At the relatively old age of 42, Lorin Schlecht is trying to become one of the 100 best pickleball players in the world. Considering the challenges he has overcome, the odds against him are not insurmountable.
Schlect was deployed by the Air Force seven times to serve in combat in war-torn Mideastern countries. He was in the Special Operations Forces, working as an Arabic interpreter in a unit that helped the Iraqi military counter the terrorist group ISIS. He saw unimaginable horrors, many involving children. Those images especially resonated because the young victims were around the same age as his son was at the time. Ten years since he served in Iraq, Schlect battles post traumatic stress disorder.
“I have many triggers,” Schlect, who goes by “Lo,” told me. “They include loud, unexpected noises, people who panic easily, fireworks, aggressive behavior. I can’t be touched when I sleep. Crowded places give me immense anxiety. People who panic when stressed give me extreme anxiety because during a firefight, a member of our team had his gun jammed, he panicked, popped his head up from cover and got shot in the head.”
When Lo returned to the US, the PTSD affected his marriage. “I was in denial of my PTSD and tried to ignore it,” he says. His wife was a nurse and worked 80 hours a week. “We were two ships passing in the night and it was more peaceful with just my son and I,” he says. A divorce followed that was messy and expensive. Lo claims his ex-wife stole $30,000 from him. He hit rock bottom a day before his birthday in February 2023.
“Lawyer fees, living expenses and a new apartment was the perfect recipe for creating the deepest depression of my life,” Lo says. “I remember distinctly I was sitting in my vehicle about to buy a cup of coffee and saw I had only $3.28 in my bank account. I thought it would never end and thought about ending it all, but I couldn’t do it for my son and parents.”
Lo praises his parents for persuading him to seek professional counseling. “Thank God they spoke up,” he says. “I have done a lot of therapy to unpack all the events I placed in a box and thought I sealed shut. The problems only got worse by trying to keep a lid on that box. Whatever is inside you always has a way of eventually coming out.”
Asked if he was sure he wanted so much personal information to be in this piece, Lo said, “Absolutely. It’s the truth. Maybe my story will help someone else out who is going through the same thing.”
He is now a Special Operations Forces enabled specialist, providing training for various military and civilian branches of the government. He lives and works in Tucson, after requesting the Air Force transfer him from San Antonio to be near his nine-year-old son, with whom he and his ex-wife have joint custody.
When not at his Air Force job, Lo is the pro tour ambassador and head instructor at The Picklr in Oro Valley, an indoor pickleball club near Tucson that had its grand opening last Saturday. He met his current wife, Andrea, in San Antonio in 2023, on, where else, a pickleball court. Andrea also works at The Picklr, as the assistant club coordinator.
Lo first played pickleball that same year. “I felt the nostalgic, familiar feelings of hitting a ball with a paddle instead of a racquet,” he says. “I couldn’t help but be reminded of the movement, stroke, spin, speed and tactics used that were very similar to tennis.
“When I played pickleball, I was instantaneously captivated by the endless possibilities of shots.”
Pickleball proved to be much more than a hobby. “Pickleball provided me a new direction to my then rudderless life,” Lo says.
He is intense as a player but patient and encouraging as an instructor.
“Lo has been transformative for my pickleball game,” says Jerry Jeong, a 51-year-old Tucson resident who’s been playing for 10 months, is a 3.5-4.0 player and has taken several lessons from Lo. “He blends technical expertise with high energy and enthusiasm.
“Whether he keeps the coaching super simple or dives into highly technical nuances, Lo tailors his approach to my needs, making every session impactful. His positive energy not only motivates but also creates a supportive learning environment. His training has had a direct and positive impact on my pickleball performance. He is outstanding,” Jerry says.
Lo says the most common mistakes he sees from most 3.5 players are:
1) Poor footwork: “I can always separate a decent rec player from a seasoned pro by their footwork alone,” Lo says.
2) Excessive paddle movement: “Taking the paddle back too far while dinking or hitting a reset has a trampoline effect, causing the dreaded pop-up”.”
3) Lack of court awareness: “Players don’t understand what shot is the most correct for the position they are in on the court. You can’t take the same swing on a drive that you would on a drop, the same power on a counter with the finesse needed for a reset.”
Lo drills and plays 20 hours a week. He is ranked 188th worldwide by the Professional Pickleball Association and has a 5.179 singles DUPR (Dynamic Universal Pickleball Rating).
Although he’s 42, he has the build of a guy 20 years younger. He’s 5’9”, 190 pounds with a weightlifter’s body, which is no accident. He spent a dozen years doing intense lifting. “I was painfully bored and dissatisfied with [bodybuilding] being my only hobby,” he says.
In two years of playing Lo has already beaten highly ranked pros, including then #29 Brett Warner, #56 Rio Newcombe and #73 James Kaoma. “All these were practice matches but it still encourages me that I am in the same league,” Lo says.
“I have played many PPA Pro qualifiers and have made a name for myself in Arizona. One of my goals is to be top 100 in the world within the next 18 months. Another goal is to be a source of inspiration for those who have been lost and are thinking their best athletic days are behind them.
“At the age of 42, I am in better shape mentally, physically, spiritually and can honestly say this sport saved my life. Almost nothing gives me greater joy than to beat young pros half my age and show to those watching nothing is impossible. If your "Why" is strong enough, the "How" is easy.”
Growing up in the tiny Washington state town of La Center, near Vancouver, tennis was his passion. “I had my then girlfriend write notes posing as my mom stating I would be absent from school so I could go and play tennis all day,” Lo says. “I almost didn’t graduate high school due to so many absences. However, the school board gave me a pass since I won the state tennis championship [as a junior].” He lost one match in four years.
Lo went on to play Division 1 tennis at the University of Portland but was frustrated because he was the seventh man on a nine-man roster. After his freshman year he quit school and travelled to Europe with a teammate. He graduated from an online college in 2004 with a degree in criminal justice.
Lo prefers playing singles and initially struggled in doubles because he hated dinking. He has learned that not having a soft game doesn’t work against high level players.
“I also have had to work on my temper because I am hyper competitive and intense,” he says.
After what Lo has seen and survived, he takes his goal of breaking into the PPA’s top 100 as a welcomed challenge.
It won’t be easy.
Lo is #188 in the PPA’s mens singles rankings as of this writing. A check of the top 100 shows only four players who are 42 or over.
He relishes his unusual goal and if someone tells him he won’t make it, you can imagine this special ops badass responding with the iconic Clint Eastwood line from Sudden Impact: “Go ahead, make my day.”
Lo says, “If people have doubts, they haven’t said it directly to me. Every UPA Gold Card Pro I have ever hit against, or played against in a tournament has told me I have the talent and skills to a top 100 at least.”
Even if he doesn’t break the top 100, Lo Schlect’s life now as a father, husband, pickleball player and instructor is in stark contrast from what it was not long ago, when he saw horrific elements of war and $3.28 in his bank account.
(You can follow Lo’s journey through his YouTube channel, Pickleball Mafia, and his Instagram account, @Lo_schlect)
Thoughts of the week, not all pickleball
· I have said this before but it’s gotten worse in light of recent events: People on Facebook who bring politics into discussions that have nothing to do with politics are annoying. I understand the anger but political comments don’t belong in pickleball group discussions. There are a million other groups for that. Some people just can’t help themselves.
· Speaking of politics, in the current issue of “Pickleball Magazine,” my colleague Alice Tym profiled top-ranked pro player Jill Braverman. Jill said, “Pickleball is the only place where you don’t talk politics.” Amen to that.
· I’m late to the party on watching The White Lotus on HBO Max but after watching the first four episodes I see why viewers love it.
· Al Michaels, doing play-by-play for Amazon Prime Video’s Thursday Night Football, hasn’t lost much off his fastball at 80. He’s still great. Every time I see Michaels I can’t help but think of an incredible aspect of his life that he wrote about in his autobiography and insists is 100% true: He says he has never in his life knowingly eaten a vegetable. Not one.
· My Mets are in the midst of an epic collapse. A $340 million payroll and they are fighting for their playoff lives against the Reds, whose payroll is $119 million.
· It’s true that money can’t always buy happiness. Or a playoff spot.
Question of the week and I want your thoughts
Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons are among my top five favorite groups of all-time. Valli is 91 now and still touring. The word among many fans who have seen him in concert is that he’s been lip-synching for at least the past five years. I saw him four years ago and from my 3rd row seat he certainly appeared to be lip-synching, he barely opened his mouth. My question is: Would you pay to see Valli or one of your favorite performers if you suspected or knew they were lip-syncing? Email your answer to mhs7386@gmail.com. Next week I’ll publish some of them and give you my thoughts on it. Thanks.
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