How to Improve

How to improve

1. Buy totes from Trader Joe's like I use in class. They hold 50 balls. 

2. Buy 50-100 Franklin X-40 balls. Color default is Yellow. If you get any of the other colors, recreational players may not want to use them. However, non yellow pickleballs get stolen much less frequently and are also easy to spot which ones are yours when in a busy rec situation. Quantities of 100 are usually cheaper, but not always. Price per ball will vary from $1.60-$2.30 so check it throughout the year.

3. Read through the Player Skill Rating page from USA Pickleball. Use the Skill Assessment sheets to place yourself into a skill level. 

4. Then use it as a checklist for shots you need to work on in order of priority. As you progress, move up to the next level Skill Assessment sheet.

5. Take pickleball classes from good coaches. The only way to tell they are good, is to take a lesson from them. See below for assessing a coach.

6. Pickleball camps can be useful, but the Monday classes are a much better value. Camps are $650-$850 for 2-3 days of instruction, but it's difficult to absorb that much information so quickly. $200 for 5 ninety minute classes is a much better value.

7. Take private or small group lessons to help you get over any obstacles impeding improvement. I recommend taking a lesson with a trusted coach every 1-6 months depending on how fast you are improving. Have a specific goal in mind and then the coach can address it.

8. When playing a rec game, don't focus on winning. Focus on a particular shot or skill you need to improve on.

9. Use this website as a resource to find information and the best pickleball videos on YouTube

10. Take video of yourself drilling, doing each shot, and playing rec games. When reviewing footage, you'll be able to spot bad habits you have that you would not otherwise know about without selfie video. Also use the videos to track your progress. Retake every 3-6 months and track your improvement. I do this on my YouTube channel. Look at my forehand drive in January 2025 and then in May 2025 and see the improvement.

11. Get to the courts early in the morning when it's least crowded and drill. Watch this video for directions. 

12. You can also do drills against the wall. I actually don't recommend a ball machine unless you have a court in your backyard. Ball machines are heavy, take time and effort to get into and out of your car and to the court and set up and then you have to pack it up again. Practicing alone or with a drill partner is ideal.

13. Dinks need a drill partner, but footwork, drives, serves, lobs, and drops can be practiced solo.

Assessing a coach

1. Do they inquire about what you want to learn and what your goals are?

2. Do they have your pickleball goals and safety as their top priority?

3. Does he/she answer any questions you have?

4. Can he/she explain precisely how to execute a shot, demonstrate it, coach you through it from beginner to advanced level by designing and executing a drill for each level?

5. Organized - Does he/she have a class outline and plan for each class session?

6. Flexibility - Can he/she adapt their class curriculum to what the student wants to learn?

7. Can he/she spot what you need to improve on and then guide you through a drill designed to address the area in need of improvement?

8. Are you improving?

My experiences:

1. My first coach at a community college was terrible. He would brag about how good a player he was, probably a 4.5-5.0 level, the tournaments he'd win, none of which improved our pickleball game. He would let us play, but wouldn't structure any class drills or instruction or divide us up by skill level. It was just rec play that we had to pay for.

2. My second coach at a community college was also terrible. A 3.0 player at best who had little idea how to set up drills or improve our pickleball game. She just pretty much would let the class play and that was about it. Again, it was just rec play that we had to pay for.

3. At this point I was pretty frustrated and looked to the internet for instruction. I found several good YouTubers and ended up taking their camps and some others. See Camps for more info on this experience. This is how I learned to play Pickleball properly. 

4. I took a private lesson from 2 additional coaches. In Santa Monica I learned nothing for $170. In Arizona, I learned to take off pace when practicing drives. This was super valuable and with this small piece of information, I have developed a whole lesson. I tell my students to do their drives in slow motion until the stroke looks good, then increase the speed in stepped graduations until 80%. After that, we use a ball at 50% and go from there. After our drives with a ball are solid, we move into game scenario ball feeds.

Videos I recommend:

Why You’ll Never Be a 4.5 Player - Essential Tennis. Record yourself playing and drilling and pay attention to your:

Technique

Position 

Targets

Footwork

Mental