Thursday, September 10, 2026 (Court Day #964)

I walked into the courts at 6:45 p.m. Fortunately, it wasn’t nearly as hot as it was yesterday. The heat climbed up over 100°F and it was surprisingly warm overnight. It was 75°F as I made my way through the Skypark neighborhood. I was tired, but not as exhausted as I had been on Tuesday night.

There were no games tonight for me with all strong players.

In my last game, I chose to play with Linda (who is a 3.0 player) against Jesse—the guy who has become a regular at Skypark—and Shane. Shane is a 4.0 player now. I was hitting shots to him tonight that I was not expecting to come back, but they would. I needed to change my mindset. In rec play, I always prefer to play against the two strongest players, since that is the most challenge. I would put Jesse as a low 3.5 player.

Linda and I were in the middle of our second game against Shane and Jesse when the lights clicked off. We lost the first game by a wide margin and we were in the process of losing the second game as well. It’s not a surprise.

In a previous recent outing when I played against Shane, he told me afterward that he knew whenever he played against me he needed to bring his “A game”.

It was still a hot and muggy 72° as I headed home shortly after 8 p.m.

Friday, September 11, 2026 (No Play)

Indoor pickleball facilities are up for sale and prices are dropping:
https://www.instagram.com/p/DdJ0T96GcE_
“Over the past 10 weeks, nine facilities listed for sale cut their asking prices, with the typical reduction coming in at 39%. One Florida club dropped from $1.5 million to $600,000.”

What Do You Say to Your Partner?

This short video about partner support sparks a conversation:
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DdFq09opuyQ/
I was thinking about this last night. My partner was making more than our share of errors given that she is a newer player, or at least, she plays like a newer player. She was already a little uncomfortable playing with our group as the weakest player. I gave her no tips and never said anything negative. Before the game started, I turned to her and said with a smile, “There are no ‘sorries’ in pickleball”. When she made an error, I would either say nothing or offer some little bit of encouragement and sometimes that encouragement would come with the form of me praising our opponents with something like, “great serve” or “nice shot!” With the idea of being that my partner could lay less blame on herself.

I’ve shared this before, but I have always played worse when I get criticism directed at me during a game. A tip here are there is totally fine, but outright criticism or negative comment often damages my mindset and my performance.

Pickleball Business for Sale

Last month I talked about a pickleball business that was for sale on Long Island, New York. As far as I can tell, the asking price has been cut in half.
http://eastcoastbusinessbrokers.com/properties/turnkey-pickleball-facility-absentee-owned-new-buildout-900k-gross

Saturday, September 12, 2026 (No Play)

A record number of countries participated in Pickleball World Cup 2026 in Da Nang, Vietnam. It brought together athletes representing 65 countries and territories.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DdAuWQxEXmB/

Number of days on a court: 964
Number of total hours: 3,538
Number of paid coaching hours: 231.5

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