The first paddle challenge of 2025 revealed some major flaws in the system. Travis Rettenmaier challenged three paddles at PPA Mesa and despite winning the challenge, received no retribution. JOOLA Chief Experience Officer Gordon Kaye weighs in on the situation and explains how the world of professional table tennis handles paddle testing differently. Finally Erik Tice drops in to cover the MLP Draft winners and losers. Plus Zane convinces him to blind rank the best 'pickleball stats nerds'. Are you the go-to source for pickleball news and equipment in your area? Become a Royal Pickleball Amba ..read more

The king is in the building. Pickleball's No. 1 ranked singles and doubles player Federico Staksrud joins the pod. We cover Fed's controversial semifinal loss to Hunter Johnson at the PPA Mesa Cup. Next we talk targeting and Fed explains how the rule was immediately suspended after the failed call on Hayden Patriquin. Finally, the guys question if Fed receives the respect he deserves considering his No.1 ranking or he is stuck in the shadow of Ben Johns. PSA: Pickleballs take 100 years to breakdown in a landfill. This new BioBall™ only takes 5 years, lasts 5x longer, and we loved it in our pla ..read more

It's a full house on the PicklePod this week as we hear from four special guests. First up is Erik Tice who breaks down the Max Freeman contract situation and the surprising results of the MLP keep/drop exchange. Then Zane goes off on how he judges if a player is a bad line caller or flat-out cheater. Next up, John Kew gives us the update on the Ronbus Ripple listing and subsequent de-listing that had paddle fans scratching their heads. Finally, the first international signed UPA players, Tom Evans and Helena Spiridis share their journey to pro pickleball and Tom breaks down his big win over F ..read more

Zane went down under to compete in the first-ever PPA Australia Open. While on-site he sat down with PPA Tour CEO Connor Pardoe, and Australian pickleballers Joey Wild, Roos Van Reek, and Brendan Lee. Listen to the leaders of the Australian pickleball movement explain how the game is rapidly growing in the country. Joey Wild explains how the tennis Australian Open has embraced pickleball despite most tennis tournaments resisting the sport. Connor Pardoe details how the United Pickleball Association is approaching international growth and navigating government restrictions in each country. Bren ..read more

Samin Odhwani is the newly appointed Chief Strategy Officer at the United Pickleball Association. Heading into his first year in the role Samin and the team at UPA gave Major League Pickleball a major overhaul. Zane and Thomas run through the changes that include a switch from rally to side-out scoring, an addition of 2 players to each premier level roster, and exclusive contracts that require planned be signed to UPA in order to play MLP. Plus for the first time ever, MLP team owners will have control of events in their home city. Will any team take the opportunity to blow pickleball out of t ..read more

John Kew is at the forefront of pickleball paddle technology. He is setting up a top-in-class testing facility in his basement in Colorado including a PBCoR testing setup. Zane and John cover the ongoing power struggle between paddle companies and UPA-A's emergence as a governing body in the sport. Zane weighs in on the Quang Duong paddle situation from the PPA Masters. John gives his top paddle recommendations for amateur players and recommends a shape that most players might be overlooking in the search for the perfect paddle. Pickleball's #1 subscription box is here https://www.thedink.shop ..read more

Is Zane the new GOAT of MLP? His New Jersey 5s team won the MLP Mid-season championship and are now favorites to win the season title in December. The guys weigh in on the controversial Challenger Level line call, the Johns Bros performance, and the paddle testing fiasco. Plus we play a new game, "Call someone who" and hear from some of our friends around the picklesphere. Win on any court with Olukai footwear https://bit.ly/3VxEGoF Recover faster. Play longer. Get 10% off devices to reduce your risk of injuries with code DINK10 at https://therabody.com Hydration that tastes great. Try the new ..read more

Fresh off a gold medal at the PPA Masters, Collin Johns joins the PicklePod. He shares the details behind the Johns Brothers' breakup and why Gabe Tardio was the right partner choice to strengthen the team and eliminate the competition. Zane and Collin debate a violation of the unwritten rules of pro pickleball that led to a shocking bodybag attempt on Quang Duong. Quang also made headlines for a mid-match paddle switch and dropping partners at the last minute. Collin provides insight into his business ventures like Johns Design and Consulting which is helping pickleball facilities create high ..read more

Jim Kloss is known for hot takes in the world of pickleball. He provides his 25 predictions for 2025 and his analysis on the Johns Bros split. Later in the episode, Zane and Jim cast their votes for the Nike Dink Awards. Vote along with Zane and Jim at https://dinkawards.com/. All voters are automatically entered into a giveaway to win one of 10 Project 007 paddles from Selkirk along with a full performance outfit. Watch the biggest team pickleball event in history. It's The Dink Minor League Pickleball National Championship December 13-15. Watch it here: @TheDinkPickleball  Pickleba ..read more

No one was hotter than hotter than Hunter Johnson at the end of the 2024 season. He won three PPA titles in the second half of the year including a win at the PPA Finals. Hear Hunter explained the mindset change that helped him reach the top and his take on the state of paddles and where he hopes to land as one of the few top players without a paddle sponsor. Meet Mitopure® the only clinically validated, highly pure Urolithin A supplement. Use code DINK at checkout for 10% off your order. https://www.timeline.com/dink Use code DINK10 to save 10% off the CHUCK ball at https://www.gammasports.co ..read more