The Beginner’s Guide to Singles Pickleball Scoring

Pickleball’s singles and doubles are like apples and oranges. Endurance, power, and quickness are often more valued than accuracy, patience, and placement while playing singles.

You may still use some of the same strategies from doubles, but now since you’re on your own, you’ll need to cover the full 20-foot court. Beyond the obvious difference in physical demand, singles and doubles have distinct scoring and tactical variances, leading to our beginner’s guide to singles pickleball scoring. 

Slide to the Right, Slide to the Left 

Akin to doubles scoring, a player may only score a point by serving the winner. After making a point, the server moves to the other side. The server would switch to serving from the left if they recently won a point with a diagonal serve from the right. The server will switch to a right-handed diagonal serve if they have won a point with a left-handed one.

The Score Dictates the Action

It’s customary to begin your service from the right side to begin a game and, consequently, every even number after that. On the contrary, a server must serve from the left side if they have an odd number of points. It’s important to note that the odds/even scoring is only relevant to the server’s score. The receiver and the total score of the game are irrelevant.

Simple Callout 

There’s one slight deviation a beginner will notice when calling out the score in a pickleball contest: only calling out two numbers. The server announces their and their opponent’s score. There’s no need to call out the player serving like in doubles pickleball because there can only be one. Most regulation games last until a victor earns 11 points, although there are other circumstances where you could play to a higher number. 

Best Strategies for Winning 

If you want to call out the score with you on top, it helps to follow the best singles pickleball strategy to earn more points than if you give up. The first step in accomplishing this goal is to hit your serve deep. Doing so will make it more challenging for your opponent to return it and dart near the kitchen, leading to a more potent third shot for you. Even when you’re not serving, hitting the ball deep should always be your mission.

It’s also wise to attack your adversary’s weakest side. Try to coerce your opponent into using their backhand, which is often weaker than their forehand. If your opponent’s backhand is more powerful than their forehand, the tables will turn, although that’s rare.

The beginner’s guide to singles pickleball scoring will help you hold your own on the court, particularly since it’s not as complicated as doubles scoring is. You can look fashionable while celebrating victories with Fromuth’s ladies’ pickleball skirts. Pairing one of our stylish skirts with an exceptional JOOLA paddle will make you feel fierce and ready to take on all comers.