More Little Things

I am always on the lookout for simple but effective tips that can accelerate your pickleball growth. Here's three that I have encountered lately:

Ball Machine Drills - if you are drilling drives or drops from your baseline with a ball machine, don't stand directly in line with the ball as it comes out of the machine. Continue to face the machine in a ready position, but move a couple of feet to your left to force a forehand shot, then move a couple of feet to the right of center before the next feed to force a backhand shot. This is better than staying in one spot since you are forcing yourself to do a complete reset of your mechanics for each shot. No lazy cheating, great for footwork practice, and you will get better faster.

Spin Dinking - Earlier today a friend wanted to drill what I call spin dinking - adding a bit of backspin to her dinking. Rather than just let her practice it constantly, I had her hit two regular flat dinks and then try adding the backspin, IF the opportunity was appropriate. So it really simulated an in-game experience, forcing her to rethink every shot properly rather than just mindlessly repeating the same thing. The result is much more effective drilling.

Baseline Drills - Much like the first tip above, but if I have a partner feeding me, I like to alternate drops and drives. Maybe two or three drops, then a drive IF APPROPRIATE. By this I mean you really should be in an almost perfect position any time you attempt a drive, otherwise a drop is much easier to execute. So by practicing 2-3 drops and then a drive, you are again simulating a real game experience. Footwork gets better, shot selection is improved, and you will get better. The other funny little thing that might happen is that you may find a significant difference in your drop vs drive success rates. Just sayin...

See you at practice!

Michael Gauthier
Rally Academy
Pickleball Strokes