How can a four time us open champion help you to improve your play on the
pickleball court? I'll give you a hint. It's all about change.
Stay tuned.
Hey everybody. It's CJ Johnson.
There is nothing like getting into the mind of the champion and today 4x
US Open champion Laura Fenton Kovanda is going to tackle the change in
pickleball.
Not just changes in pickleball but changes in how we play once we get past 50.
She's going to talk about how the game is changing,
how your reactions are changing and most importantly what's something that you
can do to win more points and ultimately have more fun.
Laura,
the game is growing leaps and bounds and there's a lot of players from other
sports, specifically racket sports coming into pickleball.
How is that changing the game of pickleball?
First of all, I have to answer it this way.
CJ is pickleball is not going to change in regards to senior citizens being able
to play a sport. To me that's the absolute best thing about pickleball.
Anybody can play the game and I think that's what makes the game so great.
As far as racquetball, tennis players, badminton, table tennis,
the younger ones coming in,
I see at a higher level of players because money is coming into the sport.
That's what's changed in the game. Being televised,
having money, the sponsors are now, you know,
giving more expenses to some of those players.
And so there's a bigger view of a wide variety of styles of this game.
So I think that's what's changing.
There's not just one way of playing the game to, you know, go 25, 30,
40, 50 years ago, everything was a drop shot.
Everything was a dink shot. It was a much slower game.
The whole influx of tennis players especially has changed it with the fast paced
games. And younger people have faster reaction time and faster reflexes.
So it's exciting to watch. And the singles the same way. They're quick,
they're fast, they're strong.
So there's two or three different styles to that game.
It doesn't mean one's right or wrong. I think that's what makes it exciting.
You know, CJ,
I think what makes me unique is not only my educational background but also my
tennis and racquetball backgrounds.
I see the court very differently.
So we look at heights and angles and speeds.
We also learn how to read our opponents cause our opponents are what actually us
what shot to hit next. So we can teach, we teach the basics,
but there's also a lot of added dimensions in there that sometimes people don't
even think about.
What I find most CJ is that proper footwork is not natural with most people.
So I would say I'm actually gonna answer to their footwork how to get to balls
and be more consistent.
Getting to balls and hitting consistent shots is number one.
Number two is blocking because they have a fear at being at the kitchen line and
getting hit. So those are the two I always start with.
Again, I'm going to answer with two of those.
I think resetting balls,
especially in the middle of the court and at the kitchen line,
but in the middle of the court, the biggest, probably the greatest,
or toughest skill is resetting a ball at your feet or directly at your body and
changing that mindset of reset, reset,
reset instead of wanting to swing hard at it. That's one,
and I would say learning how to hit a topspin volley when you're at the kitchen
line.
Every person is different. They have strengths, weaknesses,
they might have physical ailments,
they might have areas that they don't realize they can improve on or things that
may have not even crossed their minds.
Some of them may not know the difference between a slice and a topspin or how to
cover a lob. Where should my paddle be at all times? You know,
I never teach every person the same way
You keep coming back here and I'm incredibly grateful that you do both.
Why Tahoe? I mean, is it not the most beautiful place in the world?
You're on pickleball courts with evergreen trees surrounding you. A blue sky,
the sun, the most gorgeous lake in the world,
but I think it's one of the most beautiful and enjoyable destination places in
the world.
If you missed part one or you'd like some more tips from Laura,
make sure you check out this playlist.
Until the next video.
Let's Train Smart, Live Bold, and AGE WELL.