The Thrid Shot Drive: How and When to Hit it

The sport of pickleball is evolving fast, with new shots and strategies constantly being created. Of course, that begins the cycle of developing more new shots and strategies to counter them and perfectly segues us to the topic of the third shot drive.

You can hit the third shot to just get it into play, or you can hit it with purpose. Players who want to maximize their competitive odds for success use the third shot like a move on a chessboard. For the serving team, or server (if playing singles), it is important to make the most of your third shot attempt to help thwart the inherent positioning advantage the returning team or player has.

Softly hitting the third shot so it drops into or near the kitchen, just after passing the net cord, has long been considered a must-have shot. As effective as the third shot drop is, players have caught on in terms of how to counter it. As a result, the third shot drive has become popular at every level of the game. This adds variety to your game and keeps the opposing team guessing.

The key to hitting either shot successfully is the dip. This forces the other team to hit up on a ball that is dipping low, which is your cue to make a move toward the kitchen to put away any stray shots produced on the other side of the net.

In general, it is a good idea to get to the midcourt as quickly as possible after the third shot drive. It is difficult for the opposing team to make a safe shot with the ball at their feet and net right in front of them. An easy fifth shot put-away is the hope and is often the result. These are the moments you work hard to create and developing a consistent third shot drive is one of the better ways to improve your team’s percentages of success.

Whereas you can softly push, slice or hit a third shot drop with topspin, a proper third shot drive specifically requires topspin. Extreme forward rotation of the ball allows the player to hit the third ball with lots of pace and still bring the shot down fast.

To hit a third shot drive, you’ll want to contact the ball in front of your body, and it’s easiest to hit a drive when the ball is at waist height or below. Ideally, the ball will arc one to three feet over the net to give you some margin for error. Properly executed, a third shot drive quickly gets the ball to the net, and the spin causes it to dip down at the feet of the opposing team, which is difficult for any level of player to retrieve.

There is more than one way to practice the third shot drive, and we advocate trying them all! Here are some ideas to consider.

Serving: An easy way to work on your third shot drive is to practice serving. Instead of aiming serves deep, make a slight change to the serve motion to create more topspin, and voila as if by magic, the ball dips toward your opponent’s feet, which is a textbook third shot drive.

7 Eleven: Traditionally, this game is used for practicing the third shot drop but is equally fun and effective for practicing your third shot drive. Playing these patterns not only helps improve the shot itself, but also helps develop a keen sense of when is the best moment to make the transition toward the kitchen, which is as important as the execution of a third shot drive.

Short 5-shot points: Limiting points to five shots is another great way to boost your focus and isolate the shots that occur just before and after the third shot drive. Once you hit the third shot drive, your opponent must make something out of the fourth shot, and you get the final look (and shot attempt) at the variety of different responses produced.

Shorter 3-shot points: If pressure can convert sand in to pearls then the pressure of only having 3 shots to finish a point will certainly evolve your third shot drive into a "pearl" of a last shot.

The best time to use the third shot drive is not absolute and is a decision made on the fly during a point. However, there are some situations that occur where driving your third shot is more advantageous than dropping it.

• The soft game, and that includes the third shot drop, does not work well in the wind, period. The ball is easily bullied around by the wind and veers off course.
• During play, if you get the feeling that one or both players are less challenged with a soft third shot drop, try driving your third shot with lots of shot-bending spin.
• Mixing up your shot selection keeps the player(s) on the other side of the net honest.
• Variety and consistency are ideal, but a third shot drive seems to be more effective when aimed to the player who is returning serve. Sometimes the returner has not yet gotten to the kitchen line and must reply to the third shot while on the move, which is trickier for most players compared to making that fourth shot from a static position.

The third shot drop is a good one to have in your shot repertoire. Mixing a driving shot into play with the third shot drop keeps your opponents on their toes, and when the third shot drive is used properly, it can set you up for an easy put-away on the fifth shot. Keys to remember:

• The third shot drive is hit with topspin.
• Try the third shot drive in windy conditions so the ball is less likely to be pushed around.
• A good way to practice a third shot drive is by serving or playing the 7 Eleven game.