Now that you have found your CORE and benefit from the better balance and effortless power, you are ready for tip #2.

PENDULUM  SWING is the way I hold the paddle when I am up to the NO Volley Zone (affectionately known as the Kitchen) and in my CORE stance.  This pendulum swing is very effective against players that like to hit hard from anywhere on the court. We call these people “BANGERs.”

When beginners first start to play and even people who have played for a while, see a ball hit hard towards them, they have way too much movement from their feet, legs, body, arms, wrist, hands, and head.  There is only ONE motion you should be doing. That ONE motion is the Paddle accelerating toward the ball. Stop the jumping up, jumping back, leaning sideways, closing your eyes and all the other movements except accelerating the paddle toward the ball. Here is how we start:

Be in your CORE stance (the ready position), feet apart and knees bent and body upright.  Your hitting forearm should be pretty close to parallel to the ground at chest height about 6 to 10 inches in front of the body.  Hold the paddle (if you’re right handed) over the left side of your body. Your paddle face should be parallel to the net (facing the net).   In this position, your arm should be free to swing downward or upward from your elbow creating an arc from the left side to the right side of the body.  This is what I call the PENDULUM SWING.

Now remember, the paddle is swinging in its arc and accelerating forward towards the ball.  Keep a stiff wrist and the paddle facing the net. With practice, your reaction time will quicken, and your anticipation will be keener. You will be able to do drop shots, angles, soft and hard hits and make the opponent think twice about hitting to the person that has mastered the pendulum swing.

Have fun with your Pickleball play, keep the game simple, and the ball will look like a slow beach ball coming towards you.

Pickle Relish Mitch