Angry residents: Would you pay MORE taxes to build pickleball courts? 🧐

Good day, picklers.

Here’s what’s on the docket today:

• Pickle Talk: #1 Collin Johns is back…for now 🧐

• Hot Topic: Let’s get RICH in India & play some pickleball

• Bite-sized: Higher Taxes for Pickleball? Hell, NO!

PICKLE TALK

#1 Collin Johns is back…for now 🧐

Did you watch, did you watch? 👀 This past week at the Atlanta Slam, Ben Johns and his controversial brother Collin Johns took to the stage to see if, for the first time in 5 months, they could perform well as a duo and win gold in a Men’s Double tournament.

Most of the blame has been put on Collin Johns, in case you missed that point from the media.

To catch you up, Collin Johns has been some what of a major hot topic this past year as he has not performed so well on the court this year, leading to major losses for him and his brother. Need the proof? Just pull up any of their pro men’s double games and you can see his game is quite different than what he showed off the past game at the Atlanta Slam.

What’s been probably even more taxing on the brother’s partnership is the parade of social media and peer opinions, discussing behind the scenes whether or not Ben Johns finally cuts the cord with Collin. The speculation is that Collins has not been happy with how PPA and the pro circuit has been running the game after an alleged leaked email was released online. The reactions were mixed and Collin had to deal with the backlash.

To be frank, anyone would be mentally put off by this kind of pressure and chaos. But could these reasons be the reason why his game has been so off this year? Only God knows. We can only observe the optics.

So back to the game, what went different this time, from an observer’s perspective?

Here’s the game, in case you were curious:

In the end, the winning scores were 11-4, 11-0, 6-11, 11-4.

Ben Johns was, as usual, aggressive and strategic in his play. Not much change there. Collin Johns on the other hand noticeably increased his speedups and his aggressiveness. His reaction time was quick and it looks like he was predicting the balls ahead of time and landing his hits more accurately this time around.

For that, Collin Johns. Good for you.

But the big question is: is this a new Collin Johns who’s learned from his mistakes or will he roll back into his lazy ways of playing? Time will tell, but as a viewer, it was a great game to watch. A lot of pressure was on his shoulder to finally pull one out of the gate.

The verdict still stands though: Collin Johns has a lot of work to do and should not relax even one bit. The proof was in the pudding, but if he can’t be consistent in the near future and beyond, I STILL say Ben Johns should reconsider his double partner.

It’s nothing personal. It’s just pickleball business, Collin.

SOCIAL HOT TOPIC

Let’s get RICH in India & play some pickleball 💵

Hop off the plane at … India? 🇮🇳

2024 was a great year for pro pickleball in United Stated, but 2025 is the official year of international pickleball HYPE. First up to bat, the Pickleball World Rankings announced on Instagram it’s full 2025 schedule along with the formation of the PWR DUPR Indian League, set to launch in January of 2025.

The prize pool currently stand at $540,000. 😳

The Indian League will be held from January 5-January 25 in the beautiful city of Mumbai.

Here’s the breakdown:

🥇 Team: $180,000 (Each player to receive $45,000)
🥈 Team: $120,000 (Each player to receive $30,000)
Other Teams: $60,000 (Each player to receive $15,000)

Therefor, there will be a guaranteed appearance fee of $15,000 for every player selected for the league.

Andre Agassi will be kicking off as an added sparkle to the event!

🔑 60 players will be selected and placed in a draft pool, with 2 men and 2 women on each team. Players who are interested much submit an Expression of Interest Form by October, 10th 2024.


Want to see what else is going on overseas this coming year? Lucky for you, PWR also released their 2025 calendar in full. 👇🏾

Here’s a break down for ya, thanks to The Dink:

PWR World Series

The highest tier of competition:

• Feb 2025 – PWR World Series – Dubai, UAE – Purse: $1.5 million

• May 2025 – PWR World Series – Madrid, Spain – Purse: $1 million

• Jul 2025 – PWR World Series – Las Vegas, USA – Purse: $1 million

PWR World Tour

The next level:

• Dec 2024 – Hengqin, China – Purse: $50,000

• Dec 2024 – Vietnam – Purse: $50,000

• Feb 2025 – Tsu, Japan – Purse: $25,000

PWR DUPR Indian Tour

The Indian Tour will have 6 stops:

• Oct 2024 – India Masters – New Delhi, India – Purse: $50,000

• Mar 2025 – Tour Stop 1 – Ahmedabad, India – Purse: $50,000

• Jun 2025 – Tour Stop 2 – Pune, India – Purse: $50,000

• Aug 2025 – Tour Stop 3 – Bangalore, India – Purse: $50,000

• Sep 2025 – Tour Stop 4 – Hyderabad, India – Purse: $50,000

• Oct 2025 – Tour Stop 5 – Delhi, India – Purse: $50,000

• Nov 2025 – Tour Stop 6 – Chennai, India – Purse: $50,000
  
  

  

BITE-SIZED PICKLE

Higher Taxes for Pickleball? Hell, NO!


This situation is wild. (or maybe you are for it?)

Government officials in Gilbert, Arizona, are trying to justify tax hikes for projects like pickleball courts and splash pads—under the guise of "critical infrastructure". Oop. Not a good look for us pickleball players, huh?

The argument against it is that these aren’t necessarily critical fixes. They aren’t highways or schools; they’re recreational facilities. And to add insult to injury to those opposed to it, the taxes would hit the very people they serve the hardest: local residents and small businesses. 🥺

According to the opposers, these proposed taxes blatantly violate the Arizona Constitution, which clearly prohibits new taxes on services. So, not only are they trying to slip in unnecessary taxes, but they're also doing so illegally.

Interestingly enough, this isn't an isolated incident—this is part of a larger trend of municipal governments overreaching and trampling on individual rights. Encouraging citizens to snitch on their neighbors for messy backyards is a ridiculous overreach, reminiscent of a dystopian surveillance state. It’s almost comical if it weren’t so real. And then there’s the town’s attempt to bypass democratic processes and accountability, as seen in other Arizona cities.

What are your thoughts? 🤨