 | Capital Area Pickleball Association |
Fun Games to Play
Drop & Dink
Skill Level: Novice, Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced
Played as a regular game
3rd shot must drop in the NVZ — or serve is lost
Next 10 hits must be dinks, all landing in NVZ
Option: 6 dinks instead of 10 after 10 dinks the game goes to “open play”
Game is scored normally
Option: Play to 7 points, win by 1 vs. 11 points a regular game
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Drop First to Score
Skill Level: Novice, Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced
Teams must drop at least one shot into opponent’s NVZ before hitting a scoring shot
The dropped shot can be a scoring shot if not returned by the opponent
Played as a regular game per rules and scoring
Exception: Server continues to serve, without player rotation, if no point is scored.
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Dingles
Skill Level: Novice, Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced
Game is played as a dink game at the NVZ line
Players cross-court dink - 2 balls at once - to the same players until one ball goes fault.
Call “Dingles” on 1st fault. All players will now play the remaining ball as open play
Scoring: (Optional)
The non-fault team on the first fault gets 1 point
The team that scores on the last ball scores 1 point
Option: Score only on the last ball.
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Dink Only
Skill Level: Novice, Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced
Played as a normally scored game with all players at the Non-Volley Zone (kitchen) line
All hits must land in the NVZ. Outside of a NVZ line is a fault.
NVZ lines are “in bounds” during serves and play.
Serves must be cross-court using an imaginary dividing line
Option: Players may take a ball in the air. That player’s return hit must land in the NVZ.
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Mortimer
Skill Level: Novice, Beginner Intermediate
If you’re looking for a multiplayer option that isn’t quite so fast-paced, try out the Mortimer strategy. Mortimer pickleball involves six players, with three designated to each side. When serving, all three players begin at the baseline together. After service, two players move up to the kitchen line while the third player (known as the Mortimer) hovers in the back. The Mortimer cannot serve or receive the serve. Instead, this player generally picks up lobs and shots down the middle that get past the players at the net.
How does the rotation work? Players take turns being the Mortimer. If one of the primary kitchen line players puts a ball into the net or makes an unforced error, they swap places with the Mortimer. This can be an added incentive to make your shots. Alternatively, the Mortimer strategy can help you work on and practice very specific shots.