Targeting: Practicing Serves and Returns of Serves

Be sure to positively identify your target before hitting the ball...

I mentioned yesterday about the priority order of implementing targeting strategies and that players should move down the priority list as their skills improve. In addition to the drills shown in Chapter 2 - The Serve and Chapter 3 - The Groundstroke and Return of Serve, this post discusses how to practice these shots to improve your skills.

We will start with a Keith Bing video - Serve & Return Serve Drill: Hit the landing zone. This video shows 2 players marking off an area 5 feet from the baseline with the objective of hitting both the serve and return of serve into that area. The video cannot be embedded so click on the link above to view.

Pickleball Bounce Test

The way the ball bounces...

About a year ago, I posted an article titled A Pickleball Controversy? in which I used a Keith Bing article to show the problem with the then new Onix Pure 2 ball. Since then, the USAPA has announced that the ball will be banned from USAPA tournament use beginning in 2018. Also since then, Franklin has marketed a new ball - the X40 - that many players now prefer. Keith has done a new bounce test for 4 balls that show why the Onix ball remains the least-preferred ball among top players. 

Pickleball Bounce 2017 from Keith Bing on Vimeo.

Pickleball Shoes

Good shoes take you to good places...

The equipment requirements for pickleball play are minimal for an individual, consisting mainly of a paddle. But an often ignored piece of equipment just may be the single most important item to have – proper shoes. I was reminded of that recently when I began shopping for new shoes. Unfortunately, my old shoes were discontinued.

I started to play pickleball with cross-training shoes. After every day of play, my calf muscles were in pain. Orthotic inserts helped but were never 100% effective. Then I switched to tennis shoes and the pain disappeared. The USAPA recommends a court shoe to fit the stresses of pickleball play. Our game requires the body to move forward, backward, and side-to-side. Players need a shoe that provides stability on the inside and outside of the foot to support lateral movement. Court shoes made for tennis or even volleyball fit the bill.

Sarah Ansboury wrote an article explaining her recommendations.

Court Shoes…Your Feet will Thank You

Perhaps because I grew up playing tennis, I have always considered good court shoes as important as a good racket. And the same is true in pickleball. If you aren’t wearing court shoes already, please make the switch…your game and your feet will thank you.

Why You Need Court Shoes

What is an Illegal Serve

I don't have to play by these rules, I actually have my own version...

I occasionally run across a player who stretches the limits on serving rules. Most of the time there is no real advantage gained, but sometimes there is. We discussed one method to address an illegal server yesterday. We will get another method later in this series. Before taking these steps, we should be certain that the serve is actually illegal. Below is a video from Keith Bing called Legal & Illegal Serve that shows serves of both types.

Keith illustrates an illegal service motion that breaks all 3 rules - 
the paddle is not moving low to high, the paddle face is not below the wrist, and the ball is nor struck below the waist. While Keith illustrates all 3 rules being broken, a serve is illegal even if only one rule is broken.

Keep Your Eye on the Ball to the Paddle - Part 2

Keep your eye on the ball - even if you can't see it...

We started discussion yesterday about keeping your eye on the ball based on an item from The Best Advice You Ever Got. Today we'll show another example of a coach preaching the philosophy.

This video comes from Keith Bing and features Coach Cat. It is called Keep Your Eye On The Ball.

Keep Your Eye On The Ball from Keith Bing on Vimeo.

A New Resource - Keith Bing

Start where you, then learn from others...

I am always looking for new sources of information. Some time ago, I discovered a set of Vimeo videos from a coach in Florida, Keith Bing. I never included them in my blog because I was not able to embed them in posts. But I have now completed the links to 63 new videos in my Resources page.

The following information is from Keith's website:

At age 16 Keith Bing was teaching exercise classes for seniors. Keith is now a senior teaching pickleball to 16 year olds. Keith has taught K-6, MS, HS and College. Outside the classroom, he has tutored hundreds of individuals with interests in Apple Macs, the internet, and digital print, photo & video production. Keith's coaching experience includes softball, basketball, field hockey and pickleball.

A Pickleball Controversy?

The introduction of the Onix Pure ball has created some controversy in the pickleball world. For many it is too bouncy and changes the nature of the game. For others, it is quiet, soft, and long-lasting. Keith Bing discusses the controversy in a blog post called Pickleball Bounce.

Pickleball Bounce

Pickleball Bounce from Keith Bing on Vimeo.

After 50 years of Pickleball, the first Pickleball ‘ball' controversy has arisen. Pickleball is growing fast and it was bound to happen that some communities would find themselves at the sharp end of neighborhood complaints about the ’sound’ coming from newly installed Pickleball courts. As the complaints have grown, more communities have looked for quieter balls and paddles which have lower decibel ratings. There are many ‘quiet’ paddles on the market but few ‘quiet’ balls, until now. The Onix Pickleball with a higher bounce, lower dB rating and a longer court life has become a competitor to the old reliable Dura. Unfortunately, the Onix, though quieter, changes the way the game has been played since its inception. Most of the controversy centers around the 3rd shot & dinking which are at the heart of Pickleball. Because the Onix bounces much higher than the Dura, the soft shot is no longer so soft and players are finding their opponents can smash their perfect third shot instead of having to reach down to dink it over the net.  

A few observations about the Dura and Onix pickleballs.

1. The Dura ball has been the gold standard when it comes to bounce for many years. 
2. The Onix ball has a significantly higher bounce and a longer lifespan than the Dura. Sound levels are lower. It should be noted that paddles are a greater source of high dB levels than pickleballs.
3. Players in the 3.0 range seem to favor the Onix ball. (They also tend to give up learning the 3rd shot & dinking)
5. Players 3.5 and above seem to favor the Dura Pickleball.
6. Using either the Dura or the Onix Pickleball will require different shots and strategies to be employed during play depending on which ball is being used.
7. It has even been suggested that if the Onix pickleball is being used the net should be raised to 38 inches at the posts and 36 inches in the middle. 
8. Maybe someone will come up with a ball that has the bounce of the Dura, the lower sound level and lifespan of an Onix and the cool green color of the briefly introduced and now vanished Wilson Pickleball.