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- 🫡 Back to pickleball mode
🫡 Back to pickleball mode
Plus, 10x your reaction speed like this, fastest way to go from beginner to 5.0, and much more...
Brandon at Pickleheads
December 26, 2025
Hey reader,
Welcome back to the Pickleheads Newsletter!
Hope you had a great Christmas and you’re settling into that strange, wonderful in-between week where days blur together, leftovers become meals, and you (hopefully) have plenty of time for more pickleball.
Whether you’re at home, visiting family, or escaping somewhere new, this is prime pickleball season… if you can find a game 😉
In this issue:
🫡 Back to pickleball mode
🤾 Getting targetted? Do this!
💥 10x your reaction speed like this
🧨 Fastest way to go from beginner to 5.0
🫡 Back to pickleball mode
Leftovers are great, but you need to get back out on the court.
Maybe you’re at your grandma’s. Maybe with the in-laws. Maybe crashing on a sofa nowhere near your usual spot. Different zip code, same itch to get out and hit a ball.
That’s exactly why we built Pickleheads Plus.
For $1/month, Plus shows you who’s actually playing today—at any court, anywhere. Not just courts on a map, but real games: players, groups, and open play happening right now.
Traveling over the holidays? Find a nearby game and jump in.
Don’t want to show up and hope for the best? Check before you go.
Feeling bold? DM players and set something up.
Less guesswork. More pickleball. Even on December 26th.
🤾 Getting targeted? Do this!
Excited as always to welcome back Kyle from That Pickleball School for this week’s Level Up.
Hey Pickleheads readers,
If you’ve ever been the player getting targeted over and over, you know the feeling. Everything speeds up. Tension creeps in. And it can feel like you’re stuck reacting instead of playing.
Here’s the key shift: don’t wait until you’re overwhelmed to decide what to do. Have a plan before the rally starts.
If you’re the one being picked on, option one is simple. Dink down the line. Your opponent will instinctively send that ball back crosscourt, which gives you more space and time to work with. Sometimes that alone is enough to break the pattern.
But if they keep coming right back at you? Now it’s time to change the picture. Dink down the line again and move. Slide toward the Ernie position and force your opponents to deal with pressure instead of applying it. Suddenly they see bodies closer, angles shrinking, and options disappearing.
That movement alone can pull your partner back into the rally and disrupt the targeting.
Will this fix everything? No. The real solution is still improving your game. But this gives you a way to stay composed, stay involved, and stop feeling trapped.
Want to see exactly how this looks in real time? 👇
💥 10x your reaction speed like this
🧨 Fastest way to go from beginner to 5.0
🤌 The worst thing you do on resets
DinkDunk Pickleball Spa, Quebec, Canada
This one feels perfect for the holiday week.
Back in March 2024, Destination Canada created the DinkDunk Pickleball Spa. A limited-time pop-up tucked deep in Quebec’s snowy Charlevoix region.
A bold red court, surrounded by pine trees and fresh snow, felt like something straight out of a festive postcard.
Unfortunately, it’s not a court you can book anymore. But there’s no denying this is the kind of court dreams are made of.. bold, beautiful, and perfectly festive.
A reminder that pickleball doesn’t need sunshine to feel special… sometimes all it needs is snow, pine trees, and a little imagination.
Fresh takes, spicy debates, and the latest hot paddles & gear – catch up on our latest Court Talk highlights:
Skipped a scroll or two? No worries — here are the last few editions we sent your way:
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