Kitchen Talk: Pickleball Edition podcast host, Kaitlin Miller, to discuss the remarkable growth of The US Open Pickleball Championships. The visionaries behind the iconic pickleball event in Naples, Florida reflected on the event's humble beginnings. Graham and Evon saw the need for a large scale, one-of-a-kind pickleball event and capitalized on the opportunity. Started in 2016, the event had 800 participants and 2,000 spectators in its first year. The Open has become a "bucket list" item for many. This was made evident by the massive succe ..read more

It’s that time of year when people make resolutions.  And we here at Murmurs from the Losers Bracket are no different. In the past I’ve made plenty of pickleball resolutions for the new year, and upon review, I can now say that it’s a mixed bag. I stuck to some resolutions  For example, I’ve stopped blaming the wind as the reason for making a bad shot on the pickleball court while playing indoors. And for the most part, I call kitchen faults against myself during rec games –- at least until the score reaches 8.  But other resolutions remain elusive. The hardest pickleball resolu ..read more

Pickleball is popping up in some interesting places. With the boom of online shopping and anchor stores closing up shop, many shopping malls are finding it difficult to keep the customers rolling in. Across America malls are receiving the dreaded status of “dead mall” as storefronts become vacant and foot traffic lessens. Theaters and other event spaces are also facing the same challenge.  On the other hand the growth of pickleball doesn’t seem to be slowing down any time soon. With these growing numbers in mind, the biggest threat to the growth of pickleball is the lack of pickleball cou ..read more

It’s December and for those who have followed USA Pickleball’s Rulebook cycle for the past three years, you know that means the new Official USA Pickleball Rulebook is just around the corner. The 2024 Rulebook cycle started in March when any USA Pickleball member could submit a rule suggestion. While submissions were restricted to USA Pickleball members, any player could comment on suggestions submitted. The comment window closed at the end of May. Since then, the rule suggestions have been vetted by and voted on by the USA Pickleball Rules Committee and the USAP Board of Directors. Ninety-two ..read more

Many pickleball players believe that the serve is simply a shot to start the rally. As a result, these pickleball players will generally loft in a soft serve, focusing largely on keeping the serve in the proper service box. They do not focus on power, placement, spin, or any other strategy.  While it is important to avoid hitting your serve out of bounds or into the net—as you will not be able to score any points doing that—this thinking and strategy to simply get your serve in is holding your pickleball game back. The serve in pickleball is not just a “point starter.” Rather, adopt the m ..read more

Although the sport of pickleball was invented over 50 years ago in 1965, the sport, the strategies, the shots, etc. are all constantly evolving. As a result, to stay ahead on the pickleball court it is important to constantly evolve yourself as a player.  As we prepare to step into a new calendar year, we reflect on the common pitfalls of 2023 in an effort to avoid the same mistakes in 2024 on the pickleball court. This article unveils the top 5 pickleball mistakes to sidestep in the coming year, in an effort to help you elevate your performance on the court.  Avoid these top 5 ..read more

Two studies were recently released by the International Journal of Exercise Science, both pertaining to the sport of pickleball. Both studies emanated from the fact that “[l]ittle research has been completed on the performance aspects” of pickleball, which has largely been touted as a great outlet for exercise, as people of all ages and backgrounds are hitting the pickleball court to stay active. These two studies tried to test facets of this overarching theory. The first study, titled “Physical Function in Young and Older Adult Active Pickleball Players,” evaluated the handgrip strength and f ..read more

Several weeks ago, USA Pickleball (the national governing body for the sport) introduced a “Quiet Category” for pickleball products. The aim of this new category is “to reduce the sport’s sound output during recreational play.” As pickleball’s popularity grows and more courts open, the initiative aims to create equipment and solutions that enable communities to enjoy the sport without causing noise disturbances—which has been a concern and barrier to further court development—and without adversely impacting play or performance on the court. Now, manufacturers are delivering on this category, a ..read more

We here at Murmurs from the Losers’ Bracket have been inspired by fellow pickleballer, Perri Blackmer. She offered an alternative origin story for the game, one that’s too hard to resist.  “Most people aren’t aware that after stuffing themselves on turkey the pilgrims played the First Pickleball,” Blackmer posted on the Dink Pickleball site. The whimsical idea of pickleball arriving in America on the Mayflower and being central in the first Thanksgiving is such a better story than real one about a small group of dads coming up with a driveway amusement for their bored kids during a 1965 s ..read more

There are a lot of shots to master on the pickleball court. One common shot to master is the slice—which is a shot where you put backspin on the pickleball (i.e., spin that travels from 6 o’clock to 12 o’clock back toward the player that makes contact with the ball). A slice—whether a forehand slice or a backhand slice—is a common shot selection on returns of serve and dinks at the Kitchen line. A slice is an effective shot because: Backspin will typically cause the pickleball to take longer to travel in the air (as opposed to a flat shot, which would travel at a faster pace). This means that ..read more