7 Best Pickleball Drills (With Video)
I came to this sport at 44 with soccer legs and no footwork built for a 20-by-44 court. My third shot was a prayer. My dinks were pop-ups. And my return left me stranded at the baseline like a tourist.
What fixed it: drills. Playing more games just made me better at my bad habits. Drills are what fix the holes. Below are seven of the best pickleball drills around, each with a video demonstration so you can see the technique before you try it. One 30-minute session a week, and your future self will thank you.
- Drills beat games for fixing specific weaknesses. Games just repeat them.
- Master the soft game first: dinking and third shot drops decide most rallies.
- Move through your shots: the return of serve drill trains the footwork most players skip.
- One 30-minute drill session a week will outpace ten games of autopilot.
1. Third Shot Drop — the "0 to 60" Drill
What it trains: Third shot drops under pressure, consistency, touch from the baseline.
via PrimeTime Pickleball on YouTube — Watch on YouTube
- One player stands at the kitchen (NVZ) and feeds deep balls to the baseline; the baseline player hits third shot drops aimed at landing in the kitchen.
- Both players count: every successful drop adds to a running total. When the baseline player misses, the players switch roles.
- The first player to reach a cumulative score of 60 wins — "0 to 60."
- Keep rallies honest: only count drops that land in the NVZ and are unattackable.
Why it works: This drill trains the exact moment that decides most rallies: the transition from baseline to kitchen. Expect your drop success rate to climb fast with reps.
2. Dinking Masterclass
What it trains: Dink technique, patience at the net, cross-court dink patterns.
- Start with the basics: soft grip, paddle face slightly open, and contact made out in front with a small, controlled push. No wrist flick.
- Dink straight ahead with a partner, keeping the ball unattackable and inside the kitchen.
- Move to cross-court dinks: this is the money pattern, giving you more court to hit into and more time to recover.
- Add movement: dink one ball, take a step sideways, dink the next. Real points are never stationary.
Why it works: Most recreational games are won or lost at the kitchen line. Twenty minutes of deliberate dinking beats an hour of lazy rec games.
3. Top 9 Skills All-in-One Program
What it trains: A full practice curriculum: dinks, volleys, third shots, transition zone play, and skinny singles.
via PrimeTime Pickleball on YouTube — Watch on YouTube
- Work through the nine skill stations in order, starting with dink control and volley blocks.
- Practice third shot drops from both the forehand and backhand side before moving into the transition zone.
- Drill the transition zone. The "no man's land" mid-court area where points are most often lost — with reset shots and controlled volleys.
- Finish with skinny singles (half-court singles) to tie every skill together under game pressure.
Why it works: If you only drill once a week, make it this one: it hits every core skill in a single session instead of leaving gaps in your game.
4. Third Shot Drop Spin Technique
What it trains: Fixing the "floating" third shot drop with topspin control.
via Pickleball One on YouTube — Watch on YouTube
- Identify the problem: a flat, floating drop gives your opponent an easy ball to attack. Spin is what makes it die in the kitchen.
- Brush up the back of the ball with a low-to-high swing path to generate topspin instead of pushing it flat.
- Keep the arc high and the landing spot short: topspin drops should peak well above the net and land softly in the NVZ.
- Alternate topspin and slice drops in reps so you learn to control both and choose the right one in a match.
Why it works: Watch the ball, not the result: spin is felt in the contact. Ten focused minutes of brushing up the back of the ball will change your drops permanently.
5. Return of Serve Masterclass
What it trains: Return positioning, technique, and strategy. The most undervalued shot in pickleball.
via Roscoe Bellamy on YouTube — Watch on YouTube
- Set up behind the baseline with your weight forward and paddle ready. Returns must be deep to buy time for your run to the kitchen.
- Aim every return deep to the opponent's backhand or feet, keeping it low over the net to deny them an easy third shot.
- Move through the return: step into the shot and keep momentum toward the kitchen line as soon as the ball leaves your paddle.
- Practice returning to targets: alternate deep corners and the middle to build placement control under pressure.
Why it works: A deep return that buys you time is worth more than a fast return that leaves you stranded at the baseline. Depth first, pace later.
6. Moving Return of Serve
What it trains: Getting to the kitchen line before the third shot. The single biggest positioning edge in pickleball.
via Selkirk TV on YouTube — Watch on YouTube
- Partner serves from the baseline; you return deep and immediately sprint toward the kitchen line. No pausing to admire the shot.
- Have your partner hit a third shot (drop or drive) at you as soon as you're approaching the line, simulating real match timing.
- Practice split-stepping as the third shot is struck so you arrive balanced and ready to volley or reset.
- Run the drill in sets of 10 returns, tracking how many times you're set at the line before the ball arrives.
Why it works: This drill exposes a hard truth: most players wait too long after returning. If you're not moving through your return, you're giving away the point.
7. Third Shot Drop vs. Drive Decision
What it trains: Shot selection: knowing when to drop soft and when to drive hard on the third shot.
via Dayne Gingrich on YouTube — Watch on YouTube
- Learn the read: deep, high serves invite the drop; short, low balls are your drive cue. The decision happens before the ball crosses the net.
- Drill both in alternation: partner calls "drop" or "drive" mid-feed so you practice the decision, not just the stroke.
- Drive with purpose: target the backhand hip or the middle gap, and be ready for the counter. Drives start fights, drops avoid them.
- End each set by playing skinny singles points where you must call your third shot choice out loud before hitting it.
Why it works: Good players don't have a better drop than you. They just pick the right shot more often. This drill trains the choice, which is the actual skill.
How to structure a 30-minute drill session
You don't need a two-hour practice block to improve. Thirty focused minutes once or twice a week is enough if every minute has a job. Here's a template that fits the drills above:
- Minutes 0–5. Warm-up. Easy dinks straight ahead, gradually adding cross-court. Get your touch awake before you demand anything from it.
- Minutes 5–15. One weak link. Pick the drill that targets your worst shot and run it hard: the "0 to 60" drop drill, the spin technique drill, or the dinking patterns.
- Minutes 15–25. Footwork + transitions. The moving return of serve drill, or transition-zone reps from the all-in-one program. This is where games are actually won.
- Minutes 25–30. Pressure finish. Skinny singles to half-court with a scoring element — loser fetches the balls. Competitive reps transfer to matches better than cooperative ones.
The rule: one session, one focus. Rotate the "weak link" drill each week based on what broke down in your last games, and the numbers will take care of themselves.
Frequently asked questions
How often should I drill instead of just playing games?
Aim for at least one focused drill session per week alongside your regular games. Rec play teaches you habits; drills fix them. Even 30 minutes of deliberate practice on your weakest shot will improve it faster than ten games of repeating the same mistakes.
Do I need a partner to do these drills?
Most of the drills above work best with a partner, but several adapt to solo work: you can practice dink technique and third shot drop form against a wall, and the moving return footwork can be shadow-drilled without a ball. That said, a live ball tells the truth — find a drill partner and your progress doubles.
Which drill should a total beginner start with?
Start with the dinking masterclass drill (#2). The soft game at the kitchen is the foundation everything else sits on: if you can dink with control, you can learn to drop, volley, and reset. Once your dinks are consistent, add the "0 to 60" third shot drop drill.
How do I know if my drills are actually working?
Track something simple: your "0 to 60" cumulative score, how many drops out of 10 land in the kitchen, or how often you reach the kitchen line before the third shot in the moving return drill. If the numbers go up over a few weeks, the drills are working. Plateaus usually mean you need a new constraint — smaller targets, faster feeds, or a tougher drill partner.