Pickleball Magazine 5-1 | Page 30

scene on the court By Craig Laughlin Occasional Observations from a Pickleball Curmudgeon X-Games Legend Gets Unsolicited Advice on Fundamental Pickleball Strategy W hen X Games legend Levi LaVallee (famed for his snowmobile double backflips) showed up to give pickleball a try, I was there. Watching this raw beginner make one amazing shot after another was a testament to his astonishing athleticism. During a break, I asked Levi if technique and strategy were important to his success as a professional snowmobiler. He replied yes. I mentioned that him and his partner having just lost a game to my wife and her partner was evidence that, in pickleball, technique and strategy can be employed to beat superior athletes. Asked if he had taken the time to watch any of the top pickleball players on YouTube, he said, “Yeah, they just dinked the ball back and forth, back and forth, and then all of a sudden, bang, bang, bang. I watched that and thought to myself, ‘That can’t be right!’” I laughed out loud and asked permission to offer a few tips. We talked for quite a while, and here’s what I shared with him. Pickleball is not an intuitive game when it comes to strategy. Most beginners, and many experienced recreational players, try to hit a winner every time they touch the ball. This is especially true of former tennis players, who are accustomed to using force and placement to hit winning groundstrokes—especially from the baseline. This is often a winning strategy when playing against beginners and recreational players, but doesn’t work so well when one graduates to playing against better competition. Early success with this strategy results in what multi-time national champion and teaching pro Scott Moore calls “positive reinforcement for negative decisions.” So, here’s some fundamental information that will help you to make good strategic pickleball decisions: 1. The advantage is at the non-volley or “kitchen” line. Two good players at the kitchen line will form a wall at the net, stop most groundstrokes from getting through, and will keep the ball in play until you make a mistake. You and your partner should get all the way up to the kitchen line as soon as possible during a rally. 28 TO SUBSCRIBE, CALL 888.308.3720 OR GO TO THEPICKLEBALLMAG.COM 2. Keep your opponents back. If you and your partner are at the net, and one or both of your opponents are back, you will win the rally 80% of the time. Keep your opponents back by serving deep and returning deep, and don’t start dinking until both of your opponents have made it to the kitchen line. 3. Make your opponents hit up on the ball. Your opponents can’t attack a ball that they have to hit up on. This is why you see so much dinking when you watch the high-level players. The object isn’t to hit a winning dink (although sometimes you can), the object is to keep the pressure on your opponents until they make a mistake by hitting the ball in the net or out of bounds, or, most fun of all, popping a ball up that you can smash. 4. Wait for a high-percentage shot. Trying to hit a winner from the baseline is a 50/50 proposition at best. Same for trying to hit a winner on a ball that is between your knees and your waist (probably worse). When you can hit down on a ball your opponent has popped up, your chance of winning the rally goes up to 80 or 90 percent. Much better odds! Make that happen. 5. Don’t let the lines beat you. Beginning and recreational players often try to win a point on their serves or by hitting “down the line” or extreme angle shots. I’ve seen players who think it’s a big deal when they can get an ace on 20% of their serves. The problem is that they serve out of bounds 25% of the time, or more! Those numbers don’t add up to winning pickleball. Same applies to line shots. Until you get really good, the best strategy is to keep the ball in play until your opponents set you up for one of those 80% to 90% kill shots. In summary, pickleball is a chess match. Watch the videos of the 5.0 players and the pros. They concentrate on serving deep to keep their opponents back, they get to the net quickly, they wait for their opponents to make a mistake, and then they pounce. You can play that way too. •