Practice the Mental Side

Plan to win...

The theme of this week's posts has turned out to be how to respond under pressure. The theme continues today with an article from Sarah Ansboury about developing the mental part of the game. Her thought is that pressure can be overcome by planning and practice...and not necessarily with a paddle. Excerpts from her article Pickleball Challenges: The Mental Side of the Game are shown below.

We often practice our shots…thinking that perfecting our strokes is the key to winning. But if we don’t control the mental side of the game we will often come up short. Today, we’ll focus on preparing yourself mentally before a tournament.

Rescue Shots

Get me out of this mess...

We have all been there - out of position, on the defensive, fighting to keep the point alive. We talked about one situation in yesterday's post about resetting the point after a bad third shot puts you under attack. But there are other game scenarios where we need to find a "rescue" shot, i.e., a shot to get us out of trouble. Sarah Ansboury has article at the RV Picklers' site titled What Should I do When I’m Out of Position on the Pickleball Court in which she gives us some advice. An excerpt is shown below.

Don’t Panic

Often players find themselves in a defensive position and panic. Out of panic, players try to go straight from defense to offense.  This is the equivalent to a pickleball hail Mary…it only works one out of 100 times.  Instead, your goal should be to move from a defensive to a neutral position.  To do that, consider these three things.

Lead Tape

The right tool for the job...

Let's continue Monday's paddle discussion with a new trend that allows a player to adjust the feel of the paddle - lead tape. Sarah Ansboury wrote an article for the RV Picklers' blog titled Should You Add Lead Tape to Your Pickleball Paddle? in which she discussed the topic. Excerpts from Sarah's article are below. She includes some other important points in the full article.

Pickleball Paddles: A Weighty Issue

So now that we know we can, let’s ask the question “why”. Just as in tennis, yes some tennis players add lead tape to their tennis rackets, lead tape alters the weight and balance of the paddle. A four-inch strip of the 1/2 inch tape weighs two grams. The Head Extreme Pro paddle I use is 7.6 ounces. If I add 4″ of tape to the edge of the paddle, my 7.6-ounce paddle becomes 7.74-ounces. That may not seem like a big difference to you…but paddles are pretty light so a few ounces can mean a lot.

More importantly, it alters the balance of the paddle….by this I mean the relative weight of the handle versus the face of the paddle. Many times a player will pick up two paddles thinking one weighs more than the other. However, if you placed the two paddles on a scale they weigh exactly the same. The player perceives the one paddle as heavier because more of the weight is distributed outside of the handle. I can feel the two grams referenced above.

Sarah's Ideal Grip

Control means letting go...

I gave a lesson to near beginner last week. As I always do, I check the grip first and explain the advantages of the continental grip. But there is more to the grip than the paddle handle's relative position in the hand. Sarah Ansboury talks about some of the important parts of the grip in her RVPickler article The Ideal Pickleball Grip, an excerpt of which is below.

Ideal Pickleball Grip

The ideal pickleball grip requires you to hold the paddle with your fingers.  There should be space between the palm of your hand and the handle of the paddle. Rather than your thumb running up the handle, it should go around the handle. This will minimize the risk of hyper-extending your elbow or over-utilizing your wrist.

Learning from Lessons

Mastery is in the reaching, not in the arriving.

Lessons can be great motivators...but only if the student comes with the right attitude to walk away with the right learnings. Sarah Ansbory has an article to discuss the right way to approach lessons. It is titled 3 Keys to Making the Most of Your Pickleball Lesson and excerpts are shown below. The ideas are a good things to keep in mind if you are attending the Mark Renneson clinic I posted yesterday.

I was recently asked, “Who are the players that are able to apply what they learned during a pickleball lesson to their game?”   I thought it was a great question! So I gave it some thought…

Foot Faults

Sasquatch has one big disadvantage...

I refereed at least 10 matches at the Senior Games last week. In all of those matches, I had to call only one NVZ foot fault. That seemed unusually low but I did referee the games with either the most experienced or least experienced players. The better players knew better than to foot fault and the less experienced players never even approached the line. Some of that may also have been as a result of having a referee. Other games were reportedly different. I was told there was a lot of foot faults in those games.

Many players are not aware that the primary job for referees is to watch for foot faults. One likely reason for this is that it is very hard for players to make the call unless the violation is obvious. Players normally have their eyes on the ball and not on either their opponents' nor their own feet. Today's post is excerpts from a Sarah Ansboury article on the topic titled Pickleball Foot Faults: Do You See Them?

Today we are going to focus on pickleball foot faults.  We will talk about the causes and how we can detect them in ourselves, our partner and those we are playing against.  Do you think you see foot faults during play?

Keys to NVZ Lobbing

Its OK to be offensive...

Many player think of the lob as a defensive shot. For them, it is used when in trouble or when needing time to regain position. While those are appropriate, the lob can also be used as an effective offensive weapon. We have discussed this shot in the past, most recently last week's post with Jordan Briones. Tomorrow's Briones' post will also be on the topic. Today's post is an excerpt from Sarah Ansboury's article 3 Keys to a Great Pickleball Lob.

Pickleball Lob Key #1:  Pick the Right time

When you are at the non-volley zone line, you want to look for times when hitting a lob will be most effective.  Typically, this is when your opponent is crouching down.  You are looking for your opponent to be hunched over, head down or their paddle below their waist.  All these are signals that this is a good time to lob.  Take the ball in front of you, keep your body steady and extend from your shoulder.

More on Balls

See the ball, hit the ball, the brand doesn't matter...

I wrote an article last week about playing with 4 different outdoor balls - Playing with Four Different Balls. Sarah Ansboury had a recent article on her blog that discusses balls from the perspective of a tennis player. Whether that applies to you or not, she makes some great points.


Tennis Balls vs Pickleballs…There are Differences

During our stay in Florida this month I realized there is something former tennis players need to realize about pickleballs. You see tennis balls and pickleballs are not the same.

From Drills to the Game

Don't overthink, just let it go...

I have been posting a lot about drills...and that will continue. But there is a question that always comes up - "How do I make sure that my practice sessions improve my play during games?" Sarah Ansboury had a recent article on just that subject. Below is an excerpt from Taking Your Pickleball Drill Practice to the Game.

Give Yourself a Break…Play!

When you are working to improve your game, you may do very well during pickleball drill sessions, but you find that your old habits seem to resurface when you are in recreational or competitive play. Remember, that these ebbs and flows are common, and in fact necessary, on your journey to improvement. You need to give yourself a break!  Accept that this is part of the process, and play.

Hitting a Wall...Figuratively

When a wall blocks your progress, don't bang your head on it...

Everyone I know has reached a stage in their pickleball life where progress has stopped. Those who are not satisfied with that stage find ways to break down the wall that blocks them. Sarah Ansbury talks about her fight to improve and discusses ways that we can do it too. Her article Hitting a Wall…Is Your Game Stuck? is excerpted below and can bee read in full at the link.

Hitting a Wall…Is Your Game Stuck?

I love pickleball. I am crazy about this sport, as most of you are. One of the biggest things I love about pickleball is how much I can still learn and grow. However, at times I feel like I hit a wall…I feel stuck. Does this ever happen to you?...

Asking for Directions

I only learn things when I ask questions...

Since my referee experiences, I have written a couple of articles about how to solve confusion on the court, mostly about player positioning. One of the most basic ways to figure out the answer is the simplest way - ask someone. Ask a ref if available. Ask your partner. Ask your opponents. As I said in one article - "Asking is not a challenge to one's masculinity". So don't be like the stereotypical male who won't ask for directions. Use your human substitutes for a GPS.

Sarah Ansboury's article Remembering the Pickleball Score shares the same advice. Excerpts are below.

There are a lot of things to think about on the pickleball court…many of these cause us stress.  Keeping track of your pickleball score should not add to your stress.

Adjusting your Strategy

Hope is not a strategy...

Have you ever been in a match where one team had a comfortable lead, e.g., 8-1, only to have it all fall apart and the game swings to the other team? It seems to happen a lot in pickleball. That situation calls for a change in strategy and that is today's topic. Sarah Ansboury and the RV Picklers recent article called Adjusting Your Pickleball Strategy in which she discusses the topic.  Excerpts are shown below.

Good teams will adjust their pickleball strategy if it isn’t working. Being able to recognize a situation is not working is a huge part of your journey to pickleball mastery. It is also important that you recognize when your opponents have decided to try something different.

The Importance of Strategy

Hope is not a strategy...

A lot of my articles are labeled "strategy". But they really are more about micro-strategies related to what target to hit or what stroke should be used. Very few articles are about macro-strategies, meaning what you and your partner plan to do during a match. Sarah Ansboury had a great article in her blog called Pickleball Strategy: The Importance of Having One in which she discusses the topic.  Excerpts are shown below.

I have found that many players have difficulty learning how to develop a successful pickleball strategy in a match. There is a tendency to just keep dinking without purpose, or to get bored and try to create something out of nothing. Today we discuss the basics of creating a pickleball strategy.

More on Dinking Targets

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

I recently wrote a series on targeting, including dink shots. Sarah Ansboury has an article discussing her thoughts on the same topic. The article is called Do You Think About Where to Dink? Some excerpts are shown below.





Many players define a successful dink as a soft shot from the NVZ line that lands anywhere in the non-volley zone. However, I have a different theory as to where to dink.

Fix Your Back Pain...and Your Game

Back pain is youth leaving the body...

I was drilling on dinks several weeks ago when my back started to tighten up. A friend who often gives me advice told me I was bending from the waist. Instead, I needed to get lower in my stance while keeping my head up. Another friend commented that the proper position would be felt with soreness in my legs and glutes. To make a long story short, I needed to lower my butt.

A couple of experts have some similar advice. Let's start with Sarah Ansboury and the RV Picklers in the article Pickleball Posture: Oh My Aching Back! Here is an excerpt:

STOP BENDING AT YOUR BACK!

I see poor pickleball postures at many levels of play. Often people crouch over, making themselves seem smaller. This is really bad for your body, putting stress on your back, hips, hamstrings, quads and more. Not only is bending at your back bad for your body, but it affects your ability to play at your best.

Slow Down for Better Decisions

When the why is clear, the how is easy...

The series on targeting has reached the point where it is appropriate to discuss decision-making. The first 2 parts of the series on the serve and the return of serve require little decision-making "on the fly". All 4 players are essentially locked in place and decisions about targets can be made well in advance of making the shot. But the third part of the series - the third shot - and future shots will require much more fluidity in the decision-making process. A couple of concepts will make the process easier. We will use 2 Sarah Ansboury articles to highlight the concepts

First, Sarah emphasizes that a quality shot is of paramount importance, regardless of strategy, in this excerpt from her article The Third Shot Drop is Important…But Not Your Only Option.

Hitting a Quality Shot

It is important to try to hit a quality shot each and every time. Often we rush through shots, trying to get ready for the next shot. If, instead, we had focused on hitting the best shot at that moment, we would have set ourselves up for a better next shot. If I am not in a good position to hit a quality third shot drop, I will drive the ball and work on getting into position for the next time it comes back over the net.

Always remember there is never a shot you have to hit every time you go out there… you always have options.

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.

Targeting: The Experts on Depth

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

The past 2 Mondays have covered targeting strategies for the serve and the return of serve. Today would ordinarily be reserved for the third shot since this series is written to coincide with the topic of my skills & drills clinic held on Tuesdays. However, tomorrow's clinic has been deferred to next week. Therefore, I want to spend today reinforcing my articles with advice from experts. The targeting strategies for the third shot will be covered next Monday. 

Before I get to the experts, let me reiterate the strategies and their priority order:

1. Get it in-bounds.
2. Get it deep.
3. Get it to the backhand or weaker player.

One of the most important factors to keep in mind is the limit of your skills. Move down the priority list only as your skills allow. That means practice and drilling to move down the list.

Keep Your Eye on the Ball with Paddle Tracking

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

A recent article from Sarah Ansboury has caused me to revisit a topic I wrote about in May - keeping your eye on the ball. Sarah makes several good points and recommends a couple of techniques to help you with the right focus. The following excerpts are from Sarah's article Keep Your Eye on the Ball…A Simple Pickleball Tip on the RV Picklers blog.

Sarah's first recommended technique is one you have seen before. In Keep Your Eyes on the Ball - How to Do It, I wrote:

Matt Blom was an instructor at the Pickleball Summit and had students go through several ball toss drills while instructed to "watch the holes in the ball". This provides even more focus when a player is about to hit the ball.  Excellent advice.

Do the Unexpected

Body language gives away tendencies...

Being predictable is a good thing in certain activities - like driving a car. Predictability in pickleball is not a good thing...as opponents can better anticipate shots, position themselves early, and make more effective shots. We have learned some deceptive techniques but the strategy goes beyond those. Sarah Ansboury talks about that strategy in her article called Pickleball Choices, Sometimes Hit the Unexpected, from which an excerpt is shown below.

Pickleball Choices:  Problem or Benefit

Of course, too many pickleball options may be a major stressor in your game. Some studies suggest that the human mind is actually able to think of four things at once. If you have four targets in mind as you are striking the ball, it is likely your body won’t produce any of those as a result.