Episode 18 | By the Book! Transcript

Morgan:  Today’s guests are a couple of blokes that are on a tear. Tyson McGuffin and Riley Newman. Team NewGuffin as they’re known, has set the Pickleball world on fire with wins in Hawaii, Newport and Georgia, propelling them to the top of the charts in the PPA Rankings. We’re going to talk about their style, their strategy, their paddles and their opponents. We are also going to introduce a new segment called “What makes them great?” It’s going to highlight an aspect of their game that can help you at home take your game to the next level. So sit back and enjoy some time with Tyson and Riley.

 

Team NewGuffin [0:57]

Morgan:  Gentlemen, how are you doing?

Tyson:  What’s going on, my man?

Morgan:  No mucho. Everything is fine and dandy as well as to be expected in this day and age. Looks like you two are doing swimmingly. You’re coming off some fantastic wins. You took the gold at the Newport Showcase and then the Georgia Open. How’s the feeling?

Tyson:  It’s feeling pretty good, getting gold every now and then. It’s not too shabby, I’m not going to lie. I kind of spent my last couple of years just drowning in silver all due to Ben Johns, not because of you at all.

Morgan:  Hey come on! I was your silver wingman, buddy. We were Silver Surfers, come on! We were so good at Silver.

Tyson:  Yeah, I know right. But no, life’s good. I’m actually here in Vegas. Just got done playing the Vegas Open, sitting here with lovely Meg and our little newborn.

Morgan:  Yeah. How’s Banks?

Riley:  She’s going great. She’s four weeks, living the dream.

Morgan:  I noticed she doesn’t have her own social media profile yet.

Tyson:  It’s coming very soon.

Morgan:  When is that going to get going? Jeez.

Tyson:  Probably like two weeks out.

Morgan:  I’m surprised she’s not teaching camps.

Tyson:  She’s going to be teaching camps at the end of the month, by the way.

Morgan:  Oh good stuff, good stuff. Riley, you and I are going to be teaching a camp. I’ve signed up to help out with a Level Up Camp. Apparently, you’re coming to my part of the world.

Riley:  Is that true? Well, this is news to me.

Morgan:  Well, now you know.

Riley:  But now I know and now we’re going to kick Tyson and Banks’ career out of water.

Tyson:  Yeah, yeah right.

Riley:  They wouldn’t be possible without Morgan and I are just going to kick them in the curb, so that would be pretty good.

Morgan:  Yes, putting a baby into unemployment, morally, I can do it, that’s fine.

Riley:  No, everything is good. Like Tyson mentioned, coming off with a lot of confidence with the last two gold victories. We feel like we’re starting to play our best Pickleball. It took a couple of months to get there but now we kind of know what each other likes to do on the court. We’re kind of finding the best opportunities to be successful, and so far we’re playing pretty well.

Morgan:  So you guys look like you’re stacking, keeping Tyson on right, you on the left there, Riley. Tell me, what was the main thinking behind that decision?

Riley:  Honestly, I think it was a pretty simple solution. I think Tyson’s probably known for having the best forehand dink in the game. And then also my backhand is not too shabby with the little two hands. So it really just fits both of our strengths. Keeps me kind of getting some of those balls in the middle of my forehand, to be aggressive and poach, and right now it’s working out to be a good partnership.

Morgan:  Seems to be.

Tyson:  Yeah, I think early on, we were kind of playing straight up and still trying to figure some stuff out. And just like what Ri said, I think our best recipe is me being on the right, me kind of doing most of the heavy-duty lifting with probably seeing a good majority of the balls, if you know what I mean. But yeah, I think it works out well with me kind of taking control from the baseline, me taking most of the third and letting Ri disconnect, let him cause havoc up there and poach away, and be super offensive. I think he’s probably one of the few guys that does a very good job of disconnecting and just making a mess out there. I think he’s one of the few guys that has the quickest first step in that poaching scenario, so he’s able to kind of get in there and get his hands dirty, get some free points for us.

Morgan:  For sure.

Tyson:  And then from the kitchen line, I think it’s trying to set Ri up, trying to put Ri in a position where he can use those hands and get him some exchanges. So I’d like the idea of me kind of staying on the right and looking to speed up middle or speed up cross and then keep that hand speed battle in front of Ri.

Morgan:  Seems like a winning formula. I remember when I had a run with Marcin Rozpedski, the Polish Monster, it was a similar kind of feeling, like it was better off me driving the third and letting Marcin disconnect and use his wingspan to go and do some damage. Get the old shake and bake.

Tyson:  Yeah, for sure. Get the old shake and bake going. I mean there is still to this day, there is so much value and I think we’d probably win let’s say 10% to 15% of our points just with that shake and bake play, with Ri getting up there and making a presence and using that big frame. It’s tough when you’re hitting a fourth ball and not to be looking at things you don’t have control of when your opponent’s up and moving and trying to poach, you know?

Morgan:  Oh for sure. It’s a nightmare for a fourth ball player to be seeing someone with that kind of wingspan coming in.

Tyson:  Yeah, it’s tough.

Morgan:  Like where do we hit it? How can hit this softly enough to not get in real trouble? So well done, Riley. Good job, bud. Way to be tall and range-y.

Riley:  That’s right. I got to use my 6 foot 3 inches frame and put it to use. I might be a little on the scrawny side but I still feel like I can get enough pop with that new Selkirk Mach-6 paddle which would be coming out very soon, I will plug in there.

Morgan:  Oh yeah!

Tyson:  Scrawny but very handsome. Very handsome.

Riley:  (chuckles…) So I think obviously everyone knows Tyson’s forehand from the baseline is just super lethal, heavy, powerful, usually stays low off the net, so then that just puts me in a position where I could be super aggressive. And if I see that drive coming off hot, I can be coming in looking to do some damage. So I think it just works for both of us.

Morgan:  Yeah, 60% of the time that forehand goes in every time.

Tyson:  Every time, baby! (laughs…)

Morgan:  Every time, baby!

Riley:  You know it!

Morgan:  It’s true, Riley. You remind me a lot of a younger me except taller, sort of better looking, more talented, younger, and with a two-handed backhand dink. Other than that, very similar.

Riley:  With just an uglier voice. I mean I wish I had the Aussie accent.

Tyson:  Yeah, right.

Riley:  But one can only dream.

Morgan:  I can teach you that actually. I’ve been pulling off this Aussie accent thing for a while. I’m actually from Alabama.

Riley:  Alabama.

Morgan:  Alabama! (chuckles…) Good stuff.

So now, you both come from a tennis background and as kids, you had some storied battles. What was it like going from knowing each other and having some real heated battles as tennis players to then finally teaming up and taking over the world so to speak?

Tyson:  You what’s kind of funny is that when I brought it up to Ri, 10 years later, I think it was last year right, Ri? It was at Easters when I brought up that match up we played together? I think Ri was like a freshman going into Seattle U. You were like 18 or 19, and I was like 23 or 24. Yeah, it was kind of funny. We were playing a match at the Bellingham Open. We were in the semi-finals. I believe I won the first set and I was up at break at the second. I’m pretty sure I was serving for it.

Anyhow, he ended up breaking back, used that inner grit of his and clawed his way back. Ended up winning the second set. And then third set I’m not going to lie, it got very, very messy and nobody should ever find out about it.

But you know, just two boys with a lot of fire, making some bad line calls and kind of barking at each other, typical stuff like that. But I ended up winning the match, I’m going to claim that. I ended up winning the match in about 3 and ½ hours, but I believe it was 7-6 in the third.

Anyhow, it was just one of those matches where it’s two guys being way too competitive and may have hooked each other. But here we are, 8 or 10 years later and we’re playing doubles together and being very successful. But we have pushed that passed us.

It’s kind of funny, last year I actually brought it up to Ri, and Ri had mentioned that he thought it was a clean match and none of that actually went down. I’m like, “No, no, no!”

Morgan:  I remember that.

Riley:  Tyson’s version of messy is different than my messy. So obviously, I’ve had more of the junior tennis matches where you’re calling in referees and using parents as line judges. So I think Tyson might have acted a little responsibly on the court compared to me because I think this probably happened all the time where I create these feuds. But it was an intense battle. I do remember playing against him, so always tough playing singles against that guy.

Morgan:  I can imagine for you, Riley, that level of competitiveness is just your average Tuesday with all your siblings, right?

Tyson:  Correct.

Riley:  Right, right. So when he says there was a battle and it was messy and it was ugly, I’m just thinking that’s just a normal Friday night.

Tyson:  Dig your teeth in and get after it.

Morgan:  (laughs…) The irony is the aspects of your games that made those exchanges so heated are exactly what’s brought you together. Just how Uber competitive you both are, you are naturally going to end up being on the same team eventually once you gone into Pickleball because I think it’s kind of the law of attraction thing. You both have that fire that works with each other. So it’s good to see that it’s coming out successful.

Tyson:  I feel like the first couple of tournaments we played together – I mean we won a lot of matches just with like a B- game of being super physical, putting a lot of balls in play. But we really hadn’t quite found a lot of offense, just more so playing good defense and just taking people’s gas tanks away. And I think the last couple of tournaments, we’ve kind of been able to produce our best stuff late in the day and find that A game where we’re able to find some different ways to be offensive. We’re not just relying on the one-dimensional idea of playing good defense and just being physical. So I think obviously with more time, hopefully, we can find different ways to keep creating offense and find some more chemistry with each other. But not going to lie, after beating Matt and Ben twice, it’s definitely made me see through a different lens and kind of given me a little added confidence, that’s for sure. And I think not only me as an individual but as a team.

Riley:  To add on that, I’m sure a lot of listeners can appreciate the first few tournaments in a partnership, it might not be the best Pickleball they play, so it could take them three, four, five tournaments to figure out what’s going to be successful as a team, what’s going to really work. And for Tyson and I, it was just that where the first couple of tournaments, it was kind of that feel-out process. Then all of a sudden, once we got more comfortable with each other, we’re starting to find our best level.

Morgan:  Yeah, it started to click. And I think that kind of stems from the benefit that you two have that you decided pre-emptively that you were going to play at least a full year, and I would assume more so going forward. That takes a bit of pressure off a partnership whereby the first few, it’s very normal to have some growing pains and figuring out who goes where and how to get a united sort of strategy. But if you know that you’ve got eight two tournaments coming up in the next six months, it takes so much pressure off to get it right the first time.

Riley:  Yeah, for sure. Give it some time to mold.

Sponsor: CoachMe Pickleball

 

[11:30]

Morgan:  So as former tennis players, I’m sure you remember the many great battles that Federer and Nadal had over the years. And what’s happening right now, it kind of reminds me of that period where Federer – I think it was around 2004 to 2007, he was just absolutely unstoppable, and the world looked at him as infallible. But then Rafael, in 2007, 2008, started to make some changes, and it kind of opened a doorway for a lot of other players to see Federer in a different way as possibly being able to beat him. What’s happening now, I think, very few players have been able to rattle off more than one win against Mr. Johns but you guys have done it. Is there a parallel do you find that’s fair?

Riley:  Yeah, I mean especially I think for me, my first victory against Ben and Kyle was the Las Vegas Open and that in 2019. Ever since then, I think my career record was zero and six against that team, and you finally get over the hump. It’s not only just a huge mental barrier but like a belief that you can win and the pressure points, not just hang in there but actually win in the clutch moments, it does a lot of your confidence. I know after that Vegas victory, I was kind of walking with a little swagger. And so now with Tyson on board, we got them in Hawaii. I think Tyson, what was he? I think 0 and 12 against them and then we got them in Hawaii, so then that confidence just gets raised.

Tyson:  I believe Morgan and I were – maybe over 16, something around that number.

Morgan:  Well… I mean come on, that’s a bit off. I’d go for 10. But then we got them in Hawaii as well, so there you go.

Tyson:  We did, we did, yeah. I’m back-to-back Hawaii Open champ, man.

Riley:  Uhum.

Morgan:  That’s it, that’s amazing. I think you should be obligated to pick someone else next year and see if you can pull of a three-peat.

Tyson:  I think, for me, yeah. Obviously, I’ve been battling Ben for way too long in singles. I just found out that we’ve actually played 38 times in singles and I do not want to know the overall record.

Morgan:  I won’t tell you, don’t worry.

Tyson:  But anytime that I can beat the best player in the world whether it’s in singles, men’s, mixed, it’s a huge accomplishment. He’s just one of those guys where it’s like he’s in people’s heads. So many matches, he walks out there and his opponent is already mentally defeated. He just has such an edge over certain people, so I think when you can produce your best stuff and pull it out and be able to beat the guy, it’s a huge accomplishment. I can’t tell you how many matches he’s done in singles, men’s or mixed where he’s one of the few guys where like late in the day, when the going gets tough, under pressure, the guy never folds. I guess knowing that he had that over select people and being able to beat him in a big moment, that was way too cool.

Morgan:  It’s totally true, but I think it’s something that changes over time, and it takes a team or a player to unveil the curtain of the Wizard of Oz to find out that he’s just a guy.

Tyson:  He’s just a guy. Everybody puts their under on the same way.

Morgan:  Exactly. One leg at a time, baby! Sometimes, they just jump right in, right? It never works out. But yeah, I think once enough people have done it, what has kind of seemed to be an impossible task, then you start to kind of steal confidence away; you get the confidence and you steal if from them. It’s what happens in a lot of sports, and you guys will be riding this wave of confidence and that’s going to help stem some more success. Hopefully, that kind of wave will never end. But right now, he’s back home thinking about what he’s going to do to maintain that edge over so many players. So I’m hoping you guys are brainstorming as well and it’s going to be a great game of chess played out on the Pickleball court.

Tyson:  Yeah, I’m sure he and Matt are brainstorming right this instance.

Morgan:  Yeah, my money is on you guys, there’s no doubt about it. How long is it going to be before there are Vegas bets on this? Have you seen any Vegas odds on Pickleball tournaments?

Tyson:  No, not quite yet.

Morgan:  Someone’s got to start it.

Riley:  Somebody’s going to start it. It’s probably going to be Shane Stokes.

Morgan:  Oh yes, yes, Shane.

Tyson:  It’s going to be Bad Boy Shane from Grand Rapids.

Morgan:  We won’t tell the audience why he’s Bad Boy Share.

Tyson:  We will leave at that.

Morgan:  He knows.

 

By the Book, Baby! [16:00]

Morgan:  Now, I’m curious, you guys have obviously been in some very tough matches. You’ve got to the ends of a lot of tournaments together. Is there anything that helps you mentally? Do you have to ever talk to each other on the mental side of things? Any little tricks that you do for yourself or for your partner that help you deal with those real pressure situations that kind of makes or breaks a gold or silver?

Riley:  Yeah for sure. I think we actually take a lot of pressure off ourselves because it’s a pretty simple recipe. I don’t try to overcommunicate, we don’t overdo any sort of tactical idea or we have a set philosophy with where we’re going to hit the return, where we’re going to drop a drive, and then once we get to the kitchen line, where’s our game from there.

Tyson:  Like a phrase that I always use with Riley, I use the phrase and I say “steel it”, in the end, whether it’s like a tight game or whatever. Just the phrase of saying “steel it” means, “Hey, lock in. Don’t miss a ball. Let’s try to run away with this thing as quickly as we can and be super stingy.”

But yeah, I think late in the day, some of our best stuff really ties into being physical, playing good defense, not giving a lot of stuff away, and then finding some ways to get some free points whether that’s through shake and bake or maybe it’s some easy drives, stuff like that. But we’re pretty locked in with the recipe and we know what’s successful.

Morgan:  Nice. Riley, any thoughts?

Riley:  Yeah, absolutely. I’m thinking another phrased that’s been coined, and I think Tyson started it. It was at Newport Beach, and I think we won a pretty good point. It was along 30, 40 ball, dinking rally and Tyson goes, “By the book, baby!”

Morgan:  By the book.

Riley:  Basically meaning by the book, like Pickleball it’s a pretty simple game when you think about it. Not do anything too crazy or special, just kind of playing smart cross courts and just grinding them out like Tyson mentioned. And by the book, doesn’t have to be special, doesn’t have to be that good, just being consistent. And usually, limiting the unforced errors even at the pro level, is going to win you a ton of matches.

Tyson:  I think I may have got that from somebody.

Morgan:  Maybe. I wasn’t going to say anything.

Riley:  It’s going full circle, huh?

Tyson:  Steel it! By the book!

Morgan:  By the book! We got to get T-shirts made, jeez!

Riley:  We got to get T-shirts made.

Tyson:  (laughs…) By the book.

Morgan:  No, it’s great stuff. I remember when you two had agreed to partner up. I was talking to some people about the new partnership and obviously people were aware that you guys are going to be a great team. But a lot of people were saying, “They’re going to spend their whole lives in transition.” Kind of eluding to the fact that you both are historically incredible defenders. And the idea of who’s going to be the trigger person? Who’s going to do the damage up there? But in watching your play, it looks like you found a great way to obviously no just grind out and defend well and be consistent with thirds and fifths but I don’t want to say baiting people into attacking you but being more of a cognizant, counter-punching side and not afraid to push that envelope.

Tyson:  I definitely think so.

Riley:  I think we’re selective. I think that’s a big thing for us. When we’re trying to take balls off our shoelaces and trying to be ultra-aggressive, that’s not when we’re playing our best Pickleball. It’s when Tyson and I are being selective, we’re attacking on the right shots. And then when our opponents attack, we’re looking to have our hands ready and then apply the pressure that way.

 

What Makes Them Great? [19:21]

Morgan:  Okay, we’re going to pause it there with Tyson and Riley for a new segment called “What Makes Them Great?”

Now, obviously, there are a lot of things that make Tyson and Riley great. But today, I’d like to talk about the most important aspect that can help your game. They both have great patients and that requires fitness. Poor conditioning can make even the most masterful strategist have some dubious shot selections. How hard are you working on your conditioning? When I get to my club in the morning, I see the same thing time and time again. People put their bags down and get on to the court. After a two-minute lounge around the kitchen, they are apparently ready to play. For many, this game is an enjoyable way to stay in shape. If that describes you, then you may indeed be cruising for an injury. Don’t play Pickleball to get fit. Get fit to play Pickleball.

Depending on your level, that means different things. At the highest level, that means high-intensity interval training, player metrics, resistance training, yoga, massage, pre-hydration, glyco-loading, trigger point therapy, heat therapy, cold therapy, aromatherapy. Okay, not aromatherapy, I made that up.

There is a lot that goes into professional preparation. But as they say, if you fail to prepare, you prepare to fail. I’m not suggesting you go through all of that but understand that your physical conditioning is a catalyst that will either allow you or stop you from reaching your potential.

Try this, okay? Just humor me. For two weeks, I want you to do the basics, and in my opinion, that means these four things.

Firstly, when you wake up, hydrate. Water is fine but your favorite electrolyte mix is better. Just not Gatorade, please. Liquid IV or AdvoCare Rehydrate are great. Eat a breakfast that is high in glycogen, that’s essentially energy that will be stored in your muscles for immediate use, so it doesn’t have to draw on protein or fat which takes much longer to convert to energy. Greek Yogurt, fruits, muesli, granola, these things are great – just not bacon and eggs, alright?

Secondly, when you get to the courts, do a dynamic warm-up. Your walk from the car to the kitchen is not dynamic. A couple of gentle laps around the court to start, followed by a couple of more laps doing sidesteps facing towards the court and then away from the court. Transition into a lap of karaoke steps or grapevine steps, some people call it. That’s where your hips swivel to cross your feet over each other. Maybe Google it so you don’t fall over. Keep jogging while you do some butt kicks, really try to lift those heels. Now that you’re really moving, it’s time for some high knees. See if you can get them up to your chest or close enough. Head over to the fence and brace yourself for some leg swings across your body to really open up the hips. A few arm swings, a couple of shoulder rolls and some wrist rolls. Now your body is significantly more prime to take on the game.

Thirdly, instead of jumping into a game, find someone who will help you warm up properly with some basic drills. Dink crosscourt on both sides, trying to move the ball and your partner, and make sure they’re doing the same for you. You don’t get to stand still in a game, so don’t do it in the warmup. Hit some volley to volleys building up the pace as you feel comfortable. Take turns moving back to practice your blocks in the transition area and then all the way back to the baseline to practice some third shot drops. While you’re back there, make sure to get some drives in, you never know when you’ll need them. Work your way up to the kitchen and play out some points against each other at the kitchen line, both crosscourt and heads up. After 10 to 20 minutes of this, you’ll feel it in the legs, so it’s time to hydrate and a little food. Some nuts, raisins, or a banana, those things are great and they’re easily digestible and should fuel you for at least a couple of games. I’ve actually done a video analysis of Tyson and Riley’s warmup routine at a tournament, so feel free to check it out on CoachMePickleball.com.

Step 4 is the easy part – Play. Just play. Enjoy the games with the confidence of someone who has given their body a great chance to excel. Feel how you now move on the court. Get a sense of your timing, the shots you can make, distances you can cover, balance that you can keep. Feel free to break a sweat, go ahead, you’ve earned it.

That’s it, people. It’s not brain surgery. Try it, not just once, not just twice. Commit to doing this kind of routine every day you play for a couple of weeks. Treat yourself like a pro whether you are or not, and who knows, one day you might just reach your potential.

Okay, that’s probably enough preaching for the day. Let’s get back to talk to Tyson and Riley.

 

Back to Tyson and Riley [24:23]

Morgan:  Wow, you’re basically rewriting the history books and luckily now our listeners get some insight as to how you’re doing it.
Gentlemen, thank you so much for your time. I hope to see both of you on the courts soon. Tell me, how can people get in touch with you? What kind of teachings are you doing? Where can people find you? Tyson, what’s the story for you?
Tyson:  Yeah, so the story for me, you can check out all of my coaching services and tournament schedule, all my sponsor, everything about me – check out my website, go to TysonMcGuffin.com. I run my own camp company. I also do virtual lessons. We do voiceovers with game analysis and stuff like that.

Also you can find me on Instagram, @tysonmcguffin. You can find me on Facebook, @tysonmcguffinpickleball, or you can follow Meg and I lovely couples page, @tysonandmeg on Instagram.

Morgan:  Wow, so essentially if you ever just go near any computer, you’re likely to see something Tyson McGuffin-related.

Tyson:  Okay, find it, alright? Find it and go buy a Selkirk Invikta today.

Morgan:  Good stuff. That’s impressive. Riley, that’s a tough act to follow, mate. Do you want to just give out your home address or something?

Riley:  Yeah, I’m glad you asked him first so he could just rattle off for five minutes of that.

Lindsey and I are actually starting our own little teaching Pickleball. It’s called the Newman Nation Experience where we kind of do a weekend teaching, tournament kind of play with everyone included, so that’s super cool. Lindsey and I are also sponsored by Takeya which is a water bottle company based out of Newport Beach. They’re entering into Pickleball, they produce like stainless steel appliances and water bottles so it keeps my drinks cold in this Phoenix desert. I also want to say obviously thank you to Selkirk. They’re the big, number one sponsor for Tyson and I. My Mach-6 paddle which I mentioned earlier coming out in October. It’s going to have a bit of a longer handle for my two-handed backhand.

Morgan:  Beautiful.

Riley:  So yeah, Instagram, Facebook as well, Riley Newman. Feel free to reach out at any time.

Morgan:  Awesome!

Gentlemen, thank you so much for your time. Much appreciated. Keep winning, keep making us proud and we’ll see you soon.

Tyson:  Thanks, Morgan.

Riley:  Alrighty, Morgan. Thanks for having us on.

Morgan:  Cheers!

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