Roscoe Bellamy has steadily climbed the men’s singles rankings and just won his first PPA title at the Veolia Lakeland Open presented by Six Zero on Sunday.

Bellamy defeated Connor Garnett, Noe Khlif and Hunter Johnson en route to claiming gold in the Sunshine State, which isn't a walk in the park by any means.

The 25-year-old was equally impressive at the Rate Vegas Cup presented by Holland America in October where his silver-medal run included victories over Christian Alshon, Gabe Joseph and Johnson, before falling to Federico Staksrud in the final. 

So, what's the secret behind his newfound success? 

Using his 6’5” frame to cover the net more effectively has been key, of course, but having his mom, Beth, courtside is a major difference-maker, too.

“Singles is a weird thing. It’s more of a dog fight than doubles. When I go to a tournament, the stress of singles is a lot. Singles is what I’m thinking about first. Even if I were to care more about doubles, singles is almost like that workout you’re dreading. I’m going to go out and battle. It’s less about strategy and it’s more about who’s willing to go out there and fight more,” shared Bellamy on the Pickleballers podcast. 

“But I’ve actually found something that helps me a little bit. My mom is a great pickleball player. She came to a few pro pickleball tournaments this last year, and I noticed that every tournament she was at, I would always do way better in singles. It’s when I beat Ben [Johns], when I beat Tyson [McGuffin], and she was the common denominator.”

Beth Bellamy is the top-ranked 50+ women’s pickleball player in the world and has over 100 gold medals to her name.

While Beth can obviously provide expert tips and gameplay advice, the closeness of their relationship has also been clutch.

“My mom is very wise and helps me dial up a game plan, but she really helps me mentally stay in the match and helps me lock in,” explained Bellamy. “When she’s there, I feel like I’m not out there alone, like I have a partner. I take a timeout, I talk with her, and we talk strategies.”

Singles being a very lonely game is echoed by a lot of players, especially those who grew up competing in high-level tennis like Hurricane Tyra Black. 

“In tennis, I was usually at tournaments by myself. I was on the court by myself. I just felt so alone in singles,“ revealed Black. “One of the things that I fell in love with in pickleball was having a partner and having someone you can talk to and strategize with. That’s really why I stopped playing singles.”

Bellamy says that having friends like Hunter and Yates Johnson courtside during his matches provides a significant boost as well. 

“Even in the semis of North Carolina, I lost the first and I was down in the second, and Hunter and Yates came to the bench and they were reading off texts from my coach back at home. Since I felt like we were all strategizing, I felt like I wasn’t out there alone, and I ended up winning that match,” he said. 

“Singles pickleball reminds me of tennis, so I see why a lot of players have stopped playing it. A part of me thinks it’s good to play it because it keeps me working hard and motivated, but it does bring a lot of stress. But I do think that making singles feel like it’s not just you out there helps a ton.”

It was crystal clear during Roscoe's most recent triumph over Hunter that there's tremendous mutual respect between them. Yates even brought two different signs to the match, one to support each competitor.

Knowing full well what works best for him, expect Bellamy to enjoy more success in the future.

Stay tuned.

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