Pickleball! Players Claiming To Be Better Than They Are. Why Are They Not As Good As They Think? 

You're so right, just hit the ball and hope for the best. They need to study the game, work on shot selection, and shot mechanics, but we were all at that point when we started.

The big tell for me was that neither side *ever* tried a dink. Not once. There was one mis-hit ball that was functionally a dink, but it wasn't done on purpose. At 3.0 folks won't be *good* at dinks, but they'll try some. At 3.5 I think it's one of the rating criteria not only to be dinking some of the time but to be developing awareness of attackable vs. non-attackable balls. AFAICT these players thought every ball was attackable. 😅 On another point, I think at 3.0 or lower a short return can actually be very effective. They'll often give you a soft serve that will make it easy, they'll have trouble realizing that you're doing it, and they won't be quick coming up to get it. Like a short serve, it can be a good occasional change-up to keep people from "settling back" too much thinking they know where you'll put it. Or maybe that's a bad habit I need to shed on the way up to 4.0.

It should be mentioned that even if all these players are at the 2.5 level it's nothing to be ashamed of, you have to start somewhere. Not everyone can be Anna Bright 🎾

I agree with your assessment. I think it is not necessary the physical skill level but the tactics being used (hitting it out, no 3rd shot drop or drive, no consistency). this looks like beginner play as there are no good rallies due to the high number of errors

Agreed about 3.0 not being 3.0. Sometimes you play down to your competition. Gray team is going to win 100% of the time no matter how they play. At least one of the gray team probably wasn't a 3.5 but with the short serves they already get to the net and maybe thought they could win any net battle also and they would be right. Would like to see them against a true 3.5 team. I don't mind playing against beginners but too much of it s not good for my game. I play differently for several reasons.

As I watch ...dont see any of the 4 at the 3.5 level. ...3.0 at best. Honestly I see very little of the skill sets demonstrated to compete at the 3.5 level. Good point regarding practice when playing with lower level players. Thanks for posting.....always fun to watch and learn.

Wind did not look to be really a factor here (I live in a very windy location), as Rory kinda points out, the positioning, shot selection, footwork, basic swing mechanics are all 3.0 or less. If playing against beginners in rec play, it is sometimes beneficial to use your non-dominant hand and focus on good decision making, dinking strategy etc...also fun to practice that two handed back hand on every shot possible. 😅

You make it sound like being a beginner is a really shameful thing.Thanks for that!

Looks like the wind played a bit of a role, but I agree with your analysis, neither team looks 3.5. Truth be told, as a primarily indoor player...in the wind, I'm not 3.5, either.

Good assessment, Rory. Spot on!

I think the guys in grey,, especially the guy with visor is overwhelming with his serve. It's definitely got some pace and spin and the opponents are not handling it well and is setting them up due a bad point. But after the serve.. team grey doesn't have much else. I don't know what to rank them, but I know for a fact any 3.5 in my area would win by far.

I think its a good idea to video your match and watch it back. My friend video'd me and I thought I was moving well but reality was different.

Returning into the kitchen is more effective if you are playing someone with a poor short game, weak 'touch'.

If they are 3.5, then I'm at least 3.5. Makes me feel good. It's the opposite of that sandbagging video the other day. Strange how people rate themselves in rec play vs. tournament.

I think you’re right. One is a 3.0 and the other is a 2.5. I’ve only been playing for about 5-6 months and I’m much better than them and I consider myself 3.0.

It almost seems like the team in black is intentionally using poor strategy. You mention repeatedly that they aren't able to drop it on the third shot but clearly their consistent return drops would work lol

I would say this is a game between 1.0 and 2.5 😊

Black 2.0 Grey 2.5

I'll just go ahead and say it: there's clearly strong winds that are lifting, pushing, dropping, and even moving the ball sideways. Look at the large trees in the back. These are at least 15mph winds with stronger gusts. Anyone that's played in that kind of wind knows you're not going to be able to play your traditional game, and the ball plays like a stranger. Seems a bit harsh given the obvious wx factor.

These people need to subscribe to your channel. They dance in the kitchen while volleying, have very poor court positioning, and poor shot selection. I'm guessing 2.5, for all of them.

2.0 and 2.5

2.0 players