Two(ey) is Better Than One

Twoey Nation,

Wow, the outpouring of love and support has been unreal. Thank you to everyone who continues to follow along with my pickleball career. It has been amazing to connect with so many of you and I'm grateful I can continue to inspire those around me. No dream is too big.

Going into Kansas looked a little different for me. We were out here for the MLP and I was able to spend a lot of time with my team, the Utah Black Diamonds, and play on the courts. Even though the weather was very different from MLP to PPA, I think spending extra time in the area to acclimate always helps. Also, I won't lie, being with my 2 PPA partners on the same MLP team gave us lots of reps, and in those dreambreakers I was happy with my singles play. Even on singles day at PPA, Ty and Alix both were out there supporting and watching matches and they're great friends for doing that. Looking forward to more tournaments with them, both in PPA and MLP and hopefully more medals across the board for all the Utah Black Diamond players, Callie included.

As far as tournament prep goes, I feel like I've been doing a lot more off the court and in between tournaments which has helped a lot with confidence in the game. Coming into pickleball, there are things you can control and things you can't. You can't control natural talent and you can't change the length of time you've played the game. You can control the amount of time you put in moving forward and the effort you give during that time. I know I've previously mentioned meditation and journaling as ways of mentally preparing, but now I've made more steps to make sure I'm adding to my physical preparedness. I'm spending more time in the gym. I think when I walk onto a singles court I can know that not only do I have talent and experience at this point, but also no one is going to outwork me, on or off the court. For me that has been a game changer.

I said it in my interview, but playing Tyson in that final I had one goal, and that was to play the game my way. As long as I was making the shot selection I wanted and was manipulating the game into the patterns I wanted to create, I was going to be happy regardless of the outcome. I think the Golden Pickle game one was a direct result of putting the time in off the court, feeling confident, having a healthy respect for the talent of my opponent, and a complete focus on my game plan.

After winning gold in Kansas, it felt like a breath of fresh air. In PPA, the number of players with 1 gold medal is small, but the number of players with 2 gold medals is smaller. I know I can bring home more golds, but I think it sent a message to everyone that I can win more golds and that I'm not going anywhere. The first gold medal was so emotional, like I finally had proved myself. This gold medal felt calm, like a knowing of sorts. Obviously still very exciting, just in a different way. Just know, you'll see me on more podiums this year. Tyler and I have a silver but we are looking for gold as well. With the work we are putting in, I can't see why it won't happen.

On my newsletter, I try to give more in depth insights and personal views. For more frequent updates and to follow along daily, check out my instagram here.

Thanks again for the support. The cheers, laughs and tears with you all along the way are what make pickleball so great. Hope to see you all at a tourney, camp, or out and about soon.