Bad Calls - Pickleball Podcast

Are We Ruining Singles Pickleball?

Are we actually fixing singles pickleball… or making it worse? This week on... Tennis Sucks? ...we dig into one of the most controversial ideas in pro pickleball right now: shrinking the singles court. Is it a smart way to slow the game down or just a band-aid for bigger equipment and rule issues? We’re joined by pickleball stat wizard Eric Tice to break down: - Why singles has become so serve-plus-one heavy - Whether smaller courts help (or hurt) athleticism - The real problem no one wants to address - How these changes could impact the pro game long-term Plus, we get into MLP 2026, including: - Draft strategy and roster flexibility - Whether Challenger should even exist anymore - Why Sundays might finally become must-watch - And how team pickleball keeps pulling fans in Plenty of opinions. A few hot takes. And probably a couple bad calls. 👇 Drop your take in the comments — is singles broken, or are we overthinking it?

Paddle Deals, Leaks, and Bad Predictions for 2026

From leaked paddle deals and surprise signings to retirements, fines, and bold 2026 predictions, we break down everything shaking up the pro game. We talk Franklin’s big move, Nike rumors, who might leave the tour, why ball tech could be the next battleground, and what Major League Pickleball’s growth really means. Plus: live courtside chaos, bad predictions from the internet, and at least one take we already regret.

Pickleball Contracts Are Cracking and Lawsuits are Building

Contracts get torn up, players wake up banned, and the pickleball world spirals. On this episode of Bad Calls, the crew breaks down the UPA contract controversy stemming from the Asia trip fallout, why some players were terminated while others weren’t, and what it all says about power, money, and control in pro pickleball. From paddle patent lawsuits and counterfeit gear to Daytona results, rising Asian talent, and why the next five years of the sport may look nothing like today—this one covers everything, with exactly zero chill.

Bad Calls, Speculation, and Sinister Sideline Drama

The guys break down MLP’s new partnership with Owl AI for automated line calling, recap all the chaos from the Lakeland PPA, including a parent delivering a wildly inappropriate threat, and dive into the biggest partnerships and rumors shaping 2026, from Rachel Rohrabacher joining forces with Catherine Parenteau to Nike whispers and Challenger Series shakeups. Plus: a pickleball Christmas movie, Crescent Lake grievances, and the usual Bad Calls speculation that somehow spirals into quarterback talk.

The Johnsons Show Up Unannounced… and Get Humbled

The Johnson brothers rolled into Crescent Lake without a text… and immediately got the full Monday-night reality check. We also hit Worlds storylines, Chris Crouch’s breakout run, paddle-tech rumors (including the big one about Anna Leigh), wheelchair pickleball savants, and who’s really the best singles player in the world right now. Another chaotic one.