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Rules — Then and Now
Every new year brings new pickleball rules ,
which are administered by USA Pickleball and the International Federation of Pickleball ( IFP ). This last year brought a few major changes — which you can find in the 2021 Official USA Pickleball / IFP Rulebook , or 2021 Alternate Rulebook , which is undergoing a one year public comment period and won ’ t be used in tournaments . The discussion is ON !
On nearly every topic , there are players hopping up to “ fix ” or “ improve ” the matter at hand . And maybe the pandemic gave some of us extra time to think up problems .
But we are not ones for heated discussion or controversy ; we are all about having fun . Period . And we thought of offering a refresher course on the history of rules .
Barney McCallum ( one of the three founders of pickleball ) explained that it took about 15-20 minutes to decide between an underhand or an overhead serve . During play in Bainbridge Island that first summer , the overhead serve idea went out as fast as it came in . What helps make pickleball such a great game , Barney believed , is that the serve isn ’ t so dominant , as it is in tennis .
Barney actually penned the very first one-page “ Official PICKLE-BALL RULES .” The last two items from the 1975 rules are listed here verbatim : HONOR SYSTEM : The opposition calls the shot on their side of the net . If uncertain , opponent may ask the other side for help on the call . If uncertainty still exists , the point may be played over at the opponent ’ s option .
CLARIFICATIONS : A shot on the line is good . Players never exchange their position on the court , except in the proper rotation of service . For tournament play , ball must be an official pickleball . Racket surface must not exceed 10 ” diameter at any point .
After the rules created by Barney and PICKLE- BALL Inc . in the 1970s , a few more rules were deemed necessary . Sid Williams ( 2017 Pickleball Hall of Fame ) and his U . S . A . P . A . board members had rewritten some rules for competition , because players apparently needed something more cumbersome than Barney ’ s one-page rules book . 1984 brought the first U . S . A . P . A . Rulebook — and we have “ cumbersomed on ” since then !
By Jennifer Lucore & Alex Hamner
1975 Official PICKLE-BALL RULES SHEET
History shows that debate and passionate discussions are the norm . In Jennifer ’ s book , “ The History of Pickleball — More Than 50 Years of Fun !”, there are several instances documented where Rules Committees spent lots of time ( years even !) to review , debate , discuss , and decide .
Fast-forward to recent years and consider all the new or revised rules : Number of 2019 Rule Changes - 59 Number of 2020 Rule Changes - 94 Number of 2021 Rule Changes - 125
OK , that was exhausting — we are done counting . Phew !
The USA Pickleball website states , “ Well over 100 rule change ideas were collected from individuals who sent in an idea via email , or from social media . Those ideas were put through a lengthy vetting , review and approval process , involving close to 70 individuals .” Looks like they implemented Every . Single . Idea .
To shine a bit of light onto this discussion , only 27 of the 125 “ Rule Changes ” were actual new rules — and over half of those are “ behavior rules .” The rest of the changes are really just clarifications !
Pickleball is the fastest-growing sport around the world , and IFP is the governing body that ensures that the world and all of its member countries have a good understanding of the basic rules of pickleball .
As we have shared in this column since the first issue of Pickleball Magazine , we had the pleasure of calling Barney McCallum our friend and had the unique opportunity to spend time with him over the last 10 years . With that insight , we can ’ t help but think about all the rule changes and wonder , “ What would Barney say ?” •
Jennifer Lucore and Alex Hamner started playing pickleball in 2010 , and have competed in numerous tournaments across the U . S . Jennifer also competes internationally , and both ladies have been inducted into the Pickleball Hall of Fame . Jennifer and Alex have 26 national titles , but are best known for winning gold in Women ’ s Open Doubles at Nationals for four consecutive years ( 2011-2014 ). They live with their respective families in North San Diego County . For more pickleball fun , visit Jennifer ’ s blog at
www . allpickleball . com .