My Best Pickleball Tips to Beat 99% of Players

I can usually tell within two minutes who's going to win a pickleball game because the players that win consistently do a few things very differently. And honestly, most rec players are focusing on completely the wrong things. Hi, I'm Ashley Griffith, a professional pickleball player on the PPA Tour. And these are the mistakes that I see amateurs making every single day that are costing them games. And what's crazy is that these are actually really easy to fix once you know what to look for. So let's get into it. The first mistake I see, and honestly, this is a big one, people are speeding up balls that they have absolutely no business attacking. If the ball is below the net, you're attacking from a losing position. A lot of players feel like they always need to be aggressive, but better players aren't attacking more. They're attacking more on the right balls. One thing I see a lot of players doing is after about three or four dinks, they get impatient and they speed up any ball. But speeding up bad balls just makes easy counters for your opponents. You want to attack balls that you can make contact with out in front and above the net whenever possible. And truly, if you become more disciplined with the balls that you're choosing to be aggressive on, you'll instantly cut down on a lot of unforced errors. The best players stay calm until they get the right ball. And the next mistake is honestly probably the biggest reason that people are losing hands battles. If you notice, you keep losing hands battles all the time. Your hands are not probably slow. You're probably late. At the kitchen, compact short movements win and big swings lose. You want the paddle out in front, elbows relaxed, and your backswing as short as possible. A lot of rec players drop their paddle too low after the shot. And by the time they react, it's too late and they're not getting good contact on the ball. The higher level players we play, the less time we have to react. So if your paddle starts low, you're already behind in the exchange. You don't need massive swings at the kitchen. Most hands points are won by who has the quickest and shortest swings. One thing that's helped me a lot is keeping my paddle out in front of my chest rather than letting it drift up, down, or sideways. That tiny adjustment alone is going to make your hands feel way faster and have you feeling like you have a lot more time. And if you guys are enjoying this video and want to see more breakdowns from a pro player's perspective, make sure to subscribe. I'm going to be posting a lot more videos like this. And now this next mistake is something that I see a lot of players doing when they're under pressure. People are stepping off the line and backing up a lot in the court. The kitchen line is where we win games. The more you back up, the harder it is going to be to win. When you retreat, you give away angles, open up the court, and make your resets way more difficult to hit. A lot of players panic after a speed up and immediately start drifting backwards. But usually, staying calm and holding your position can give you a way higher chance of neutralizing the point. Now, obviously, there are times that we definitely have to back up, but it shouldn't be your default. The best players absorb pressure without constantly retreating. And honestly, learning how to stay balanced and hold the line more consistently will help you win a lot more. And now this next tip is going to be the easiest way to force more errors from your opponents. The middle causes so many errors. A lot of people go for crazy shots down the line because it looks cooler. But honestly, attacking middle is usually way smarter and a lot higher of a percentage play. You create hesitation, confusion, and force your opponents to have to choose who is going to take that ball. Even half a second of hesitation at the kitchen can completely change the points. The middle of the net is also lower, so this makes it higher percentage as well. You don't always need a clean winner. Sometimes pressure alone creates the error. One thing pro players do is they constantly make people hit uncomfortable balls instead of trying to hit perfect shots every time. And now this last tip is probably the biggest difference between advanced players and everyone else. The best players stay patient longer. When you watch a high level pro point, they're hitting 10, 20 dinks if they have to, to make their opponent hit one more ball. Most pickleball points are actually lost, not won. And the higher level that you begin to play, the more true that becomes. A lot of matches are decided by who stays disciplined longer under pressure. If you can reset one more ball, dink one more ball, or just stay in the point one more ball, it is going to make you that much harder to beat. Consistency truly puts pressure on people. And solid players are the hardest to beat because they make you beat them. They make you have to be creative and do something to win the point. That's why higher level players often look calmer because they are trusting the process of building the point. And honestly, this tip alone will help you win more games. So to sum everything up, we want to make sure we're attacking the right ball, getting our paddle up early and being ready. You want to stop backing up off the line, attack the middle more, and make them hit one more ball. If you guys enjoyed this video, make sure to like and subscribe for more pickleball content. And if you've been looking for a new paddle or grips, I'll link the paddle and grips that I use down below. Along with my discount code that'll save you some money on both. And if you want to keep improving your pickleball game, go watch one of these videos next. Thanks so much for watching.