🤯 Seriously! This point is UNBELIEVABLE.

You have to see this week’s epic point to believe it!

Now, usually we don’t cover too much of the pro game. But this rally is being called one of the best pickleball points ever.

On defense, Rafa Hewett pulls off a ‘tweener and a behind-the-back reset!

His team even goes on to win the point… you’ve gotta be kiddin’ me 👇

Have a filthy point caught on cam? 📸

Reply to this email or submit yours to [email protected]. The most epic one will feature in next week’s newsletter!

And if we pick your submission, we’ll send you a free Pickleheads t-shirt 🙌

24.3 million

24.3 million Americans played pickleball in 2025.

A 2026 participation report from the Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA) confirmed that pickleball is more popular than ever—with a growing wave of new players on the horizon.
(SFIA, 2026)

💰 $225M just landed in pickleball. Here’s why it matters

Pickleball just got a serious cash injection.

Last week, Apollo Sports Capital and billionaire Tom Dundon poured $225 million into Pickleball Inc., the new parent company behind the PPA Tour and Major League Pickleball.

Total investment now sits at $315M, valuing the company at $750M.

That’s a huge pro-level headline. But it could matter a lot more than that.

When money at this scale enters a sport, it can change the ecosystem around it, not just the professional end.

Here’s where rec players could feel it:

More and better places to play
Big valuations attract attention from developers, clubs, and local communities. That could mean more courts, better facilities, cleaner booking systems, and purpose-built places to play.

Better gear, with more pressure on price
With Pickleball Central in the mix, we could see faster product development, more choice, and more pressure on the premium paddle market.

A sport that feels more organized
Bringing the PPA Tour and Major League Pickleball closer together could help create clearer standards, formats, and pathways as the sport grows.

Better coaching and organized play
More money usually strengthens the layer below the pros too: clinics, leagues, coaching programs, and better ways for everyday players to improve.

Now obviously, none of this is guaranteed. But pickleball has a funny way of turning big momentum into local change.

So yes, this may be a pro sport headline. But your Wednesday night game might eventually feel it too.

😳 The pop-pop’s got people hallucinating?

In Alabama, the pop-pop sound that fuels pickleball is also driving a growing wave of anxiety, and, in one case, people reported “auditory hallucinations.”

Looking for a quiet paddle?

🎆 Katy Perry hosts 'Truly Electric' pickleball tournament

Katy Perry is apparently a “dark horse” when it comes to pickleball!

The singer and American Idol star showed off her skills at the 3rd annual Light Up the Court charity pickleball event as she played against her sister, Angela Lerche, 43, in order to raise money for their Firework Foundation.

🕸️ Spider-Man just picked his side in the pickleball vs padel debate

Tom Holland picks padel over pickleball but Spider-Man has been wrong before

Fresh takes, spicy debates, and the latest hot paddles & gear: catch up on our latest Court Talk highlights:

• 😂 The part of practice nobody enjoys… fixed

• 🫶 The recovery habit that makes me a better pickleball player

• 👑 We just crowned a new king of spin

• 😲 This paddle hits like it costs twice as much

Skipped a scroll or two? No worries — here are the last few editions we sent your way:

• 🤾 Hit perfect resets with these 3 pointers

• 🚫 Controversial court split plan sparks HUGE backlash

• 🤾 90% of players do this WRONG

• 👫 Pickleball's battle of the sexes! Who won?