By Mark Peifer
DIRECTOR OF OFFICIATING
THE PURPOSE BEHIND THE RULEBOOK
“ In my humble opinion , the most important thing is to understand the purpose behind a rule . If you understand the purpose , as opposed to blindly following rules , then you just won ’ t be someone who doesn ’ t violate them , you ’ ll be known for your sportsmanship .” – Morgan Evans , Selkirk Professional and Co‐Founder of CoachME Pickleball
The Official Rulebook is the most important written product of USA Pickleball and the International Federation of Pickleball ( IFP ). Those involved in rulemaking do so with a keen eye focused on making sure the purpose behind a rule change is provided , much as pickleball pro Morgan Evans states , “ In my humble opinion , the most important thing is to understand the purpose behind the rule . If you understand the purpose , as opposed to blindly following rules , then you just won ’ t be someone who doesn ’ t violate them , you ’ ll be known for your sportsmanship .”
The USA Pickleball Rules Committee ’ s priorities are to make sure that the rules maintain the integrity of the game , stay true to the game ’ s founders in keeping the game fun , and minimize conflict on the court . Within those three priorities , countless hours are devoted to explaining the purpose — the reasons why a certain rule is modified or a new rule is adopted in the annual update to the Official Rulebook . For each of the past two years , the reason for every rule change has been explained in the eponymous Change Document . The Change Document highlights not only what has changed , but why — often with example scenarios to describe how the rule is applied in actual on-court situations . The Change Document is located on the USA Pickleball website , below the Official Rulebook .
We are not aware of any governing body that provides the level of detail that USA Pickleball / IFP does in the Change Document . This year , however , that was not sufficiently effective ; just providing the purpose behind the rules was not enough . There are many of you who play the game and want more opportunity to provide input , to review new rule ideas before they are approved and adopted , and most importantly , desire a higher degree of transparency of how a rule becomes a rule .
Accordingly , after some appropriate benchmarking of other sports , we have significantly modified the process we will use for updating the Official Rulebook for 2022 . Each step in the new process will be provided on the USA Pickleball website , from the call for ideas and review of ideas submitted , to the initial vetting of the ideas by the IFP Rules Committee and the voting results of each idea as they pass from the USA Pickleball Rules Committee to the USA Pickleball Board of Directors for approval .
Continue to hold us accountable . The Official Rulebook may be owned , vetted , reviewed and approved by USA Pickleball / IFP , but the rules “ belong ” to the playing public . It ’ s important that we all feel some ownership for the rules so we each can be known for not only our knowledge of the rules , but also our sportsmanship . •
MARCH / APRIL 2021 | MAGAZINE 11