Show Notes
Episode 305: Ridiculously Optimistic
The clip I open this one with a message from a content creator who goes by Writer's Cramp. The theme: be ridiculously optimistic about your future, aim higher than seems reasonable, and do not let other people talk you out of what you want. Worth the ninety seconds. These messages always strike me the same way. You hear them and think, well, yes, obviously. So then ask yourself the real question. Why wouldn't you live that way?
What you actually control Let's be clear about the limits. You cannot control how a game turns out. You cannot directly control how the other players behave, though you have more indirect influence there than you might think, mostly through how you carry yourself. What you control completely is how you choose to interact with the events that happen to you. On the court and off it. That is not a consolation prize. That is the piece that determines your experience.
On being scared There was a line in the clip about being scared being part of being alive. That one applies directly to improvement. I think of the mental side of pickleball in three parts. Perspective, which is what Pickleball Therapy: The Book covers. Play, which is the next book. And improvement, which is the third, because improving carries its own mental weight. Improvement is scary. You are leaving the thing you already do well and moving toward something you do not do well yet. That is uncomfortable by design. It is also when you feel most alive, because that is when you are growing.
The story: let's just get four Last week I was playing in an eight-player group. My friend David and I partnered up for the last game against Jeff and Patrick, two good players. David had not had a great session. Before we started I told him: let's just get four points. He looked at me. Four? I was not being serious about the ceiling. But watch what it does. We score one, and we are a quarter of the way there. We score two, halfway. We get stuck at three for a while, three quarters. Then we hit four. And now think about it functionally. I have to get to four anyway. Nobody counts to eleven without passing four first. So the target was never a lowered bar. It was a real checkpoint on the way to the same destination. Once we got there I told him, let's go for six. We got six. Then we pushed it again. We won the game.
Why it works Pressure comes from measuring yourself against something you do not control. The final score is not yours to control. A checkpoint on the way there is. And here is the part that makes it hold up: if we had lost that game 11-4, I still get to turn to David and say, I told you we were getting four. The metric survives the loss.
The other version: time I talked a few weeks back about using time the same way. Same group, playing with Jeff, and our opponents Tyson and Scott could not miss. All credit to them, they were out of their minds. We were down 8-2 and the clock read something-25. I told Jeff, let's get to 30. On the clock, not the scoreboard. We got to 31 and I put my hands up. Victory. We lost that game. We won on our metric.
If you come up with your own If you find a version of this that works for you, I want to hear it. Drop it in the comments, post it in the TRP Community under the podcast, or email me. Fair warning that my response time depends on what else is going on, but the address is open.
In the riff
Camp schedule is live The 2026 and early 2027 camps are posted. You have been asking, so go take a look. One principle that matters to us: if you look at a camp and the number does not work for you right now, email us and tell us what is doable. To be clear about what that is and is not. It is not a discount program. The value is there at the stated price. The signature camp includes the online course, pre-camp experiences, and the community, so there is a whole structure around the two days. What it is: a way for cost not to be the reason you don't get coached. We don't ask foll
More from Pickleball Therapy
This is a bookmark episode. Save it. Come back to it before you play. Coach Tony shares three questions that came out of TRP's camp development process. Each one has a different job. Question 1: Today I'm going to the courts to... Exercise, friends, competition, or just seeing how well you can hit a shot. Naming your reason sets the standard for the day. Wins, losses, and the trickler that cost you a game become noise. Question 2: Today I'm going to make an extra effort to... This is additive gratitude. Warm up before you play. Ask a friend how they're doing. Invite someone new onto your court. Point out something good. The key is to decide before you arrive, because once the ball starts flying, all bets are off. Question 3: Today I'm going to focus on... Pick one area. Let everything else be what it is. Tony walks through the order of priority used in TRP coaching, and explains why focusing on one thing gives your brain the bandwidth it needs. In this episode: - Why this is a bookmark episode - A Sorry NOT Sorry update from open play - Framing your day - Additive gratitude - Choosing one focus area - The coaching order of priority: return of serve, fourth shot, serve, footwork, court positioning - Why the third shot drop comes later - Bandwidth and the one-thing rule The three questions in writing: https://www.tonyroigpickleball.com/blog/three-questions-pickleball-mental-game Camps, coaching, and free resources: https://tonyroigpickleball.com
In Mailbag Episode #2, Coach Tony answers your questions from the TRP community. Should you keep blocking the banger's hard shots, or let them go? Why does the shake and bake keep beating your team? And if you serve or return from the wrong side in a stack, is it a fault? As always, Tony gets into the why. Why most hard balls at net height and below are headed out. Why fake outs stop working once you have a book on a player. Why a deeper return takes the air out of an aggressive driver. Why you face the ball, not the net. Have a question for the next mailbag? Post it in the free TRP community: https://www.tonyroigpickleball.com/products/communities/v2/ypc/home If you haven't signed up for the Community, you can do so here. https://www.tonyroigpickleball.com/offers/s2u4oi6n/checkout Strategies for 50+ Play (free course that includes the vision training exercises Coach Tony referenced in the episode): https://www.tonyroigpickleball.com/offers/hvYMUFR8/checkout The Shots That Matter (free course): https://www.tonyroigpickleball.com/offers/zMK4VHNQ/checkout TRP shirts and merch: tonyroigpickleball.myspreadshop.com #pickleball #pickleballtips #pickleballtherapy —————————————————————— Coach Tony Roig helps players understand the game instead of just collecting tips: strategy, the mental game, and the decisions that decide pickleball rallies. 🌐 Website: tonyroigpickleball.com We recommend Pickleball Central for your pickleball needs. Using our affiliate link at https://pickleballcentral.com/tonyroig helps fund content like this. Customers will get up to a 10% discount. Discounts may vary by product, and some exclusions apply. We earn a commission on purchases. 🛒 Tony's Amazon storefront — books, training tools, and gear Tony uses: https://www.amazon.com/shop/tonyroigpickleballformerlyin2pickle?ccs_id=77992b29-49a7-48a5-a01b-9035a0cc01a2 As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Contact: [email protected] Connect Instagram: @bestpickleballcoach Facebook: @tonyroigpickleball TikTok: bestpickleballcoach
We all play the same game. Ben Johns, Anna Leigh Waters, the best player at your facility, and you. This week, Coach Tony explains why every player's game shares the same blueprint. He calls it the PickleWall. The bottom row of the wall is the same for everyone: serve, return of serve, block volley, punch volley. Pros don't skip the return. Beginners don't skip the serve. What separates levels is execution, and sometimes a missing block. The order matters. You can't set block 10 until the blocks underneath can hold its weight. Tony explains how to choose the block that gives you the most return for your time, and why the first block works like a gym for every shot that comes after it. In the riff, Tony turns to who sits at the center of your improvement. It should be you. Not the algorithm, not the trend at your courts, not the tip a friend just heard. Every tool should orbit you. In this episode: - Why the pros play the same game you do - The PickleWall - Finding your missing block - Priority and precedence: what comes first - Why chasing random tips leaves holes - Your Pickleball Coach and pay what you can - You at the center of your journey - The two-handed backhand black hole Your Pickleball Coach: https://yourpickleball.coach Camps, coaching, and free resources: https://tonyroigpickleball.com
What if it works out? Coach Kyleen joins Coach Tony this week to share a video from TikTok Mima. Her message is simple. We spend plenty of time imagining how things could go wrong. Give the other possibility a little attention. Tony and Kyleen tie it to pickleball. Many players decide it won't work before they even try. They tell themselves a story before they leave the house. Kyleen shares the question she now asks instead: what's the best that could happen? Tony explains why "don't miss" can backfire, and the two talk about a gold medal match where one player missed every serve and her team still won. In the riff, Tony talks about 50+ coaching. Same game, same rules. But lived experience matters. Tony shares how he stays competitive against younger players with smarter play and better court positioning. In this episode: - TikTok Mima: What if it works out? - The stories we tell ourselves before we play - What's the best that could happen? - Why "don't miss" works against you - Every serve missed, gold medal won - Pickleball is messy - Why 50+ coaching matters - Smarter play and court positioning Join us on October 15, 2026, for the live Stacking Lab. Sign up here - https://www.tonyroigpickleball.com/offers/ofCAzfB3/checkout Learn more about Your Pickleball Coach, the most comprehensive online pickleball coaching. Visit YourPickleball.coach Interested in a Tony Roig Pickleball Camp experience? Check out https://www.tonyroigpickleball.com/camps
How deep does your pickleball knowledge go? This week, Coach Tony Roig looks at the difference between Google knowledge and real knowledge. Google knowledge is surface-level. Real knowledge means understanding the why, so you can see how the pieces of the game fit together. Tony uses the forehand in the middle vs. Respect the X debate to show what that difference looks like on the court. In the riff, Tony takes on information overload. Too many voices, so you can't hear any of them. He explains how to be more discerning about what you let in, and why trusting one source for now helps you build the knowledge to decide for yourself later. In this episode: - What Google knowledge is, and why it often comes up short - Forehand in the middle vs. Respect the X - Why it's always about the why - The cost of letting everything in - A Twilight Zone lesson in being discerning - Long term: move toward real knowledge - Short term: find a source you trust - This week's challenge: cut one input Read "The Myth of Forehand in the Middle": https://www.tonyroigpickleball.com/blog/pickleball-myth-forehand-in-the-middle Free mini-courses, blogs, and other training opportunities: Click here to view the episode transcript.