Rules At A Glance
Pickleball Objectives and Rules
Objectives: To keep the ball within the boundaries of the court (inbounds).
To make your opponent miss;
To cause your opponent to fail to get the ball over the net; or
To cause your opponent to hit the ball out of bounds.
The ball is served underhand from beyond the baseline.
There should be only one bounce per side.
Unless otherwise agreed to, games are played by ones to 11 points, win by 2.
The 5 Rules of Pickleball
Rule 1: Out-of-bounds rule
The ball must remain in bounds to stay in play in pickleball or any other court sport like paddle tennis or badminton.
Pickleball’s out-of-bounds rule states that the ball must land within the boundaries of the court. Any shot, except the serve, that lands anywhere on the court is “in” which includes all pickleball court lines. The ball is out if it lands entirely outside the lines on the pickleball court.
A point is awarded to the other team if a player hits the ball out of bounds.
Rule 2: Serving Rules
For pickleball beginners, the serve is simply a way to place the ball in play. Higher-level players often use the serve as an offensive weapon.
You must make the serve with an underhand stroke to make contact with the ball below the waist. The pickleball serve should land within the confines of the opposite diagonal court. Each server is allowed one serve attempt. The serve must be made from behind the baseline.
A failed serve attempt means that the serve will go directly to your partner or the other side if you play singles.
Serving sequence rules
The serving sequence rules are simple: the first server serves from the right side of the court. After scoring a point, the server switches sides and initiates the next serve from the left side of the court.
Rule 3: Double bounce rule
Pickleball follows the double-bounce rule. When you serve, the receiving team must let the ball bounce before returning it. Next, the serving team must allow it to bounce before they hit the ball. Therefore, it is known as the Two-Bounce Rule.
A player or team that fails to do either of these things loses the point.
Second-bounce rule
The ball can not bounce twice, there should only be one bounce per side. Like in tennis or padel, the ball can only bounce once on your side of the court before you return it. However, the ball doesn’t have to bounce before being returned. After satisfying the Two-Bounce requirement pursuant to the rule, you can volley the ball before it bounces on your side of the net.
Rule 4: Rules in the non-volley zone
In pickleball, the non-volley zone is defined as the area within 7 feet of the net on both sides of the court. It is also known as “the kitchen.”
It is prohibited for players to play volleys in the non-volley zone. The purpose of this rule is to prevent players from executing smashes from within the zone while in it.
The serve can’t land in the no-volley zone
The pickleball may not land in the non-volley zone or on the non-volley zone line. If the pickleball lands inside the “kitchen”, the serve will be lost.
Rule 5: Scoring Rules
Unlike many other racket sports, pickleball only allows the serving team to score points. As a result, the receiving side cannot score. Every time a point is scored, players on the serving side move from right to left or left to right.