AY Honors/Pickleball

Pickleball
Recreation
Skill Level 123
Approval authority North American Division	Year of Introduction 2019

• Overview
• Requirements
• Answer Key
• Lesson Plans

AY Honors/Pickleball/Overview

The most challenging requirement of this honor is probably this:

6. Play three games, demonstrating proper announcing of the score prior to each serve, and changing of serving and receiving positions on the court.

1. Learn and share these historical facts about pickleball:

a. Give a brief account of the "birth" of pickleball, how it came to be created, the philosophy of the sport, and how the rules were designed to reflect that philosophy.

b. Give the two different stories on how this sport received the name "Pickleball."

2. Pickleball is often described as a mixture of tennis, badminton, racquetball, and ping pong. Explain at least three rules or aspects that make pickleball unique from these other sports.

3. Scoring is different in pickleball and can often be confusing for beginners.

a. Describe each of the three numbers in the score and what is different about the team that serves first in a game.

b. Describe how many points is played to in most normal games.

4. Demonstrate how to assemble and set up a portable net, and how to pack it back in the bag properly.

5. Demonstrate the following strokes, being able to hit them at least three times in a row consecutively with an instructor:

a. Forehand

b. Backhand

c. Serve (to both right and left sides of the court)

d. Volley (basic block volley)

e. Dink

f. Lob

6. Play three games, demonstrating proper announcing of the score prior to each serve, and changing of serving and receiving positions on the court.

7. While pickleball is a low-intensity and safe sport for someone who is currently unfit to try, people do get injured playing. Describe at least two types of injuries seen in pickleball and what can be done to prevent those injuries.

8. Demonstrate stretching and proper warm-up exercises to prevent two of the injuries above.

9. Describe at least three aspects of the game that reflect Christian values and list a Bible text to support that value.

10. How can pickleball be part of "exercise evangelism" and used by a school or church for community outreach?

Edit Answer Key

1

Learn and share these historical facts about pickleball:

1a

Give a brief account of the "birth" of pickleball, how it came to be created, the philosophy of the sport, and how the rules were designed to reflect that philosophy.

Find full details at USA Pickelball.
Joel Pritchard was a congressman from Washington state and returned home to Bainbridge Island in 1965 to find his family and neighbor friends, the Bell family, sitting around with nothing to do. Their property had an old badminton court but could not find a full set of rackets. Improvising, Bill Bell and Joel grabbed ping pong paddles and a perforated plastic ball for the kids to play. At first the net was high, but after learning the ball bounced well, lowered the net to 36 inches (the height of Joel's hip). The parents made up the rules as the kids played to make the game more fair. The next weekend, Barney McCallum was introduced to the game by Joel and Bill. Barney cut out some new paddles out of plywood since the ping pong paddles would break easily and the three collaborated to continue develop rules by trial and error for the new game focused so that the whole family could play together. The adults began to love to play just as much as the kids. The Pritchard, Bell, and McCallum families gladly welcomed other families to join in their name and the love for the game grew and grew. As more learned about the game, the first known pickleball tournament was held at South Center Athletic Club in Tukwila, Washington in 1976. The sport continued to grow eventually organizing officially in March 1984 publishing the first rulebook under the name The Unite States Amateur Pickleball Association (USAPA) with the guidance of Sid Williams as the first president who had only been playing for 2 years at this point. In 2020, the sport's organization rebranded as USA Pickleball with an upgraded logo and website. As of February 2023, there are over 70,000 in membership of USA Pickleball with over 8.9 million players over the age of six in the United States.

(Some videos are linked on the website that could be watched as a group about the history.)

The rules of pickleball were developed so that the whole family could play without any person taking advantage of height or strength (underhand serve, two bounce rule, non-volley/kitchen zone). The philosophy of the game is for the whole family to enjoy together. This core element is what has fueled the growth of pickleball through the years.

1b

Give the two different stories on how this sport received the name "Pickleball."

Joan Pritchard is credited as the author of the sport's name. She suggested the name to her husband, Joel, and neighbors Bill and Tina Bell during a name brainstorming session in 1965. The idea came from competitive crew rowing where teams would have leftover rowers that would race for fun in a local "pickle boat" crew race competition. Frank, Joel and Joan's son, remembers that the sport of Pickleball threw together bets of other games into the mix much how leftover rowers from universities would crew together to race each other for fun in a "pickle race".

Three years later in 1968, the Pritchard's daughter Jeannie and friend, Paul Brown, were on a walk when the two came across a dog litter of cockapoos for adoption in the neighborhood. The two each brought a dog home while the family was playing pickleball. Joan named the new dog Pickles and the Browns named their dog Lulu.

Sometime in late 1969 or early 1970, Joel was interviewed by a reporter where he told about the game referring to "pickle boats" rowing competition, but humorously told the reporter about the story of Pickles the dog. The reporter encouraged the dog story as the origin of the name since it was more memorable and attractive. Joel jokingly never thought the dog story would stick but continued to tell the story of Pickles the dog.

Story sourced from USA Pickleball, the Jan/Feb 2021 issue of Pickelball Magazine.

2

Pickleball is often described as a mixture of tennis, badminton, racquetball, and ping pong. Explain at least three rules or aspects that make pickleball unique from these other sports.

1. Two-bounce rule: The ball must bounce on the receiver's end of the court and then again on the server's side of the court before the ball can be hit in the air (volley).
2. No-volley-zone: This is the 7 ft. area on either side of the net where you cannot touch, during or after a volley.
3. Serve: Has to be underhand, contact below the belly button, paddle head has to be below the wrist at contact.
4. The paddles have to be smooth and can’t have any material on them that makes them grippier than what is allowed by USA Pickleball.
5. Dinking is a unique stroke in pickleball and is based on control, touch, finesse, and patience. Higher level players can hit many dinks in a rally.

3

Scoring is different in pickleball and can often be confusing for beginners.

3a

Describe each of the three numbers in the score and what is different about the team that serves first in a game.

The first number refers to the score of the server, the 2nd number refers to the score of the receiving team, and the 3rd number indicates 1st or 2nd server of the serving team.

The team that serves first in a game only gets ONE player to serve, so that player would say at the start of the game, "0-0-2" even though he is the 1st server, he refers to himself as the "2" or 2nd server. Since it’s the start of the game, no one has scored any points so it’s 0-0, thus, 0-0-2.

3b

Describe how many points is played to in most normal games.

A standard game is played to 11 points where only the serving team can earn points. If the non-serving team wins the rally, they do NOT get a point but passes the serve. Either the 2nd player on the serving team will serve OR it will be a side out and the receiving team now becomes the serving team.

You must win by a minimum of 2 points.

4

Demonstrate how to assemble and set up a portable net, and how to pack it back in the bag properly.

To assemble a net, follow the manufacturer's instructions as there are some variations on configuration for portable nets.

Here is a video tutorial on packing a net:

5

Demonstrate the following strokes, being able to hit them at least three times in a row consecutively with an instructor:

5a

Forehand

The forehand shot an open body hit best executed in a scooping forward motion ending with the wrist forward with enough force to get over the net but low enough to bounce in the non-volley zone (kitchen).

5b

Backhand

A backhand hit is a cross-body hit that is typically pushed forward. A second hand is often used to help aid a backhand swing for stability. Some players will switch the paddle between hands to avoid backhanded hits.

5c

Serve (to both right and left sides of the court)

Practice both volley serves and drop serves. Be sure to read the rule book (Section 4) to understand the limitations and guidelines for both styles of serves. With both style of serves, put enough force on the ball to move it forward without lifting it up too much from underneath causing the ball to go too high.

5d

Volley (basic block volley)

A volley strike is hitting the ball before it bounces on the ground. The basic block volley hits the ball in the air, typically at waist height, to the other side of the net. This is not a slam or spike hit. A volley can be done forehand or backhand with force and/or spin applied directed in the opposite court.

5e

Dink

A dink is made when the payer is at or near the non-volley zone and strikes the ball over the net into the other player/team's non-volley zone. Strategically, placement of the dink are to the edges or middle forcing the opposing player/team to reach for the ball or commit a non-volley zone fault.

5f

Lob

The lob is a defensive maneuver attempting to cause the other team/player out of position by moving to the back of the court. This is done by hitting the ball in an upward motion for a high, arcing trajectory aiming for the opposing back line. This is a careful shot because too shallow and the opponents could spike the ball back with force or too deep and the lob will go out of bounds.

6

Play three games, demonstrating proper announcing of the score prior to each serve, and changing of serving and receiving positions on the court.

7

While pickleball is a low-intensity and safe sport for someone who is currently unfit to try, people do get injured playing. Describe at least two types of injuries seen in pickleball and what can be done to prevent those injuries.

1. Ruptured achilles tendon
2. Pickleball elbow
3. Rolled/sprained ankle
4. Hamstring injuries
5. Eye injuries
6. Shoulder injuries
7. Injuries from falls
8. Plantar fascilitis

PREVENTION: Specific dynamic (active) stretching to warm up BEFORE playing. Static stretching after play. Avoid over-playing when first starting out. Doing proper strength training outside of playing and using proper clothing, especially eye protection. Court-type shoes are important--NO running shoes as their flared sole makes it easy to roll an ankle or cause a fall. Go back to return a lob sideways instead of just backing up, falls are prevented this way.

8

Demonstrate stretching and proper warm-up exercises to prevent two of the injuries above.

Show dynamic and static stretching of the shoulder, hamstring/glute, groin, core, and ankle.

9

Describe at least three aspects of the game that reflect Christian values and list a Bible text to support that value.

1. Patience, James 5:8
2. Communication with your partner, Ps. 133:1; 1 Thes. 5:11.
3. Teamwork, Ecc. 4:9-12; 1 Cor. 12:12, 20-25.
4. Good sportsmanship (calling lines, keeping score, greeting afterward), Prov. 25:27; 1 Cor. 10:31; Gal. 5:22-23.
5. Calling out "ball on court" (preventing others from getting hurt from the hazard), Phil. 2:4; Luke 6:31; 1 Cor. 10:24.
6. Friendly competition to improve in skill (and maintain healthy habits), Prov. 27:17.
7. Being physically active, 1 Cor. 6:19-20.
8. Thinking carefully about your shots/being mindful about how you live, Eph. 5:15.

10

How can pickleball be part of "exercise evangelism" and used by a school or church for community outreach?

Either through joining a group or starting a group, pathfinders can invite or join community members in fun exercise and sport that individuals of all ages can join. This is a great way to develop positive relationships with community members and reflect Jesus through words and actions as you play pickleball together, playing fairly and having fun. When the opportunity arises, talk about how your personal relationship with Jesus positively affects you and your favorite church (pathfinder) activities, maybe inviting to another church event. (Maybe even have a community member come teach an honor in their field of expertise!)

There are all kinds of groups in nearly every city that play indoors and outdoors. Search online for local Pickleball groups to find times and locations of games. Or if you start your own group, make sure to post online for others to find!

A church could set up a court in the parking lot and play every week during warmer months or a school with a gym could allow the space to be used any time of year. Set up a regular day and time to gather as a group and play. Give free lessons. Play with new people. Maybe host a local tournament and organize for different ages and skill levels.

References

• Pickleball Fundamentals, by the USA Pickleball Assoc., with Mary Littlewood
• History of Pickleball, by Jennifer Lucore and Beverly Youngren.
• USA Pickleball Rules
• USAPickleball.org

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