39 | June 2, 2021 | Mark | Non-volley zone is grammatically incorrect. The 'No-volley' zone more accurately describes what a player may not do; no volley's are allowed without penalty. The term no-volley was introduced in the Alternate Rulebook.
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18 | June 2, 2021 | Mary | I agree with the suggested rule change.
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40 | June 2, 2021 | Mary | I dislike this suggested rule change. It will slow down the game.
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23 | June 2, 2021 | Mary | I disagree with this suggestion. Not replaying let serves has been no big deal in our rec play.
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20 | June 2, 2021 | Mary | I love the drop serve. It has enhanced my enjoyment of the game.
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25 | June 2, 2021 | Mary | I agree with having a smaller court for singles.
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20 | June 2, 2021 | Stan | Bob,
Saw on Facebook that you are taking feedback on the Drop Serve. Here's my view from each perspective:
Player - LOVE it. It has helped me and many others overcome the yips. It also relieves some legality anxiety because the focus is just on dropping the ball where it can be seen by the returner. The bonus is that it gives players an option to mix up their serving game and have more fun and grow confidence.
Instructor - LOVE it. I introduce pickleball to a lot of beginners and many of them have never had any racquet sport experience. The Drop Serve is easy to explain, show, and execute. The beginners and novice players that I have worked with find it simpler and more user-friendly. That builds their confidence and adds to the fun.
Referee - LOVE it. I watch the drop for no propulsion and then go to the feet to ensure no foot fault. Less to analyze and my focus is even sharper.
Giving players some options is a good thing for the game. I have not seen any unfair advantage caused by a player using the drop serve. It's fun, it's easy to learn, and it's fair. Let's keep it!
Hope all goes well in Indy this weekend and look forward to seeing you in Hoover next week. Safe travels!
Stan Brown
Birmingham, AL
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40 | June 3, 2021 | Peter | I do not see the benefit of the second serve. Pickleball is not tennis and it will slow down the game (many times, players are waiting for the game to conclude, due to limited court availability).
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20 | June 3, 2021 | DAVID | Please keep the drop serve. I see a lot of new players using it successfully. Also, I have yet to see anyone use the drop serve to deliver any kind of "wicked" serve that is especially difficult to return. I would support a change which made the new drop serve the only allowed serve. Feel free to eliminate the traditional serve.
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23 | June 5, 2021 | Tracey | I agree with reinstating the service let call. I haven’t played with anyone that likes it.
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40 | June 6, 2021 | Darla | This isn't tennis. No thanks to changing this rule in pickleball. One serve is plenty.
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11 | June 6, 2021 | Darla | I easily explain this to people to whom I teach pickleball that the starting server of the game is *functioning* as the second server for the side, so they start with 2. No one I know struggles with this after playing for about a week. It's a fun, unique aspect to the game.
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23 | June 7, 2021 | Pam | Totally agree with the suggestion.
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20 | June 7, 2021 | Pam | I totally disagree with this change. It will slow down the game and is unnecessary.
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27 | June 11, 2021 | Jordan | Instead of "no spin" on serve, I think just outlawing creating spin with both hands would be sufficient.. In other words, one hand only for the toss, one hand to hit with the paddle..
I agree that outlawing the crazy amount of spin that can be accumulated with 2 hands is a good thing for the game long term..
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11 | June 20, 2021 | Alan | Introducing the word "start" into the score call cadence will only result in more confusion I feel. As a new player, the understanding that you call a 1 or a 2 to denote if they are the 1st or 2nd server after each team's score is knowledge they should learn as they first start playing.
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8 | June 20, 2021 | Alan | I agree with the idea of TW/TF resulting in the removal (or additional in some cases) of points. I would add to this that we remove the verbal warning though. You have 3 strikes and then a game or match forfeit.
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16 | June 20, 2021 | Alan | Switching sides in every game would create a bigger issue with the overall time in a match. Adding and additional 2 mins in every best 2 of 3 match will add up quickly based on the number of matches there are in the bigger tournaments.
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27 | June 20, 2021 | Alan | I think we need to look at removing the spin as an advantage in the serve in steps rather than trying to jump to little/no spin only. A good first step might be no aided spin allowed. This would eliminate spinning the ball off the paddle or off another body part. A server could still flick the ball in their hand to generate some spin, but this does not create as much of an advantage.
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31 | June 20, 2021 | Alan | A referee can and should be able to stop play to issues a TW or TF. If a player hits a ball causing it to pop up for an easy overhead winner and the just throw there paddle towards the net, that would be an instance where a referee could stop play and issue the TW/TF. This could be looked at as the referee stopping play for a distraction also and then issuing the TW/TF. There are circumstances where stopping play and issuing a TW/TF do occur though, so I feel that taking that wording out would bring up more confusion.
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32 | June 20, 2021 | Alan | If you remove the phrase "after the serve" and leave in "while the ball is live/in-play", you still have the same rule though. Taking this out and calling a fault for flicking a ball off the paddle for a serve would also introduce the side effect of having a fault called while the ball is no live/in-play which was changed in 2021 to simply when faults were called.
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40 | June 20, 2021 | Alan | I feel implementing this change would have two consequential side effects that I would argue against implementing this rule.
1) A second serve has the potential to extend the time required to complete a game.
2) It introduces the ability to be really aggressive on a first serve which goes against the idea of the rally being where the point should be earned and not the serve. The receiving team/player in pickleball should have the advantage at the start and not the serving team.
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40 | June 20, 2021 | Melody | Giving a second serve opportunity will encourage more players to attempt serves that press the envelope on illegal verses legal motions, since they get a replay. There should be a distinct penalty for illegal serves and the player should not get a do over.
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52 | June 20, 2021 | Alan | I like this change and how it allows the referee a little leeway in getting the game back going. If this is not the desired result, maybe move the warning back to 20 seconds to allow players more time to get back to the court. On hot long days, it tends to take players a little longer to get back on the court.
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40 | June 20, 2021 | Marsha | Disagree. This is pickleball, not tennis. A second serve is not necessary since players can accurately serve the ball the vast majority of the time.
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39 | June 20, 2021 | Marsha | Agree. “Non-volley zone” is a misnomer.
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63 | June 22, 2021 | Marsha | The traditional method of scoring is one of the features that makes pickleball unique and perfectly challenging, It may take some players more time to grasp the method than others, but it is does not prevent them from immediately enjoying the game and they eventually learn the system. There is nothing wrong with the traditional scoring method so I don't see a need to change it. However, when time is of the essence, rally scoring can be used as a variation.
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7 | June 22, 2021 | Marsha | I agree with the wording change.
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29 | June 22, 2021 | Andrew | Just like to say I agree with this rule change! I can tell you in other sports with more mature rule books this is the case.
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26 | June 22, 2021 | Andrew | Would have to consider players who are hard of hearing and wear hearing aids for legitimate reason.
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62 | June 22, 2021 | Don | The losing team should then be required to also sign the scoresheet, in order to keep the winner from rushing to sign it to keep from losing their last point. Perhaps the time limit should instead be "when the Referee Leaves the court"
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26 | June 22, 2021 | Don | My hearing aids are also blue tooth and allow me to hear my phone ring and listen to the caller without anyone else hearing it. It will work at about 20 feet from the phone. You could try to force players to disable blue tooth, but if the phone is on the sideline, the person holding it could quickly enable blue tooth and then call the phone to talk to the player.
My playing ability is better with correct hearing, and I can easily hear the referee and also the "pop" of the ball being hit by the opponents, which is important in my reaction time.
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18 | June 24, 2021 | Marsha | I agree with this change. No loss or gain of points occurs when the wrong score is called. If an incorrect score is not noted before the ball is served, the rally should not be interrupted; the score should be corrected after the rally is completed.
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39 | June 24, 2021 | Paul | I agree with the proposed change. "No volley" more correctly defines the zone than does "Non volley"
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59 | June 24, 2021 | Bill | I agree that the drop serve should be full instated as a permanent rule. I do not agree that any changes should be made to the current rule concerning the drop serve. In all racquet sports the serve is a weapon and should not be restricted. In almost all tournaments you can see some players using the traditional serve in ways that could be considered questionable. In the quick service motion it is almost impossible (without slow motion replay) to decide if all the qualifications for a legal serve have been met. If any new change is made it might be in the best interest of the game to only allow the drop serve. Service questions automatically go away.
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77 | June 24, 2021 | Ken | These proposed changes make sense. One must weigh potential (and likely very rare) abuse of the proposed medical time out rules versus safety of the players. Player safety shouid take priority. Also, as stated in the reasoning for the rule changes, referees and tournament directors may not be qualified to render on the spot decisions about the validity/severity of a medical issue.
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94 | June 25, 2021 | Kevin | I concur with the suggested rule change. Giving players the opportunity to ask questions after the score is called is (and will be used as money grows) to disrupt the game. If referred matches the referee looks to both teams to ensure they are ready and at the same time is giving each team/player the opportunity to raise their hand above their head (halting the game) and then asking the score.
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86 | June 25, 2021 | Kevin | Disagree. No player should be required to yield their side of the net. In fact, if were going to change the rule I would make it a fault to reach over the net in an attempt to play the ball that has backspin and has traveled back over the net without player contact. That's just a great shot.
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103 | June 25, 2021 | Darryl | I agree with this change. Starting at 0/0-1 makes the scoring more easily taught to beginners. It actually makes winning the first serve more valuable when beginning a match.
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35 | June 25, 2021 | Jameson | Agree. Post is part of the net. With the change in Let rules last year a fixed part of the net should be ok to hit if the ball lands in.
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103 | June 25, 2021 | Jameson | Beginners do not “need” to learn more than one serve. I know many seniors that seem to prefer drop serves so they should be allowed to continue. People can pick a serve and do what they like.
I learned 002 when I was a beginner and I didn’t find it confusing. I find it less confusing than 00start. Rule book should allow both.
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100 | June 25, 2021 | Jameson | An opponent calling a line fault could be an opportunity for a redo. Having had to call an opponent on a line fall before, I do feel like I need the power to call an opponent on it. I’m also OK just having it be a redo of the serve. It was a pretty close line fault, and I watched it happen for three service before I called them on it.
The other option could be some kind of warning system, first warning second warning, fault.
The more I think about this rule the more complicated it feels, I can see avenues for gamin the system on both sides
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97 | June 25, 2021 | Jameson | There should be conditions on which retirement is acceptable versus forfeit. Injury, time, weather, etc.
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103 | June 25, 2021 | Mike | I strongly recommend making drop serve option permanent. I believe it is easier to learn, especially for tennis players. I have been playing for 8 plus years and play everyday with few exceptions. I am 77 and a strong 3.5 perhaps a 4.0 on my good days. As an Ambassador I try to work with newbies as much as possible and am convinced the drop serve is good for the game. Thanks
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63 | June 25, 2021 | Jameson | I’ve only tried rally point scoring once, in a king of the court type of scenario. Players found it confusing to who is serving and how people switch sides, also adding points to the score of the side that was not serving but won the rally.
I like the idea of rally points scoring, as the OP suggests it makes a more consistent time for games, and adds excitement and speed. I do however think it needs careful simulation and refinement on how serving and scoring works in the rally scenario. One advantage in side out scoring is that everyone gets a chance to serve fairly consistently, and it’s fairly easy to track who’s service it is.
I think clarity in the rules should be around who serves after a side out, which side do they serve from, how do players change sides, do sides get second serves. Best of three games, rotate after each game.
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11 | June 25, 2021 | Craig | o-o-Start makes sense for the reason stated
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20 | June 25, 2021 | Patrick | My comment is regarding the rule on serving from a dropped, bounced ball.
I began playing pickleball less than a year ago, and now I play 3 or 4 times per week. My playing ability is at a 3.0 - 3.5 level. When beginning, I struggled with serving by striking the ball in the air. I tried serving by dropping the ball and letting it bounce. I learned that this type serve gives me a bit more time to strike the ball and made it substantially easier to consistently hit the service area across the net. Therefore, I think this rule is important in allowing more players to learn to play and develop their game.
However, there is another important issue that this rule addresses. The pickleball rules have three requirements that are relevant to the bounce serve. First, the player's arm must be moving in an upward arc. (Rule 4.A.3.) Second, the highest point of the paddle head must not be above the player's wrist. (Rule4.A.4) Lastly, the ball must be struck below the level of the player's waist. (Rule 4.A.5). My observation of non-tournament play is that one or more of these rules is often violated when serving from the air - usually inadvertently. However, when serving from the bounce, it is virtually impossible to violate any of these rules as the ball doesn't bounce high enough to allow any of these three rules to be violated.
If anything is changed regarding the service rule, the Committee should consider banning serving the ball out of the air and requiring that the bounce serve be mandatory.
Thank you for allowing player comment on the Rules as you consider changes for 2022.
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53 | June 25, 2021 | joe | The " Wheelchair Rules Committee" (of which I am a member) under the guidance of Jim Loving and Sharon Mackenzie has fostered parity among pickleball players by limiting rules which may lead to exclusion rather than inclusion of physically challenged/adaptive players. Simply stated our mandate is to eventually have all players play by the same rules. That is to limit distinguishing definitions and rules which set players apart. At the moment we are very satisfied with the two bounce RULE and "foot fault" definitions that are in the 2021 rule book. If organizations/government agencies suggest or request specific rules/definition changes applicable to "adaptive" players I request that before these are acted upon by the USAP that they be circulated to the aforementioned committee for consideration and recommendation.
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20 | June 25, 2021 | Patty | I am a pickleball instructor of beginner’s and offer them the opportunity to learn both serves. If they are struggling with the traditional serve, I encourage them to try the new drop serve. Almost all of them find it much easier to learn. There is also the advantage of having a different serve available if the person is mentally in a server’s slump, to do something completely different. I don’t see how it hurts to keep it! More tools in the ? toolbox! Thanks so much!
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103 | June 25, 2021 | Sydney | I think it is unnecessary to change the serve format. You are meddling with the guts and integrity of the game. A big part of the reward in sports is mastery of the game, not changing it!
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