Pickleball anyone?

[cbo111]

Okay so have an ongoing difference of opinion on effectively etiquette in Pickleball.
Do you feel it is okay to hit the ball very hard directly at someone with an underhand shot, if the skill levels are reasonably close, but others have not mastered this type of shot yet and thus it is mostly a one way scenario?

I've played competitive pickle ball for a couple years and the body shot is effective, legal, and fun. At all levels, your competitor will be trying to construct the point by dinking you until you make a mistake and float a ball too high. Then....bang goes the body shot. But good players only hit the ball with enough force to overcome the opponent's reaction ability. So, when you are playing a less experienced player, you can still issue them a body shot, just use less force. Of course, a shot to their feet is probably more effective anyway.

 

[Dtail]

I've played competitive pickle ball for a couple years and the body shot is effective, legal, and fun. At all levels, your competitor will be trying to construct the point by dinking you until you make a mistake and float a ball too high. Then....bang goes the body shot. But good players only hit the ball with enough force to overcome the opponent's reaction ability. So, when you are playing a less experienced player, you can still issue them a body shot, just use less force. Of course, a shot to their feet is probably more effective anyway.

Thanks for the response. Let me explain a little further. When we play, there is some dinking game going on, but there are also many shots from all over the court and thus the rally does not evolve into a dinking game. I am not referring to the side shot slam from just outside the kitchen zone.

Thus my shot is effectively a hard at the body underhand shot with lots of speed from the middle of the court or perhaps at the back of the court and sometimes the shot gets through and hits the player.

 

[Philliefan33]

I've played competitive pickle ball for a couple years and the body shot is effective, legal, and fun. At all levels, your competitor will be trying to construct the point by dinking you until you make a mistake and float a ball too high. Then....bang goes the body shot. But good players only hit the ball with enough force to overcome the opponent's reaction ability. So, when you are playing a less experienced player, you can still issue them a body shot, just use less force. Of course, a shot to their feet is probably more effective anyway.

I’ve only been playing a few months, so I’m certainly not an expert on pickleball etiquette, but I’ll give my opinion anyway.

If the players are of similar abilities think body shots are okay. However, the intent should be only to hit hard enough to win the rally and not to hurt.

It probably depends on the unwritten rules of the courts you are playing on.

 

[Ready]

I get hit all the time. Some players just like to hit the ball hard. If I don’t want to get hit I just avoid those players. But it’s a legal shot so it’s going to happen. Now if you’re playing people significantly below your skill level and you don’t really need the shot to win, you’re going to come across looking like a bit of a jerk.

My pet peeve is during open play when I have two really good players on the other side, and I get paired up with a beginner. They do everything they can to keep the ball away from me and pick on the beginner. I understand doing that in tournaments, but in open play when we’re trying to have fun I consider it bad ediquette. And it makes those players look really small, because it’s obvious they are afraid that if they hit the ball to me I might get the point.

 

[Dtail]

I’ve only been playing a few months, so I’m certainly not an expert on pickleball etiquette, but I’ll give my opinion anyway.

If the players are of similar abilities think body shots are okay. However, the intent should be only to hit hard enough to win the rally and not to hurt.

It probably depends on the unwritten rules of the courts you are playing on.

Of course, I never try to hurt anyone, but yeah I hear you. It is somewhat of a complex issue at times in conjunction in keeping with the social aspect of the game.

 

[Dtail]

I get hit all the time. Some players just like to hit the ball hard. If I don’t want to get hit I just avoid those players. But it’s a legal shot so it’s going to happen. Now if you’re playing people significantly below your skill level and you don’t really need the shot to win, you’re going to come across looking like a bit of a jerk.

My pet peeve is during open play when I have two really good players on the other side, and I get paired up with a beginner. They do everything they can to keep the ball away from me and pick on the beginner. I understand doing that in tournaments, but in open play when we’re trying to have fun I consider it bad ediquette. And it makes those players look really small, because it’s obvious they are afraid that if they hit the ball to me I might get the point.

Agree with your first point. I have effectively stopped hitting body shots at lesser players and then get asked why.

Your second point happens to me at times too. I just put up with it for the most part.

 

[Kroeran]

I seem to recall a media situation where a top basketball star was required to purposely miss shots on the hoop, and he was incapable of overriding his instincts.

I have been in friendly games with talent gaps on the other side, and I was not capable of hitting the ball to the stronger
player, even after being nicely asked to do so.

 

[Osprey]

I play. There are some great pickleball videos and coaches. Many of these I watch on youtube on my PC web browser where I use the gear icon and change the speed to x1.25 or x1.50. You will love these!

A solid coach: ThirdShotSports: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFXy3d28sy72PsyXMm8sZ2A/playlists

Pickleball Channel and specifically their '411' videos. https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=pickleball+411

Sarah Ansboury is excellent: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHuN2VCgXnwESfgmDTF-Ldg/videos

Deb Harrison is informative: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyhmm99XaLz9t-gHxiHBv-g/videos

Thanks for list of videos. I am new to pickleball and was looking for videos. Does anyone know if there is a way to save YouTube videos to watch them off line?

 

[Ready]

Well we haven't talked about pickleball all summer long!

OK, I've had a few weird interactions on the court over the past few weeks. I'm wondering if anyone else experiences this.

I generally make plans to play with a friend of mine because I like to know who my partner is going to be. I either go to places where the courts have a rating on them or it's generally understood that the hours I'm there is advanced play.

So I show up on a court rated 4.0/4.5 with my partner and I'm told we have to split up because we are "too good". What's the point of coming over to a 4.0/4.5 court if you think the team you are going to be playing against is too competitive for you? We have ten courts with ratings from 3.0 and up but some people just don't like to lose and refuse to play us unless we split.

On the days I'm on unrated courts it gets worse. Two little old ladies show up and tell us we have to split up. We then proceed to play a game where the ladies miss all of their shots while we just stand around and watch. So I try to suggest we move some paddles around so that we can line up more competitive matches and I'm accused of only wanting to play with certain people, which apparently brands me as anti-social. Yet when I do play with novices the other team does everything they can to keep the ball away from me so I'm barely playing anyway.

Some of the people who show up literally can't hit the ball if it's right in front of them. So we let them play a few games. We lose 11-0 or 11-1. And they keep coming back. When they put their paddles in everyone runs to pull their paddles out of the queue until somebody gives in and agrees to play a game to be polite.

If you were causing your team to lose every game and were missing almost every shot, why would you keep coming back when there are mostly advanced players there? Wouldn't you feel guilty that you are always causing your team to lose and try to find other places or times to play when the skill level is lower?

I don't know why it frustrates me so much but sometimes I just don't get people who show up to the courts and do this stuff. Is it just me?

 

[eroscott]

Well we haven't talked about pickleball all summer long!

OK, I've had a few weird interactions on the court over the past few weeks. I'm wondering if anyone else experiences this.
...
So I show up on a court rated 4.0/4.5 with my partner and I'm told we have to split up because we are "too good". What's the point of coming over to a 4.0/4.5 court if you think the team you are going to be playing against is too competitive for you? We have ten courts with ratings from 3.0 and up but some people just don't like to lose and refuse to play us unless we split.
...
I don't know why it frustrates me so much but sometimes I just don't get people who show up to the courts and do this stuff. Is it just me?

It is definitely not you. I could understand mixing it up with mid/high W.X levels and the next level up of low/mid Y.Z. If there is more than 1 full level difference then you are completely right that the highest level person on the team then just doesn't get to play and what is the point of that for *either* team. Heck I like playing against a strong team as long as my partner is similar or higher than me. That is a challenge to improve and win points against them. I also like playing strategic people and not just bangers.

I could also see/think it would not bother you (certainly not me) if they want to split people up where everyone in the group is at pretty close to the same level.

Also some days you could just line up 8 people at the same level and rotate while other days you mix it up with folks within 1 to 1.5 levels. Let others think what they want. As long as you are mixing it up some times and helping others and the game grow then you are all good.

 

[6miths]

My best buddy started playing pickleball this spring after following me into retirement. We have been playing tennis together since grade 6 but he stopped a few years ago due to back issues. Tore his Achilles tendon 2 weeks in! I watched them playing at the community centre a few times and could see how it happens. That no go zone is brutal for a previous tennis player!

 

[Dtail]

My best buddy started playing pickleball this spring after following me into retirement. We have been playing tennis together since grade 6 but he stopped a few years ago due to back issues. Tore his Achilles tendon 2 weeks in! I watched them playing at the community centre a few times and could see how it happens. That no go zone is brutal for a previous tennis player!

Used to play tennis myself. Yeah staying out of the kitchen is difficult at first, but one learns eventually to hit the ball without the step forward motion.

 

[Ready]

It is definitely not you. I could understand mixing it up with mid/high W.X levels and the next level up of low/mid Y.Z. If there is more than 1 full level difference then you are completely right that the highest level person on the team then just doesn't get to play and what is the point of that for *either* team. Heck I like playing against a strong team as long as my partner is similar or higher than me. That is a challenge to improve and win points against them. I also like playing strategic people and not just bangers.

I could also see/think it would not bother you (certainly not me) if they want to split people up where everyone in the group is at pretty close to the same level.

Also some days you could just line up 8 people at the same level and rotate while other days you mix it up with folks within 1 to 1.5 levels. Let others think what they want. As long as you are mixing it up some times and helping others and the game grow then you are all good.

Thanks, glad to hear I’m not the only one.

I find myself constantly trying to balance my desire to be socially acceptable with my need to play at a competitive level, which is the only way I have any fun playing the game.

 

[HadEnuff]

My best buddy started playing pickleball this spring after following me into retirement. We have been playing tennis together since grade 6 but he stopped a few years ago due to back issues. Tore his Achilles tendon 2 weeks in! I watched them playing at the community centre a few times and could see how it happens. That no go zone is brutal for a previous tennis player!

Yesterday was the one-year anniversary of the one and only time I played pickleball, resulting in a ruptured right achilles tendon. I haven't played since, and probably won't ever again. If I do it will be subdued. I played a lot of platform tennis, and like tennis, getting to the net is king, if you are young and agile enough to cover the deep lob, which at 65 I am not.

Anyway, to Ready's point, it can be tough either way. My wife has taken up the game, and loves it. She has advanced from beginner to advanced beginner. In the summertime we are north and there is no formal ranking system available, but when we return to The Villages there will be. She often finds herself overmatched. She says generally the players are kind, but sometimes the better players just slam it at her to get her off the court. But then when they need a 4th they want her to play.

As a platform tennis player, and I was an advanced player, playing in tournaments all over the northeast, against nationally ranked teams (getting my butt kicked) I played many a set at home, split up from my partner, and we always played down to the weaker players so they could get some returnable shots. The only times we got really frustrated were when the weaker players wouldn't take any strategic advice and would just try to slam everything, either into the net or out over the back line. Paddle is a winter game and you have to have extended rallies or you freeze to death.

But back to Ready's point again, it's tough either way, being the better players playing with beginners, or being a serious beginner who wants to learn and advance, and finding slightly better competition to help you along.

 

[mickeyd]

I am relatively new to PB. I started playing a few months ago when I moved to my CCRC. I now play 3X a week and enjoy it a lot. With TX temps and humidity, it's a great way to work up a sweat.

 

[Van-Guard23]

OP here...so it's been a year since my wife and I started playing PB after we moved to Central Texas from Hawai'i. The issues with beginners and more advanced players playing with each other during open play seems to be a common one and our new 55+ community, with 8 dedicated PB courts and 10 more planned, isn't immune to that. Since the community is fairly new and the 8 courts are hardly full at all, there aren't any problems scheduling play for more advanced players outside of the Open Play days/times...but I can see that being an issue once more and more properties are sold and more and more residents move in and take up PB.


We are fortunate to have a Pickleball Ambassador (a 4.0 player) as a resident in our community and he and his wife (a 4.5 player) are very active in promoting the sport, hosting an 8-week long Pickleball Fundamentals classes for residents in between their tournaments.


I am loving PB...but if given a choice between playing golf and shooting consistently in the 80s or being a 4.0 Pickleball player, I would readily choose to be a better golfer than a better PB player. But hey...maybe I can do both!

 

[audreyh1]

They just built a pair of courts in our neighborhood.

Hardly anyone here knows how to play it.

 

[Dtail]

OP here...so it's been a year since my wife and I started playing PB after we moved to Central Texas from Hawai'i. The issues with beginners and more advanced players playing with each other during open play seems to be a common one and our new 55+ community, with 8 dedicated PB courts and 10 more planned, isn't immune to that. Since the community is fairly new and the 8 courts are hardly full at all, there aren't any problems scheduling play for more advanced players outside of the Open Play days/times...but I can see that being an issue once more and more properties are sold and more and more residents move in and take up PB.


We are fortunate to have a Pickleball Ambassador (a 4.0 player) as a resident in our community and he and his wife (a 4.5 player) are very active in promoting the sport, hosting an 8-week long Pickleball Fundamentals classes for residents in between their tournaments.


I am loving PB...but if given a choice between playing golf and shooting consistently in the 80s or being a 4.0 Pickleball player, I would readily choose to be a better golfer than a better PB player. But hey...maybe I can do both!

Nice to have advanced players giving lessons.
I sometimes travel 25 minutes to play with more advanced players, but there are definitely more cliques there and not the same social scene as it gets more serious.
I do pick up new shots to use though.

 

[Dtail]

Played Pickleball in a new venue today. Many experienced players who were all retired.
Great bunch of guys and gals.
One player was 86 y.o. and has won National tournaments. Great speaking with him.

 

[joeea]

We moved from our outdoor courts to indoors last week. It was my first time indoors.

It's nice not to have to wear sun glasses and a hat while playing. It's nice not to have the wind move the ball around.

But for me, it's harder to see the lines on the shiny court. It can get a bit loud. And we only have three indoor courts, so there's more waiting for your turn.

Overall, I like playing indoors so far.

 

[Dtail]

We moved from our outdoor courts to indoors last week. It was my first time indoors.

It's nice not to have to wear sun glasses and a hat while playing. It's nice not to have the wind move the ball around.

But for me, it's harder to see the lines on the shiny court. It can get a bit loud. And we only have three indoor courts, so there's more waiting for your turn.

Overall, I like playing indoors so far.

Interesting, as this also was my first time playing indoors. Less tired without the sun. I actually like playing (against) the wind outdoors, as the side spins are exaggerated.
Also the ball skips forward on a lower projectory indoors and do share your thoughts on harder to see the lines.

 

[joeea]

I know there are different balls for indoors and outdoors, and that the indoor balls have more, smaller holes.

I don't seem to be able to spin the ball indoors as well as I did outdoors.

It is the ball? I know I need more practice indoors - it's probably just that.

 

[Dtail]

I know there are different balls for indoors and outdoors, and that the indoor balls have more, smaller holes.

I don't seem to be able to spin the ball indoors as well as I did outdoors.

It is the ball? I know I need more practice indoors - it's probably just that.

Taking out the wind effect, I found my side spins to be about the same indoors as outdoors.
However, the topspin (high to low type) shots definitely skid more on the inside.
Perhaps a little more practice, or it could depend to some extent the true apples to apples ball comparison outdoors to indoors of the specific balls you are playing for each.

 

[HadEnuff]

I know there are different balls for indoors and outdoors, and that the indoor balls have more, smaller holes.

I don't seem to be able to spin the ball indoors as well as I did outdoors.

It is the ball? I know I need more practice indoors - it's probably just that.

do you notice this by the way the ball flies, or as it reacts to the court surface. Keep in mind two things about indoor PB

1. no wind, so any effect the wind may have on your spin shots don't exist indoors,

2. Indoor court surfaces tend to be less "grabby" than outdoor, so your spin shot won't "bite" as much indoors as outdoors.

 

[HadEnuff]

So, I'm watching an NFL game and I see Richard Sherman, a cornerback for the 49'ers intercept a pass and run around like, well, like an NFL cornerback who has just intercepted a pass. He's about 22 months post-achilles rupture. I'm about 14 months. I will be back in The Villages Dec. 1, which puts me at 15 months post rupture. I'm still working on the rehab diligently, and still making good progress, although I'm not "there" yet, as far as the injured leg being as strong as the uninjured leg, but I'm getting closer.

So, I think when I get back to Florida I'm going to start playing a little bit. I am going to start just by going on the court with DW and hitting some balls to her, to help her drill, and see how it feels. We also have friends who are going to just start playing, so maybe some very light, casual games among the 4 of us. If it feels good, and continues to improve, and I don't get hurt, I hope to play next Spring, back north, at our club.
The hardest part for me, I think, will be to restrain myself from my naturally competitive tendencies, and stay under some control.
It will be hard for me to do, when my side starts losing.