poaching

Jeff Shank – Poaching, Drop Shot and Position Adjustments

Jeff

** NOTE ** – This is the last of our Series Of Pickleball Tips from Jeff Shank. I want to thank Jeff for taking the time in preparing this video and for allowing me to share it in segmented form. I hope all of the pickleballers who visit JBRish.com have learned as much from Jeff’s tips as I have.

Things to watch for in this video (below)

  • What characteristics would make a ball a good candidate for a touch drop shot?
  • Why would you want to hit a serve return to the better poacher?
  • What responsibilities do partners have once a ball is “called” by one of the players?
  • If players are in a position where one is back and one is closer to the net (i.e. the non-volley zone), what protocol should be followed, according to Jeff Shank, with a ball hit down the middle?
  • Why is it necessary to get an overhead deep rather than shallow? (In the demo, the last shot is really the deepest and probably represents the “best” example).
  • When your opponents are in a position where one is back and one is deep, what is the best procedure to follow when returning a shot?
  • How do you respond if your team has “a gap” that creates a tempting target?
  • What adjustments does Jeff recommend for teams composed of right-handed and left-handed players who don’t play together often?

** NOTE ** – Everyone will recognize that there are two parts to developing new skills. The first is knowing what to do, but the second, and just as important, is being able to do it. I have read a great deal about pickleball over the last two and a half years and I have spoken to excellent players and the one thing they all have in common is to remark that to really improve, a player needs deliberate practice not just just playing. AND…if you can have expert guidance during the practice.

NOTE – To find out about this series of posts, i.e. 100 Pickleball Strategies by Jeff Shank, read the first post HERE

 

To See additional Pickleball Videos Covering Many Aspects of the Game Click Here (primarily for beginners and less experienced players)

Check out Additional Pickleball Info and Videos! (for all players including average to more experienced players)

To Poach or Not To Poach – Rules of Poaching Explained

Jeff

To Poach or Not To Poach: The Etiquette of Crossing the Line
By Mark Renneson**

“Poacher!” That’s what someone – a spectator – yelled during a recent intermediate pickleball game I watched. It was meant not as an observation, but a reprimand of the man who crossed the centre of the court to put away an attempted dink that floated a little too high. With the tone she used, she might as well have yelled, “Ball hog!” It was clear that this spectator viewed poaching as a kind of etiquette infraction, a pickleball sin that was both rude and obnoxious. But is it?

To be clear, poaching refers to crossing over the centre of the court to hit a ball that is otherwise destined for your partner. It means that you must abandon ‘your side’ of the court in order to intercept/steal ‘your partner’s ball’. There are a few reasons one might poach:

  1. your partner is farther back in the court than you and allowing the ball to go to her will result in the ball getting low and being in a less than desirable position. You poaching, on the other hand, gives you the opportunity to hit the ball while it is still high and thus in a more enviable position to hit hard. Here is an example.
  2. You think you are a better player than your partner and are more likely to make a good shot. By coming across and taking balls aimed towards your partner, you are ostensibly giving your team a better chance to win by having the better player hit the ball most often. Here is an example.
  3. You like hitting the ball and are willing to leave your side of the court to satisfy your desire.*

So, is it a faux-pas to poach? The answer is, it depends. Like most things, context matters. If you are playing a competitive match where the primary goal is to win, I think you can justify poaching for reasons 1 and 2. In this situation, both teammates should have similar goals and personal ego should be set aside for the good of the team. If a poach is more likely to result in a winning shot then it is a reasonable play. If, however, it is a friendly, recreational match, things get a little murky. For most people, the fun comes from hitting the ball. And since poaching takes away your partner’s opportunity to hit the ball, it takes away some of their fun. You become not just a shot stealer but a fun stealer!

If we think back to the story that started this article we see how important the context is. The woman who yelled “Poacher!” as a reprimand, clearly saw the poach as stealing the fun of one of the players. If that exact same shot had been hit not during a fun pick-up game at the Y but in the gold medal round of a tournament, perhaps she would have yelled something more congratulatory.

So where do we go from here? First, err on the side of caution. Until you learn otherwise, assume that your partner cares more about being part of the game then about winning. Even if you can poach some of their balls, maybe hold off, at least for the start. Second, talk to your partner. Ask them how they want to handle balls over the net that either person can get. See what they say. Finally, encourage your partner to go for balls if they are in a position to put them away – even if they are on ‘your’ side of the court. This can show that you care more about the team doing well than you hitting a certain number of shots.

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*This information is being presented with permission from the author, Mark Renneson. Mark is a 5.0 pickleball player, coach and advocate. He is the founder of Third Shot Sports which provides first-class tennis and pickleball training. He lives in Collingwood, Ontario, Canada. You can reach him at mark@thirdshotsports.com


Click the link to register to receive the Third Shot Sports Pickleball Newsletter

Click the link to see Third Shot Pickleball Past Newsletters.

Click the link to visit the Third Shot Sports Pickleball website.

Thanks to Mark and Third Shot Sports for allowing this to be presented on JBRish.com

Trunks of love

Jeff

Those readers who follow my blog, know that I am a student of and have an interest in photography. At one time I worked as a professional photographer, but now I enjoy it as an enthusiastic hobbyist.

My interest has led me to follow a number of photographers via the Internet. I review dozens of articles each day and one of my latest reads was “Preparing for a Safari Trip to Afric.” This essay had many fine photographs and hints for those who want to embark on a photographic safari to Africa. You are certainly welcome to visit the site and read the article. If you are only interested in the photographs, you will be equally rewarded.

One such photograph that I found particularly poignant, is the baby and mother elephant below. These beautiful and noble creatures are under pressures from poachers and deserve our attention. I think they are majestic and worth protecting.

Baby and Mother Elephant

PS – If you are interested in a photo safari, read the comments as well!