A Legendary
Coach by MATTHEW SCHWARTZ
He ’ s well-known in the pickleball community as “ Coach Mo ,” or simply “ Mo ,” and he ’ s given free pickleball lessons in 21 states and overseas for the past 20 years .
Richard Movsessian has just finished giving a pickleball lesson near his home in The Villages , Florida . His four students approach him , but no one pays him . They say , “ Thank you , I learned so much ,” and “ You ’ ve improved my game tremendously .” Some hug him . A player from an adjacent court yells over , “ Hey Coach Mo , you got a minute ? I need help with my third-shot drop .”
Movsessian , 83 , is happy to help any pickleball player who asks , free of charge .
He ’ s well-known in the pickleball community as “ Coach Mo ,” or simply “ Mo ,” and he ’ s given free pickleball lessons in 21 states and overseas over the past 20 years , only getting reimbursed for expenses when hired to conduct out-of-town clinics .
“ I just enjoy seeing players improve ,” Movsessian says when asked why he gives free lessons . “ It gives me joy . I never dreamed of making money from it .”
He focuses his instruction on percentage pickleball , being patient and making fewer unforced errors than your opponent . He mixes humor into every lesson . To stress the importance of accurate serves , he ’ s fond of asking students , “ If you miss your serve , what is the only thing your opponent needs to win the point ?” His answer : “ A pulse .”
Among his other favorite sayings is , “ Keep your shots at your opponents ’ toes . Give them a free pedicure .” Also , “ The best place to hit the
At 83 , Richard Movsessian , “ Coach Mo ,” is happy to help players free of charge .
ball against a married couple is between them because they have poor communication skills on the court .” He says that one in jest . Sort of .
In a bow to modernity , instead of calling the transition area of the pickleball court “ no-man ’ s land ,” Mo calls it “ no-person ’ s land .”
Movsessian often uses the word “ leeway ,” as in , “ Give yourself leeway when hitting it deep .” To emphasize this , he puts a disc on the court 6 feet from the baseline and asks students to try to hit it . “ If I put the disc 2 feet from the baseline , a lot of 3.5 and under players would often hit the ball out deep ,” he explains .
Movsessian relied on percentage pickleball when he played regularly . At the 2010 USA Pickleball Nationals in Arizona , he was twice as old as most of his opponents in the 35 and over men ’ s doubles bracket . He and his partner , then the top-ranked Phil Bagley ( one of the three national champions Mo has coached ), were among 32 teams competing . Their opponents consistently picked on the senior citizen .
“ Since Phil was 42 and I was 70 with gray hair , they saw me as the guy to hit to ,” Movsessian recalls .
His team won silver .
“ I kept every ball to their toes . I hit highpercentage shots , 80 percent down the middle to backhands , made very few unforced errors , and waited patiently for our opponents to accidentally hit a ball
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