[00:00:00.160] - Tony Roig
Hello and welcome to Pickleball Therapy, the podcast dedicated to your pickleball improvement. Hope you're having a great week. Appreciate CJ Johnson stepping in last week for the podcast. That was awesome. It's always good to hear her perspective on what's going on with sports and and how we can best engage with the beautiful sport of pickleball.

[00:00:25.120] - Tony Roig
This week's podcast I want to dive into a subject that I've been thinking about and I'll explain, you'll understand as we piece it together. But basically it's about figuring out where we are and what will do most work for us right now in terms of our game and our development. I think you'll find it an interesting way of kind of refocusing ourselves and what we're doing. Before we get into that, a couple of quick notes here. One, I've been trying out the new paddle tech shape, relatively new paddle tech shape, the GT O C. And I, you know, I like it a lot.

[00:01:07.270] - Tony Roig
I like it, I can't say I like it more than the traditional bantam, which is the annalee waters bantam 14 millimeter. But the GTOC is a different shape. It's a little bit more elongated. It's perhaps a little meatier if you want to think about it that way. I don't know if that's a good term for a paddle, but that's why I think about it.

[00:01:25.150] - Tony Roig
It's just a little more substantive when you swing it. And I came from tennis and so that's something that appeals to me, I would say. That said, still highly recommend, my first go to recommendation is the Annalee Waters 14 millimeter bantam paddle. AlWC, it's called. That's my first go to for any player.

[00:01:46.600] - Tony Roig
That'll work for any player. I use it. I love the paddle. I've been playing with it for about a year. If you come from tennis or you want to elongate and paddle feel, the GTLC is a good option.

[00:01:55.560] - Tony Roig
I would caution you though, if you it is going to feel heavier when you swing it because of the shape of it. That's just natural. But anyway, those are two options for you and we have codes at Better Pickleball links I should say better pickleball.com that'll get you a small discount if that's something that you're interested in. One other bit of housekeeping, we have our strategy clinic in August coming up. It actually ties into today's presentation.

[00:02:19.420] - Tony Roig
That's what spurred me on to think about this. I was preparing some materials relative to that strategy clinic. And it got me to thinking about how we as pickleball players sometimes can get a little bit derailed in our. In our work. And so I wanted to address that in today's episode of the podcast.

[00:02:38.870] - Tony Roig
And then in the riff, I'm going to talk about something that CJ reminded me about that she and I talked about previously, but I had not brought up in the. In the podcast, which is we're going to use the Wimbledon women's finals result to talk about, you know, how loss or losing, right? And losing, you know, badly, if you want to think about it that way, but certainly losing by a lot of points. How we should. How we can frame that perhaps more positively for ourselves.

[00:03:11.260] - Tony Roig
So let's start into the main topic today, which is this idea of figuring out where we are and what's going to most help us with our games. And the clinic that we have coming up is about the must have shots for 3.5level play. And there's different layers to this thinking. When you think about, you know, must have shots for three. Five level play.

[00:03:38.190] - Tony Roig
One, one layer is, you know, it's really honing in for. For 3.5 level play, which I want to be clear. 3.5 level play is solid play, right? 3, 5 to 4, 0 is where. Where a lot of pickleball players, you know, play their games.

[00:03:57.260] - Tony Roig
And that's awesome. Pickleball world to be in, obviously, you know, as pickleball players, you know, it's good, I think, to always strive to, you know, can I learn something new? Can I, you know, can I improve in an area, right? Can I go deeper with the game? Those types of things, those are all very good, I think, great ways to engage with the sport.

[00:04:21.180] - Tony Roig
But the reality is that, you know, 3, 5 to 4 oh is where a lot of play is played. And that's good pickleball. One other note here is that, you know, 3, 5, the term 3, 5 is much broader than it seems, meaning, you know, and we've talked about this in prior podcasts, but, you know, 36 to 3, 7 is a world of difference. Like legit 3.6 to legit 3.7, legit 3.7 to legit 3.8. A world of difference again.

[00:04:48.210] - Tony Roig
And I think sometimes, you know, we can get bogged down in like, oh, three. I've been in three, five forever. Well, that's. You're navigating an entire universe of pickleball between 3, 5 and 4, 0, and that's okay. And then 4, 0 on same thing.

[00:05:00.830] - Tony Roig
It's 40 to 4141 to 4 2. But one one approach, you know, one one aspect of this way of thinking about it, you know, must have shots for three, five level play, is that it lets us hone in on what really matters based on where we are in the game. And I'll give you guys a quick side story here. So I was playing on, on Monday this week and before our camps, and there was a local player who, you know, is really good friends, one of the players on the group, I befriended her as well. So she was watching some of our points and she's coming to the upcoming camp.

[00:05:42.220] - Tony Roig
And I hit a ball winner basically cranked it right next to the sideline. It was close, but it was, it was in, but it was close. And I kind of, I'm always like, oh, I was, you know, too close for comfort kind of a thing. And I looked at her and I go, okay, so don't yell at me tomorrow when I'm talking about margins for error and suggesting that you use a margin of a couple of feet. And here's the difference.

[00:06:10.880] - Tony Roig
If I'm playing 3. 5, right, and sometimes I'll play open plays, I don't need to take that much risk with my shots. It's just the reality, right. I can allow my opponents to do a lot of the lifting for me when I'm playing in this group. This is a much more advanced group.

[00:06:28.070] - Tony Roig
You know, if I, if I play it safer, if you will, if I don't take risks, that ball is just going to come back. So when I get a shot that or get a ball that I can do something with, I am going to do something with it, okay? But that's because it's relevant to the level that I'm currently playing. And what happens oftentimes is, you know, you'll watch 3.5level play and they're trying to hit shots the same way that Ben Johns hits it or Annalee Waters or any pro that you like hits him. Right.

[00:06:57.550] - Tony Roig
But you're not facing pros and so you don't need to hit the balls the way they hit them to end their rallies. But we're trying to do it at3.5, and that's not being aware of where we're at right now in our games. That also goes to the shots that you must have. Right? So you know what shots are absolutely critical to playing 3.5 level pickleball, right?

[00:07:19.320] - Tony Roig
And, and you know, we as coaches, part of our job is to prioritize that for you, right? If we Can't. If I can't tell you what's really going to help your game at 3, 5, then I'm not sure exactly how I'm going to coach you. Right. Or at 4o or based on understanding of the framework of pickleball and things like that, it's.

[00:07:40.490] - Tony Roig
It's nearly impossible for us to do our jobs. So this project of like the must have shots and we have it by different levels, right. It. It seeks to, to boil down the things that are absolutely critical to playing at that level. And then what we did as well as we talk about, we explored shots that are optional.

[00:08:02.810] - Tony Roig
So you have the must have shots, right. And so you're good. There's. Because again, they're must have without them not going to be able to do the work that you want to do at that level to be successful. So we have those.

[00:08:17.140] - Tony Roig
Then we can look at optional shots, right? So what other shots could we work on that'll improve our play but aren't must have shots? They're not required to get the job done. And then importantly, we also look at shots that are traps, right? What to avoid, areas to avoid.

[00:08:36.340] - Tony Roig
And those are the areas that I think are very costly actually for players who are earnest in their desire to improve, right. Who are earnest in their wish to become more competent pickleball players. They end up getting bogged down in these areas that are not necessary, not going to help them, distracting them from what they actually need. So we explore that as well to help guide the player in terms of the path that they're going to, that they, that they, that they should take if they want optimal improvement in their play, you know, in the shortest amount of time, right? If they, you know, if they end up in the distraction, then they're not focused on the must have shots and maybe they come to it later, but now they've spent a couple years on stuff that really isn't going to help them with their game.

[00:09:30.460] - Tony Roig
As an example, you know, just throw one out here. So three, five level play, you don't need a roll volley, you know, listen, I know roll volleys are sexy and, you know, awesome. Let's hit roll volleys, right? Good. But you don't need it at 3.5.

[00:09:46.370] - Tony Roig
It's not adding that much to your play and potentially detracting you from other areas that are more important and also detracting you from. The number one priority I would say at 3.5 is consistency. Nothing else, just consistency. Just hit another ball, hit another ball, hit another ball in the court with Intentionality right towards a target and things like that. And you're going to play great.

[00:10:09.780] - Tony Roig
You're going to kick butt, as they say, without the need for all these other shots that are just going to not only distract you, but they're also going to increase your inconsistency or decrease your consistency, depending on how you like to frame it. But in either, neither event, all working against you and you being the most successful player that you can. So one concept here is this idea of having an understanding of where I'm at right now and where you're at, that's where you're at. It's fine. That's just life.

[00:10:45.740] - Tony Roig
So that's where I'm at. And then pursuing areas of the game that are going to most help you continue to advance as a player helps you then avoid getting a YouTube video that says, Become 5. Oh, you know, 5.0 player in 90 days, which is nonsensical unless you're a 4.95 when you watch the video. You know, 99% of players can't handle this. All these, these just clickbaity things that you come across, right.

[00:11:20.130] - Tony Roig
You know, that's likely not going to help you, and it's likely actually going to. I don't want to use the word harm, because not really harm, but it just, you know, it, It. It'll. It'll delay you. It'll pull you away from what you should be focusing on again, if your objective is to play the best you can where you're at right now.

[00:11:39.010] - Tony Roig
So knowing where you're at, I think, is super valuable. And, and keeping that focused on. On your. Or keeping that in this. In the center right of your, of your thinking when you're looking at all this information coming your way about what you should be doing with your play.

[00:11:56.820] - Tony Roig
And then the other thing I think that's really important here is, you know, we get. I think we get. Sometimes we start thinking that, like, if. If I say to you, you need these to play 3. 5, and let's assume right now you're a 4.

[00:12:12.600] - Tony Roig
0, you're tuning me out. You're like, I don't need that, right? He said three. Five. So that's not for me.

[00:12:18.050] - Tony Roig
Or let's take it another step back, right? You're playing 3. 5, and I tell you, these are. Must have shots for 3.0. All right?

[00:12:24.850] - Tony Roig
You're like, yeah, that's not for me. That's for 3.0. Here's the mistake there. To play 4.0, you need the 3.5 shots and you need a 3.0 shots, and you need the 2.5 shots to play 3.5. You need the 3.5 shots, the 3.0 shots, and the 2.5 shots.

[00:12:44.230] - Tony Roig
Because pickleball, as I would submit to you, most everything in life, it's cumulative, right? It's. You're building one layer on another on another. You can't skip over what a 2.5 needs and then just say, okay, I'm going to add these shots as a 3.5, and I'll be an awesome 3.5. That's just not how the world works.

[00:13:06.650] - Tony Roig
Excuse me. You need to build. You need to have the prior skills in order to add the new skills, okay? So when you hear something like these are shots that a 3, 0 must have and you're a 3.5, I would suggest, you know, from a source like us, who I believe is a reputable coaching source, I would suggest taking a moment and checking yourself, all right, Do I have those shots? Am I competent and proficient in those shots?

[00:13:34.460] - Tony Roig
And if I'm not, maybe I take a moment and I. I get those shots. Because now might be those shots that you need to keep advancing. Those may be the shots that are holding you back. See what I'm saying? So, like, you know, the shot from before, you didn't develop it, and that's fine, right?

[00:13:51.580] - Tony Roig
No big deal. You don't have it. You have these other shots and you kind of piece these pieces together. You know, let's just complete the picture. So you need four things to become a 4, 0, just to use numbers, right?

[00:14:04.470] - Tony Roig
And you have developed three of the four. And so you're playing this 3, 5 level, which is fine, right? You're playing 3, 5 level with three things, but the one that you're missing is actually a 2, 5 skill that you just never really fully developed. And so you're being held back from your advancement by a skill that is in quote, unquote, in theory, behind you. But is it really behind you?

[00:14:29.780] - Tony Roig
And I would submit no because of the layering. So the two concepts are one, here's where I'm at. And again, it's fine. Wherever you're at, you're at. So these are the things that I need if I want to, in fact, advance.

[00:14:41.700] - Tony Roig
And if I don't have the things behind me, I need those as well if I want to advance. So those are. Those are, I think, helpful concepts when you're trying to improve as a player in order to be efficient about your improvement and also to do the things that are actually going to help you. Right. As opposed to being distracted by things that likely will not.

[00:15:02.620] - Tony Roig
All right, so that's the main message today. Let me dive straight into the riff. So what happened in the Wimbledon final was you had the American player who made it to the finals of Wimbledon and it was super exciting for her. She had taken a break. She had been dealing with some mental issues and things like that.

[00:15:26.970] - Tony Roig
And so, you know, and had, I think she had taken either a 7 month or 17 month break from tennis, had come back after the break, and then had basically made it through, through the Wimbledon championship in good form. You know, in the quarterfinals she was able to defeat the, the number one player in the world, the Arena Sabalenka, in three sets. It was super exciting, super exciting match. It was just a tremendous, tremendous effort by her. And so she comes out of that super exhausted, I'm confident, in the, in the semifinals.

[00:16:16.500] - Tony Roig
And then she has to go into the finals and she's, she's facing top player, former champion of multiple Grand Slams, IGA Zweintek, I think it's pronounced. And so, you know, it's just a, it doesn't go well. Okay. She loses 606 0. Anisimova loses 6,060 in the finals and it's a big deal.

[00:16:46.560] - Tony Roig
Right? Right. Because she lost 606 0. Right. Didn't score, didn't, didn't complete a game against Vitek.

[00:16:53.020] - Tony Roig
So the question I asked myself is, you know, you have a choice. I'm going to give you a choice. You can win the semifinals in three sets against the number one player in the world knowing, let me clear about this. Knowing that you're going to make it to the finals and lose 6060, or you can lose the semifinal in three tough sets and be lauded for being a great warrior and not have to deal with the loss in the finals. What do you pick?

[00:17:27.010] - Tony Roig
Winning in the semifinals and getting trounced right. In the finals, or losing the semifinals and saving yourself the quote, unquote embarrassment of the loss in the finals?

[00:17:38.450] - Tony Roig
I would submit that you're the better answer. The complete, the fuller answer is why don't you win the semifinal and then accept whatever happens in the finals in terms of even a 6060 loss? I think that is the better approach as opposed to, oh my God, I don't want to lose 6060 in the final. So I will surrender the win in the semifinal to avoid myself the embarrassment of losing in the final. I think you'll have a more, more a stronger and more complete relationship with the sport and your ability to compete in the sport with the understanding that there are times that you're going to go out there and you're going to get pickled, you're going to lose.

[00:18:27.240] - Tony Roig
11 0, okay? Because you're putting, every time you go out to play at level, you're putting yourself at risk, if you will, right? Meaning you're, you're putting some skin in the game and the possibility is there that you will lose. 11 0. I've lost matches 11 0, 110 in my past, you know, in tournaments against pro players when all the, everything was mixed together.

[00:18:49.030] - Tony Roig
Seniors and young players were all like jammed together, you know, and I've gone out there and I've competed the best I can, you know, but it happens. And if you're not willing to put yourself out there like that, you don't have those, those growth moments. You don't have those experiences, those abilities. And the other thing is this, right? You don't have the chance of potentially even winning that game.

[00:19:13.640] - Tony Roig
Right. Anisa Mobile lost 6 060, but she was in the game. She made it to the game. And you know, I think the hand ringing afterwards with the 6060 is kind of silly, frankly, given her accomplishment of taking care of herself first with the mental health break that she took coming back and making it to the finals of Wimbledon. Second place at Wimbledon is pretty darn good.

[00:19:47.650] - Tony Roig
Instead, a lot of the focus at the end, because that's how we live in society these days, is, oh my God, 6060. Oh, Lordy, 6060. And that's again, that's an unfortunate societal, societal fault, not a fault of Anisimova for sure. And, you know, I think she handled it well afterwards, you know, the way she approached it. And you know, it just, it happened and you know, it is what it is.

[00:20:14.850] - Tony Roig
But I think, you know, for us here, let's think about that for ourselves in terms of our willingness to put ourselves on the line, put ourselves out there. There are times that we are going to have losses that we are not going to be happy about. And that's just part of the deal about playing any sport, including this beautiful sport of pickleball. So that's this week's podcast. I hope you enjoyed the podcast.

[00:20:36.040] - Tony Roig
If you did consider rating and reviewing it, even if you didn't rate and review it. Right. Share with everybody what you think about the podcast. It helps us reach other players. They can make an informed decision about whether this podcast will help them out.

[00:20:47.080] - Tony Roig
And as always, if this podcast resonated with you in some way, particularly if you have a friend of yours who is floundering out there chasing tip after tip after tip every week and frustrate it. Share this podcast with them and maybe it'll help focus them and center them on where they're at in their journey and what they need to actually make improvement in their play. I hope you have a great week and I will see you next time on the next episode of Pickleball Therapy. Be well.