Pickleball Tip of Week #6

I am emphasizing this tip so you can observe what i am saying when the pros are here playing on April 21st. Pickleball is all about CONTROL. In order to be able to hit the ball with the most control you must use AMS.

A....Anticipate. You should be able to anticipate where your opponents are going to hit the ball back to you. You do most of this subconsciously, and part of it consciously. Watch your opponents paddle, remember how they've hit back in the past, know where would be the best place for them to hit it back. Use this knowledge to know ahead of time where you should expect the ball.

M....Movement. You should move to the spot that you Anticipate the ball will be coming back to you. If you are able to do this, you will be sitting there waiting and be able to do a

S.....Smooth stroke to return the ball. Generally a nice smooth and SHORT backswing is best. The more compact the shot the better.

Using this method of anticipating, moving to the return spot, and smoothly stroking the ball back gives you ultimate control on the return. When the Pros are here you will see that they are rarely out of position. They are not usually hurried on their strokes. And generally give a nice smooth stroke return. 

The opposite of this is what you want to AVOID. That is Not being ready for where the ball is going to come back , moving too late to get to the ball, and quickly "poking" at the ball instead of doing a smooth return stroke.