Video

Starting at 10:38, there are 3 very poor excuses for a Lob. Is it Christmas? Why in the world would anybody, repeatedly, lob directly to a player standing at the NVZ? Lob over your opponent's head. Move him back. The objective is, a ball he can't get to or at the very least, after he gets to the ball, he is way back in the court giving you the advantage. On the other side of the net, when your opponent gives you a gift like that, don't return the ball so it bounces in front of him. Slam it at their feet or as they did the 3rd time, hit it to where they are not. At 11:30, I love the poach then slamming the ball into his opponent's left shoulder. Well done! BTW, a 5.0 player would have targeted his right shoulder, chicken-winging him. Some play is 3.5 level. Some is less.

That was great

Very good example of the disadvantage to players, & their partners, if they do not move up to the NVZ. It’s hard to convince tennis players & bangers the importance of dropping the ball & moving up.

I consider myself under 3.0 and have a difficult time giving myself credit, but I honestly think I could play the losing team with minimal problems. I have a hard time believing they are 4.0. Also, the constant paddle hand changing is a real issue - I don't even see the lower-level players doing that...

Great video!

I live in a town of 750 people in a mountain valley. But we have 45 members in our club from our valley. We have 2 other clubs in the county. Skills range from 2.0 to 5+. We are in a tournament this weekend. We will have 5 ofnus representing from our little club. will let you know how we do. Some of our members play like the video but we do drills and put on clinics. All are improving.

Left hand player makes her shots off of one leg..lol

Hey Rory, I am interested in playing tournaments. Do you have to play your age group? Or in other words, can I play with younger players?

If this isnt 3.5, than what is 3.5 supposed to look like?

I believe its 3.5. The dinks are good but they are not moving the opponent. Its almost as if the women are playing catch with each other instead of keep away. I would think that at the 4.0 level they would be moving

I’m half expecting to see a backflip inside forehand with a Marvel superhero fist smash landing.

Rory, At 1:15, you notice the player in blue is side-slapping the ball and say that causes a side-spin (you are correct) then, a moment later you call call it back-spin. Back-spin and side-spin are different. You can return a ball with a back-spin by simply changing the angle of the paddle face. If the ball coming to you has enough pace, there is no need to swing or punch. Some players chop down to cause the back-spin but that is not necessary and usually doesn't end well.

This is what confuses me about the rating system. The woman in the light purple shorts almost never third shot drops. She drives the ball almost always. You can tell she is extremely fit and very muscular so she is using her power and not necessarily the techniques which are listed in what a 4.0 should be using.

How bad was the play in this tourney if this is a 3.5 mens Gold medal match?

I can tell how enamored you are with the women in pink. But you really did not give any credit whatsoever to the other team. They didnt get pickled, they were not slaughtered. The team in pink had to work hard tomget their points. Give credit all around where it is due.

Very good pickleball reviews on this channel. I am curious if the players being reviewed are able to take some nuggets of info from your videos.

I really enjoyed this match , thank you

Also... Cliff is a big time table tennis player. Much of his technique is from his years of playing ping pong.

You are absolutely 100 % wrong. My hand sweats a LOT. Wearing a glove allows me to grip the paddle more easily. I tried both ways this past week. After playing without the glove the handle got wet and slippery. After I put the glove on I had full control and feel. It may not affect all players. There is definitely an advantage of wearing a glove for me.

I am relatively new to the game. I have 4 months playing time stretched out over a year - spent too much time on the IR from a calf muscle tear a week after I discovered the game last year, and a sciatica problem 6 weeks after I started playing again last August (65 years old). I use an off brand paddle I purchased from Amuzon for $99. I am destroying people who use $250 paddle and who have all the appropriate fashion to go along with it. I would guess I am a strong 3.5 - I have no clue. I'm probably a 4.0 - as soon as I perfect the backhand flick. I didn't want to spend money without knowing much about the sport. However, I just ordered another 99 dollar paddle as it works very well for me. It's called Xspac XS I think. Don't judge by appearances.

The play is consistent, but not any attacking play. Hitting soft may look impressive until someone hits a ball with some pace to draw an error. The ball is being hit so soft by both teams so less errors by both.

The double Lindy

Another good game to watch. I think a 4.0 is probably right. Was going back and forth during play but not enough to go up or down from 4.0. Very entertaining.

4.0 play in Minneapolis in the new expansion section at Lucky Shots. As I have mentioned, the play is pretty good around theTwin Cities, especially at the indoor PB facilities and these women represent that although I would guess a couple of them are over 4.0. Based on what I have seen on some other videos from other locations on this channel, where they list play at 3.5 or 4.0 or 4.5 -- it usually seems off to me. This video though, is similar to what I would expect for 3.75-4.25 open play around here.

Watching these ladies emphasizes how important the 3rd shot drop is for the serving team.

Don't call missed returns "free points" some returns are very difficult. Maybe an error but they are not haphazard shots "to give it away"

I wish we had some female players of this caliber around here.

every time

@13:00 the near court players should be moving forward in phases depending on how their returns go, not just running hoping to make it all in one return. When the return crosses the net you stop moving or continue moving based off the 3rd shot height of impact.

Maybe by the time they got to the finals both teams were very tired and didn’t play their best…

Hello, is there a way to send you a video I’d like you to pick apart? (Namely: “Men’s Friday Championship - Game 2 - June 21, 2024”)

I am not this good at my advanced age but I noticed that when my opponent is hitting a lob, his chin is up, not down as in a typical drop shot.

This match answers my Q: US Gold is only for those who buy the plane tickets to enter. These guys aren’t even good 3.5 players.

I appreciate the commentary but I prefer to watch the entire point. too much pausing makes it difficult to remain involved in the point.

Terrible court, no room to move. Who made them?, quite bizarre!

The player in red definitely sucks at ping pong too.

I’m here to defend the losers. I was sent this clip because my son is one of the losers. Definitely not 4-0. He actually probably got drafted to this because he is a long term tennis player but I’m sure is unrated since he’s a newbie. Probably only the 5th or 6th time he has played. He does like it though. My tennis player brother has joined the pickleball cult. He and his wife are in this video. czcams.com/video/-wE56jHxoqU/video.htmlsi=5Qav_dluLmIZiU_G PS: I suspect my attorney loser son will improve and join the cult. The critique was good. I just know that one player is actually a beginner.

Very useful commentary. Having the names of the players on the screen would help me keep them straight and immediately know who you are referring to.

Looks a lot like my game! Maybe I am a 3.5? Maybe????

A lot of head scratchers here. Way too inconsistent and far too many unforced errors to be 4.0. 3rd shot execution needs a total overhaul.

Game seemed to be pretty low energy. Like many have said, it’s easy to judge. We all think we look better until we see ourselves on camera. Let’s just say that the group (especially the guys in the near court) didn’t play with much sense of urgency. Never would have guessed a gold medal was on the line.

They seem to be playing quite tired, which makes sense at this stage.

The two young bucks overuse deception, they'd probably play better if they didn't choreograph nearly every shot, I can only make it half way thru the vid, cheers. I'd push them harder, play much more aggressive against that style, they'd give up on the theatrics and have to play defence

I'm 68 and feel I can beat these guys any day of the week.

Painful, cannot watch. Watching this puts me at a solid 5

Excellent match and come back for Samoans--I thought the match was going to be a quick one but I should know better at the 5.0 level :-)

I'm unsure. I'm 50+ in age and play my clubs 3.0 to 3.5 courts and do very well. But all my tournaments at 3.0 I have an absolutely horrible record. And my dupr is 2.8, all set when I had only been playing a few months. So who knows what heat, tiredness, mental pressure and other factors took them to where the game does seem kind of "meh" for 3.5, gold medal play. Congrats to them for getting there!

That is a low quantity us open tournament if this guys can get to the gold medal round.i played for 9 months and consider myself a 3.5 player, i think i can easily beat these guys.

I thought you couldn't step into the "kitchen" at all when playing.... just trying to learn the rules before I go out and play.

I don't know.... I played pickleball in PE in high school and we had a net at our house and played almost daily, late spring to early fall. I have been to a few clubs where they play and to parks where these yahoos in matching shirts and shorts act like they are pro tennis players and honestly, they all would get smoked by any one of my friends or myself. I don't know what the ratings are or how this works but if this is supposed to be competitive top level pickleball, it's pretty sad.