Rules Quiz - More Serve

1. Margy recently added pickleball to her recreational activities in addition to tennis, which she has played for 20 years. In her pickleball games, she occasionally slips into tennis mode and once even tried to serve overhead! A routine she learned in tennis to help calm her nerves is to bounce the ball before her serve. At a crucial point in a recent pickleball game, she bounced the ball and served to Jimmy. Rather than hitting the serve back, Jimmy caught the ball and claimed that Margy faulted by bouncing the ball. Margy said that the bounce was before the point was initiated and Jimmy faulted by not returning the serve. Who is right?

************************************************************

2. Margy has a power serve that she likes to use because it leads to many winning points. While it is legal by meeting all of the rules of a serve - upward motion, contact below the waist, and paddle face below the wrist, it is a sidearm motion that extends from her body. Margy also likes to serve from near the center line when she is in the left court in order to hit her serve down her opponent's center line. She does this against Jimmy and hits an ace. Jimmy protests by claiming that Margy's serve was illegal because her paddle crossed the extended center line into the right court. Was Jimmy right?

************************************************************

3. John uses an unusual serve a few times per match in order to confuse his opponents and win an easy point. His serve requires him to toss the ball high in the air and letting it drop below his waist to make it legal. He used the serve against Jimmy but a sudden gust of wind hit the ball when it was in the air. The ball moved so much that Jimmy missed it and it fell to the ground as John finished his swing. He picked up the ball and was getting ready to serve again when Jimmy claimed it was a fault. Was Jimmy right?

The following Jeff Napier video called Crazy Pickleball Serve illustrates the motion.

See tomorrow's post for answers.