How To Play Pickleball For Beginners: 8 Simple Rules

Over the past few years, Pickleball has exploded in popularity as the fastest growing sport in the United States. Not only is it a fun and exciting game, but it’s also super easy to learn and doesn’t require much equipment.

So whether your a complete beginner looking to get into pickleball, or just want to fine-tune your understanding of how to play pickleball and the rules surrounding it, we’ve got you covered.

In this blog, we’ll give you a step-by-step guide on how to play pickleball and the key rules you’ll want to be aware of in the world of pickleball.

Let’s dive in!

The Basics Of How To Play Pickleball

Pickleball is played either in singles or doubles on a court that resembles a tennis court, but about ⅓ the size.

Players hit a plastic ball, similar to a wiffle-ball, over a net that measures 36 inches high at the sidelines and 34 inches high at the center, until one side is unable to return the ball or commits a fault. A fault is any violation of the rules that stops the play of the game, such as a serve not landing within the receiving court or the ball is hit out of bounds.

Main Shots

Like tennis, there are three main shots in Pickleball.

Serve: Performed underhand and cross-court from the baseline. Serves must fall within the court and land past the kitchen in order to be valid.
Groundstrokes: Hitting the ball off the bounce. Groundstrokes are usually done farther from the net or at the baseline.
Volley: Hitting the ball out of the air. Volleys are usually done closer to the net, but sometimes can be useful to perform mid-court.

Court Lines

Similar to other racket sports, Pickleball courts consist of multiple lines that help specify the boundaries and playing fields.

Baseline: The baseline is the line at the very back of the court which falls parallel to the court. Serves must be performed behind the baseline in pickleball.

Sidelines: Sidelines fall perpendicular to the net. They form the side boundaries on both sides of the court.

Centerline: The centerline is located directly in the middle of the court, and splits the backside of the pickleball court in half.

Non-Volley Lines: The non-volley lines, otherwise known as the kitchen lines, are located 7 feet from the net on either side.

What You Need To Play Pickleball

Pickleball’s rapid growth is partly due to the sports’ ease of access and relatively cheap equipment compared to other racket sports.

In order to play a game of pickleball, you’ll mainly need to make sure you have:

• Pickleball paddles
• Pickleball balls
• Pickleball court (local or set up your own)

Additional pickleball accessories such as court shoes, bags, and hats, can also be useful, but they are not absolutely necessary when you’re just starting out.

Now that we understand the basics of how to play pickleball, let’s look at some of the key rules associated with the sport.

Rule #1: Serves must be performed underhand, cross-court, and land past the kitchen.

Unlike tennis where serves are performed overhand, pickleball serves must be done underhand so that contact with the ball falls below waist level. In addition, for a serve to be considered “in”, it must land cross-court (diagonal) and past the 7-foot non volley zone located on either side of the net, known as the kitchen.

The underhand serve rule of pickleball makes it relatively easy for beginners to pick up as compared to overhand serves, which require more technical skill when first starting out.

For a beginner’s guide on how to serve, check out Kyle’s video here!

Rule #2: Only the serving team can win points.

One of the biggest differences between pickleball scoring and other racket sports is that only the serving team can score a point.

If the serving team wins a rally, they are awarded a point and continue serving as long as the receiving team fails to return the ball properly.

If the opposing team wins the rally (in singles) or wins rallies against both servers (in doubles), they take control of the serve and can score points with successful serves.

Rule #3: A ball touching any part of the line is in.

This rule might sound obvious, but a ball touching any part of the line is considered in. Any ball that does not touch the line and lands outside the zone is considered out. A general rule is that players should only call a pickleball “out” when they see a clear gap between the ball and the line.

Rule #4: Points are ended by committing a fault.

For both the serving and opposing team, points are ended by committing a fault. A fault is any violation of the rules of pickleball such as:

• Hitting the pickleball into the net
• Hitting the pickleball out of bounds
• Allowing the Pickleball to bounce twice
• Any violation on the Pickleball serve (e.g. not serving underhand or cross-court)
• Contacting the Pickleball with anything other than your paddle (e.g. shoulder, foot).

For the most part, these faults will be similar to ones you’d find in other racket sports like badminton and tennis.

Rule #5: The Kitchen Rule.

Pickleball has a distinct rule where you cannot volley within a 7-foot non volley zone located on either side of the net, known as the kitchen. The kitchen rule is in place to prevent players from standing at the front of the net and smashing down everything.

Rule #6: The Two Bounce Rule.

For tennis players, the two bounce rule is often the hardest to get used to as it is quite different from tennis. The two-bounce rule means that the receiving team must let the ball bounce once before returning the serve back over the net, and the serving team must also allow the ball to bounce once more before returning it back over.

This two bounce rule is meant to eliminate any serve-and-volley edges by requiring the ball to bounce before the serve and return.

Rule #7: The Double Bounce Rule.

Often mistaken for the two-bounce rule, the double-bounce rule is another key rule in pickleball, where a ball that bounces twice on the same side is considered an immediate dead ball. The double bounce rule applies at any point during a rally, including the serve.

Rule #8: Games are played to 11 points but must win with a lead of 2.

In pickleball, games are usually played to 11 points, however, a two-point lead is mandatory in order to win. For example, If the score reaches 10-10, a two-point advantage is required for a team to win. This means the match could end with a score of 12-10, 15-13, and so forth.

How To Start A Pickleball Game

Any fair method can be used to determine which player or team has the first choice of side, service, or receive. The most common method is to simply flip a coin.

Pickleball Singles Strategy

Pickleball can be played in either singles or doubles, with each variation requiring a slightly different strategy. For how to play a singles pickleball game, you’ll want to focus mainly on:

• Keeping serves deep with good pace.
• Returning serves deep and ideally to the corners.
• Varying your shots to prevent your opponent from catching on.
• Hitting a deep forcing shot into the corner and moving up to the kitchen (non volley zone) when your opponent struggles to return the ball.
• Being as consistent as possible and let your opponent make the mistake. You don’t need to try and go for a winner or passing shot on every point.

Pickleball Doubles Strategy

Doubles pickleball is by far the most popular version of pickleball. In addition to having good communication with your partner, a solid pickleball doubles strategy will involve focusing mainly on:

• Keeping serves deep with good pace, but still maintaining the stroke below waist level.
• Returning serves deep and ideally to the backhand of the opposing team, as backhands tend to be the weaker stroke for most people.
• Executing good drop shots, ideally to the feet of your opponent as it makes the ball a lot more difficult for your opponent to return.
• Getting you and your partner to the net where you can have more control over the rally.
• Again, consistency is more important here. Pickleball is more about hitting the right shots at the right place rather than power.

Pickleball Scoring: Singles Vs. Doubles

Pickleball Singles Scoring

• In singles, the score consists of two numbers, for example 0-0. The first number represents the server’s score, and the second number represents the receivers.
• The first serve starts on the right side. If the first server wins the rally, the server switches to the other side of the court, so the receiver must line up either on the right or left side according to the server. 
• The first server will continue to serve as long as he/she keeps on winning the point. Only when the server loses the point either by losing a rally or committing a fault, then will the opposing team become the serving party.
• When the server’s score is an even number, the serve is always done from the right side; whereas, for odd scores, it is done from the left side.

Pickleball Doubles Scoring

• In doubles, the score consists of three numbers, for example 0-0-2, with the first number representing the server’s score, the second number representing the receiver’s score, and the third number representing the server, #1 or #2.
• Each team in doubles receives two serves, one for each player, except for the team that serves to start the game. The team that first serves to start the game only receives one serve, which means every doubles match will start with a score of 0-0-2. (0 points for the serving team, 0 points for the receiving team, and 2 because only one serve is allowed the first serving team).
• At the start of the game, the player on the right side (even court) serves to the diagonally opposite court. If a point is scored, the first server moves to the left side and serves to the diagonally opposite court.
• Only when the second server on the team loses his/her serve, then does the serve go to the other team, which is known as side out. That pattern continues throughout the game, with the serving team always starting their serve with the player on the right.
• If a team’s score is even, the player who initially served in that game must be on the right (even) side of the court and on the left (odd) side when the score is odd. If this is not the case, then either the players are on the wrong side of the court or the score is inaccurate.

In A Nutshell

We hope you found this complete guide on how to play pickleball useful. With it’s simple equipment and relatively straightforward rules, pickleball is a great sport for beginners and seasoned plates alike.

So, grab your paddle, step onto the court, and get to pickling!

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