Smart Doubles Strategy: Lindsey Newman on Playing Simple, Winning Big

When it comes to doubles, professional pickleball player Lindsey Newman doesn’t need a playbook or endless mid-match chatter. She and her brother Riley have been competing side by side their whole lives, and their instincts carry them further than any hand signal ever could.

“We know what the other person is thinking or going to do before we do it,” she says. “If you watch us play, we very rarely actually talk to each other—even during timeouts, we usually don’t even sit together on the bench.”

That unspoken connection has fueled one of pickleball’s most recognizable partnerships—and even carried them to a USA Pickleball Nationals title in 2021, when Lindsey was 6.5 months pregnant.

The Newman Approach: Keep It Simple

Lindsey Newman with brother Riley on court.

Riley may be the aggressor, but Lindsey has her role down to a science. “If there is a ball at my outside foot, I know that one is mine. My goal is just not to miss. Get every single ball back. Hit my spots and set him up for the put away.”

The Newmans’ style is rooted in patience and consistency. They aren’t chasing highlight-reel winners or overthinking every point (even though some of those points have had me on the edge of my seat). “Players try to do too much. They think too much. They overanalyze too much,” Lindsey says. “We always just wanted to get one more ball back. We didn’t try anything fancy—we just played simple pickleball.”

That lesson works at every level: doubles doesn’t have to be flashy. It has to be steady.

How They Reset Mid-Match

Even the strongest partnerships hit rough patches. The Newmans’ timeouts aren’t about big strategy talks. Sometimes they don’t even sit together on the bench. “Usually, we take a time-out and separate. Sometimes that would stop the other team’s momentum and sometimes that would give us the space we needed—since most of the time if that was the case, one of us is mad at the other one for not playing good enough,” Lindsey says with a laugh.

When it’s time to lock back in? A quick phrase—“okay, let’s go” or “we got this”—is all it takes. It’s a reminder that great partnerships aren’t about constant chatter. They’re about trust, instincts, and knowing when to reset. 

Nationals & Pregnant

Ask Lindsey about her most meaningful win, and the 2021 USA Pickleball Nationals title is top of the list. But it came with a twist.

“I was 6.5 months pregnant and feeling it mentally and physically. My ankles were so swollen it was hard getting my feet in my shoes, my lower back was in excruciating pain, and I felt like a massive whale on the court. I would walk out onto courts to play and the first thing I’d do was look for the nearest garbage can because I always had the feeling I was going to throw up.”

And yet, she found another gear. “When you’re an athlete, you just learn how to throw everything out the window and compete like you know how.”

After the win, Lindsey handled the on-court interview because Riley was too emotional. “It was one of the only times in my entire life that I’ve seen him cry. And to think, I was supposed to be the emotional one.”

Advice You Can Use

• Film yourself. Lindsey swears one of the biggest mistakes rec players make is never watching their own game. Even a phone recording will show you how you move, how consistent you are, and where you’re overcomplicating things.

• Play simple. Forget the hero shots. Rally with purpose, stay consistent, and make the other team hit one more ball.

Balancing Mom Life and Pro Life

Riley and Lindsey Newman, with Lindsey’s daughter.

Motherhood hasn’t changed her competitiveness, but it’s changed her routine. “I don’t go to nearly as many tournaments as most pros, I can only practice in the afternoons after my husband is off work to take the kids off my hands, and I’ll most likely have a random kids’ toy in my pickleball bag.”

Tournaments, oddly enough, have become her recharge. “When my kids aren’t with me, it’s my mental break. I can eat meals without having to share, I can go to the bathroom without someone constantly knocking on the door, and I can be in a quiet car without crying, yelling, or arguing. Mom life is good on the road.”

As for what she hopes her daughters see? “I hope they see someone who is a competitor, a fighter and a hustler. I always tell them, ‘When life gets tough, we get tougher.’”