Not really. You should always pre-drill all of your screw holes to avoid splitting the wood, but pre-drilling is actually recommended by virtually all decking mills and manufacturers. You may also find that your saw blades dull more quickly from cutting hardwoods. However, the real key to keeping exotic hardwood decking easy to work with is purchasing kiln dried lumber. Having excess moisture removed from the wood in a convection kiln creates lumber that is more stable with less warping, twisting, or crooking.