Pro Pickleball Couple Parris Todd, Hunter Johnson Share Secrets to Playing with Love Interest
Although they have different recollections of how they met and fell in love, Parris Todd and Hunter Johnson have more experience than anyone when it comes to surviving and thriving as partners on the pickleball court.
And the lovely couple, who were recently featured alongside Catherine O’Hara and Willem Dafoe in a Michelob Ultra Super Bowl Commercial on the same they each won singles gold medals at the PPA Tour Proton Tucson Open, recently shared to the PPA Tour their tips for how other romantic partners can enjoy their time on the pickleball court.
Seven Tips to Playing Pickleball With Your Romantic Partner—According to Parris Todd and Hunter Johnson
Without further ado, here are Parris and Hunter’s relationship advice:
- Celebrate each other’s success. “If one of us wins, both of us win.” – Parris
- Use communication to your advantage. “The better relationships you can have on a team, the better it is for everyone. The fact that we were so close … the communication was there.” – Parris
- Balance each other out. I like to be the emotionally neutral part of the relationship—she might snap a couple times … if you see her on court she’s pretty fierce, which is a very good thing—but if you’re on the wrong side of that it could be a little dangerous.” – Hunter
- Hide your disagreements and move on. “We do a good job of hiding it when sometimes maybe we do quickly bicker, but we try to move on quickly from that as much as we can because you don’t want it to fester.” – Hunter
- Mix it up! “We’re together all the time, so we try to mix it up and play with other people. Sometimes just to break it up (is helpful) because we feel like when we have a little bit of that separation and then we come back together we appreciate each other more.” – Parris
- Don’t get too competitive. “Don’t get too competitive and have fun. It’s light-hearted stuff! You shouldn’t kill each other (although you could) but just look at the positives, communicate and just enjoy the sport that we all love.” – Hunter
- Pickleball is such a fun sport, let it bring joy to your lives. “At the end of the day it’s a sport that we play. Even though it’s a career, there’s things that are bigger—relationships are more important than just a game.” – Parris
Falling in Love Is Possible Because of Pickleball
The power couple’s pieces of advice ring true for couples involved in any other sport. But they are particularly a fit for pickleball partners-turned-lovers. And the reality is that it’s very possible for partners to fall in love given the social aspect of the sport and the relaxed atmosphere the pickleball community affords. To this end, Parris and Todd’s story of romance is Exhibit A.
You can watch Parris and Hunter’s interview here:
