-RUSTY: Hi, I'm Rusty from Pickleball Channel. In today's Pickleball 411, we're going to share
some quick, easy tips that you can do to improve your dink game.
So, let's learn and play!
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-ANNOUNCER: Pickleball 411 is powered by Hyland's Leg Cramps, proud supporter
of pickleball players everywhere. -RUSTY: On today's Pickleball 411, we're coming to
you from the Bobby Riggs Tennis Club. I'm here with Steve Dawson, one of the owners. Thank you so much for having us here.
-STEVE: Thank you, Rusty, for being here. We're happy to have the Pickleball Channel here at Bobby Riggs
Tennis Club. -RUSTY: It is totally our pleasure. And, you guys, Steve's a top player in pickleball. He's been winning medals
at the US Open Pickleball Championships in the Senior Pro division. He's been winning the USAPA
Nationals, and he's been teaching tennis for 30-some years. And here at Bobby Riggs, you've been helping
hundreds of people with their pickleball game. So what do you think you're going to share with folks today?
-STEVE: I today will be sharing with you what I consider to be the three secrets
of the short game in pickleball. -RUSTY: So, let's break it down.
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-STEVE: Dinking is important in pickleball, first of all because it keeps you out of trouble. And secondly,
if you do it properly, it puts your opponent in trouble and allows you
to put the ball away for a kill shot.
♪♪ upbeat music ♪♪ My first rule of dinking is,
if at all possible, you want to be able to take the ball out of the air,
not letting your opponent's dink land in your kitchen. It becomes
important to do that because if you can consistently reach up and take the ball out of the air,
your opponent has less time to get ready for the next one.
If you back up and let it bounce, which might be easier for you to do
now, that added time of letting the ball bounce and coming to you
and then hitting it back is added time for your opponent to get ready for their next
shot. Taking the ball out of the air up at the kitchen line makes
the decision-making process easy for me. If I'm always thinking
out of the air first and I'm always trying to get the ball out of the air, I only can't get it
when my opponent's dink was so successful that it bounces in front of me. And it's sort of
easy for me to make the right decision.
My second principle to success in the short game of
pickleball is to move up to the bounce of the ball
in my kitchen. So if I cannot reach up and take the ball out of the air,
I will move to the bounce of the ball in the kitchen. Using a short hop
as your strategy is simply the process of moving up
and taking your dink as close to the bounce of the ball in your kitchen as possible.
The traditional dink, the trajectory is hit as the ball
bounces in your kitchen, rises up, and you're actually hitting a ball when it's
descending. What I'm talking about is hitting the ball right after
it bounces in the kitchen on the rise up into your paddle.
I do that to shorten the time that my opponent has to get ready
for their next shot. ♪♪ upbeat music ♪♪
The third rule of success in dinking is to move
your dink around within your opponent's kitchen. That has two
benefits. Number one, if you move them around, they might pop the ball
up so you can put it away. Or if you move them around, they are
less set up to make a power shot at you.
By now you all know the importance of dinking in pickleball, and by adding these three
rules to your short game, I'm sure you will continue to improve.
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-RUSTY: So that's your Pickleball 411 for today. Steve, thanks so much
for joining us. -STEVE: Thank you, Rusty, for being here. -RUSTY: Now, everybody, there's only one thing left to do,
and that's go play! ♪♪ upbeat music ♪♪
-ANNOUNCER: If there's something you think Pickleball 411 should cover, we'd love to hear from you.
All you have to do is send us an email and tell us your idea.
This episode of Pickleball 411 has been brought to you by Hyland's Leg Cramps,
America's #1 over-the-counter leg cramp medicine. For more information, go to
Hylands.com
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