In pickleball, a strong serve and return are essential for controlling the flow of the rally right from the start. The serve is your first opportunity to set the tone for the point, and a strategic return can give you the upper hand. As pickleball paddle technology progresses, players can hit stronger, faster and more aggressive serves while maintaining control, which means they are starting off the point with a bang. By not taking advantage of your serve, you start off the point at a disadvantage by letting your opponents get a free ride to the Non-Volley Zone (NVZ). Here’s how to master both and give yourself the best chance of success.
Starting with the Fundamentals: The Big Five
No matter your skill level, mastering the fundamentals is key to improving your pickleball game. Too often, players jump ahead to advanced strategies without first developing a solid foundation. By focusing on the Big Five—Grip, Setup, Impact Point, Sensation, and Recovery—you’ll build consistency, control, and confidence on the court. Let’s break them down.
Teamwork Makes the Dream Work: The Importance of Teamwork and Court Positioning in Doubles
Great doubles teams don’t just hit great shots—they work together seamlessly. The best partners move as a unit, communicate effectively, and cover the court strategically. When you and your partner are in sync, you force your opponents into challenging situations while setting yourselves up for success.
It’s the Little Things: Being a Caring Instructor
A great coach is not just about having successful drills and teaching effective techniques it's about connection. The best instructors don’t just teach the game; they make their students feel valued, supported, and motivated. It's the little things in every lesson that make the biggest impact on players.
The Art of Deception: Disguising Your Shots Through a Consistent Setup and Impact Point
Pro pickleball players don’t just hit great shots—they keep their opponents guessing. One of the most effective ways to do this is through deception, and the key to deception is consistency in your setup and impact point. When your preparation looks the same for multiple shots, you force your opponent to react late, giving you the advantage.
Coaching a Game of Movement: Throw and Catch Drills
If we’ve said it once, we’ve said it a million times: pickleball is a game of movement. You can have the nicest swing in the world but if you can’t get to the ball, you can’t use it. That’s why pickleball coaches should get their players – especially those who maybe don’t have an extensive ball sport background – to work on their catching skills. Here’s are three examples of catching-related drills that will help your players improve:
Let’s Talk Technique: Think PAS
Show, Don’t Just Tell: Why Great Coaches Demonstrate
When it comes to coaching pickleball, one of the simplest yet most powerful tools at your disposal is demonstrating. Whether you’re teaching technical skills or running a new drill, showing players what to do — and how to do it — can make the difference between confusion and clarity, between a practice session that drags and one that’s dynamic and effective.
If you’re serious about helping your players improve, here’s why demonstrating is essential — and how to do it well.
Pickleball Technique, Pickleball Strategy
Set Yourself Up for Success: The Key To An Effective Setup
Setting the Tone: The Importance of Punctuality and Professionalism
Struggling with Consistent Shots? Let's Talk About Impact Point!
One of the most important yet often overlooked fundamentals in pickleball is the ability to have a good impact point when hitting the ball. This is true whether you are hitting a drop or dink, a volley or smash, a serve or return. While many factors contribute to shot quality, the impact point (where a player hits the ball relative to their body) can significantly influence the quality and outcome of your play. After all, if you make contact in a comfortable position, it is much easier to control the paddle angle, swing path and swing speed.
ChatGPT vs. Coach: Pickleball Tips Put to the Test
At Third Shot Sports, we're all about mixing technology with pickleball to bring you unique and exciting content. Recently, we decided to challenge ChatGPT to come up with 100 short pickleball tips. Of course, we couldn't just leave it there. We handed this list to our very own pickleball guru, Mark Renneson, to separate the gold from the glitter. Spoiler alert: some tips were spot on, while others needed a little more context. Let's dive into one of these tips and get Mark's expert take on it!
Expert Insight:
“Keep your Paddle Up and Ready”
The Winning Edge: Responding to Your Pickleball Advice
This is the third instalment of our series where we share your best pickleball advice and then I give my thoughts on it. We asked our followers to share their favorite words of wisdom, and then we praised it or bashed it (gently, of course). Let’s go!
“Be ready for the ball to come back.”
I love advice that can make a big difference quickly. I actually think this is great advice for players of all levels of skill, but especially those playing at the intermediate level. One of the things that separates levels of players is their ability to get the ball back in play – especially when they are in trouble.
Responding to Your Pickleball Advice: Mastering Patience, Athletic Stance, and Effective Coaching
This is the second in a series of articles where we respond to advice that our followers shared with us.
“Have Patience and Composure”
I think this is probably great advice both on and off the Pickleball court. Question is, how do you do it?
To answer this question, perhaps we should look at the opposite situation: being impatient. Being without composure. How does that happen?
Advice from Players, Insights from a Coach: A Pickleball Perspective
We recently invited our social media followers to share the best pickleball advice that they’ve been given – and wow did they respond! This is the first in the series of articles where we will post that advice and I’ll respond in turn. Let’s get to it!
“Practice more than you play & always watch the ball.”
Alright. I think this counts as two pieces of advice, but we will tackle them together. First, “practice more than you play”. I guess my question would be why? What assumptions are built into this suggestion? Is the assumption that players want to improve?
Should I Change Grips When Playing Pickleball?
When I teach pickleball clinics or offer private lessons, one of the big questions that comes up has to do with grips. Not just how should a player hold the paddle, but should they change their grip during play?
The short answer is: it depends.
First, like with any element of technique, we should ask ourselves why the grip matters. What are we trying to get it to do for us? I see three important elements worth considering:
PickleBob: How Not to Welcome New People to Pickleball
I just took a friend to play pickleball for the first time at a drop-in gym session at a YMCA in a small town in the winter in Canada. My friend had no racquet sports background but was eager to have fun and learn to play. I called the community centre earlier in the morning to ask about times for PB. They told me there was no pickleball today but there was open gym time which meant it was to be used however people wanted. I asked what the chances were that we could put out a pickleball net in part of the gym to play. The person on the phone assured me that it would be fine – the gym was a large space.
The Pickleball Coach’s Guide to Impactful Communication
Effective communication is the backbone of successful pickleball instruction. As a pickleball instructor, your ability to convey information clearly, concisely and with a tactical connection can make an important difference in the learning experience for your students. Let’s talk about three key aspects of effective communication that can help you be more effective when talking with your players.
The Myth of the Followthrough in Pickleball: Debunked
Why does the followthrough matter? If you’re like most people, your answer to this question is incorrect.
There’s a very good chance that you believe the followthrough helps send the ball where you intend it to go. Whether you’re hitting a serve or a return, a drive or a lob, you may think that you should follow through toward your target so that the ball goes in that direction. But does it really work that way? No, it does not.
Imagine for a moment that you are going on a vacation to a tropical paradise. You buy your tickets, pack your bags, and arrange for transportation to the airport. After going through security and getting on the plane, you realize, about 30 minutes into the flight, that you left your oven on. You have a problem, and it's too late to rectify it.
Pickleball Success: Mastering the Mental Game
Welcome to the fast-paced world of pickleball, where finesse meets ferocity and agility is your best friend. As a professional coach, I've seen countless players improve their game through physical training and a better understanding of tactics and technique. But what truly separates champions from contenders is the art of the mind. Let's delve into some of the psychological skills that pickleball players need to perform at their best.