Ben Newell grew up in Topeka, KS. Surprisingly, Newell first started playing pickleball at Chicken-N-Pickle. “I used to drive by it every day on my way to work. Saw it, and knew I could be pretty good at it. Then, Yana (Grechkina) came up to me one day after a league game and asked, ‘Do you want to go pro with me?’ And boom, here we are.” Now,  Newell and Grechkina are one of the many happy pickleball couples. 

Ben comes from a long tennis background and played college tennis alongside his twin brother at Rockhurst University. Newell is also a self-proclaimed “nerd,” who plays and programs guitars.