WHY DO THEY PERSIST IN PLAYING BACK COURT BANGER PICKLEBALL ?

WHY DO MANY PICKLEBALL PLAYERS CHOOSE TO STAY IN THE BACK COURT & PLAY A TENNIS STYLE POWER FOREHAND & BACKHAND GAME ?

SHORT ANSWER: . . . that's the only game they know!

LONG ANSWER . . . They just want to have “fun and get exercise,” by banging a ball back and forth across a net ,with a paddle, until someone misses. The "finesse style" of pickleball play holds no interest to these folks. And when they hear the word "practice," it's game over.

Many new or novice players decide to stop their pickle ball education as soon they can hit a forehand and backhand shot over the net. From that point on these impatient protegees are ready to take on the challenges of the pickle ball world at large.

No philosophical theorizing in these findings. I have experienced this phenomenon numerous times, when volunteer coaching at adult Pickleball Beginner Classes.

Caveat: Many such classes are sponsored by local government recreation and  aging departments, free to a specific demographic. Using volunteer instructors avoids fee based coaching by certified professionals.

But such is not the case with Aerobics, Yoga, Tie Chie, Spinning, Gymnastics,  Personal Fitness Training. These are paid certified professional coaches with personal liability insurance.

As pickleball continues to grow, even volunteer instructors will need to be certified, and carry liability insurance for their own protection.

Due to the liberal attendance policies of these free classes, participants can come and go as they please, and decide for themselves when to play in higher skill level programs.

Instructors are not permitted to determine the readiness of a novice play to enter “open play” venues.  Due to the problems caused by unskilled and unschooled newbies, who choose to play with skilled experienced players,  many open play venues in the more populous pickle ball states, now require players to have a minimum 2.5 skill level, and have completed a Beginners Pickle ball Class.

Maryland for the most part, has not yet implemented such restrictions. 

IPTPA 2.5 skill level requirements are listed as follows:

• Knows rules, two bounce rule, scoring & player positions.

• Demo basic pendulum swing on forehand & backhand side

• Demo consistency dinking, forehand & backhand

• Demo consistency dinking cross court

• Demo a punch volley

• Attempt 3rd shot drop from transition area & baseline

• Demo moving to NVZ for dinks & volleys

• Demo overhead return

• Demo control on forehand stroke (direction, depth, height)

• Demo backhand ground stroke

• Keeps ball in play during short rallies

Unschooled and unskilled players  who lack rules and scoring knowledge, and repeatedly hit balls out of bounds, or into the net, causes excessive delays of game.

Better players often avoid playing with or against these individuals. The isolated players, will then play together, monopolizing one court for entire play time.   This results in excessive  between game wait times, and overcrowding on any reaming courts. Thus the reasoning behind the  2.5 minimum skill requirement.

Indoor court space and time has become a precious commodity, and one not to be wasted for any preventable reason. Pickleball often competes with tennis and badminton for fee based public facility court space. 

Private Tennis Clubs who offer Pickleball often require expensive membership fees. Or they begrudgingly offer public play pickle ball once a week for two to three hours, $5-$10 per player.  

So what does all this analysis have to do with, “why many players choose to play a back court tennis style power game?”

Stay tuned for Part II “to read the rest of this story.”

PART II THE REST OF THE STORY! Many players who consistently hit power forehand, backhand or overhead shots from any where on the court, have not learned the mechanics or advantages of the specialized finesse pickle ball shots, used by advanced players. 

Some of these specialty shots include deep baseline serves, deep middle court return of serves, baseline and transition zone forehand and backhand drop shots, backspin drop shots, cross court forehand and backhand dinks, put-away dinks, overhead offensive lobs, punch block volleys, hard low down the middle drives, and pace changing blocks.

The common denominator among all of the shots in pickle ball is ball placement. Last but not least is the all important, “shot selection.”  Knowing what shot to use and when to use it! 

This raises another question, "why haven't these players taken the time and put forth the effort to learn these shots?  The usual response is, " I don't have time to learn and practice, I only have time to play."

This is one reason why many popular pickleball  regions in the US, have initiated the minimum 2.5 player skill level requirement, and completion of a certified Beginners Pickleball Class before a player  can participate in "Open Play Pickleball venues. And it seems to be working very well.