Senior Pickleball Tips

Okay, okay I know - this is OVER AN HOUR LONG!!!!!

BUT - we've moved to high-intermediates (3.5) so there's more to to talk about. More ways to hit these essential shots. So many potential serves - which should I do? Do I do a 3rd shot drop or a 5th shot drop? What can I do if my backhand drive isn't as good as it should be? Is it good to 'Shake & Bake'? How do I prepare properly for a re-set shot? What do I need to do to try and get to 4.0?

I was going to cut this into 2 or 3 episodes - but decided to keep it as one to avoid muddling it with the 10 essential shots for other ratings. So maybe listen to it in sections. Or, if you have that 'seniors'' patience - just go for the whole hour!!

But, if you're a high-intermediate (like me) - you NEED TO LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE.

Check out Coach Jeff at his YouTube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/@limitlesspickleball

Here is the ultimate guide to the 10 essential shots for intermediate senior pickleballers - for you to print out and keep:

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/lou9bvyp8mopsgr0si0mm/SUMMARY_PDF_10-SHOT.pdf?rlkey=wlola530lwa5m8sd0g11kig93&dl=0

Here is FREE access to our Academy, check it out....https://www.skool.com/senior-pickleball-academy-9457/about

Okay, okay - yes, this is a full 45 minutes! Yes, it's long. But this episode is FULL OF AMAZING INSIGHTS AND TIPS for low-intermediate players (at around 3.0).

Maybe listen to it in 2 or 3 stages - but listen to it you must!

Coach Jeff (Limitless Pickleball) & Paddy go through the ten basic shots and what you should be doing at the 3.0 level. The serve, return, third shot, forehand & backhand drives, lob, dink, smash and the (all important) reset shot.

They discuss each shot in some detail - what to do and what NOT to do! But don't worry it's not super-serious, they also have a bit of fun along the way! Hear Jeff's 'pearls of wisdom' and learn how Paddy deals with each shot (he has just gone up to the dizzy heights of being a high-intermediate player with a DUPR of 3.6 !).

If you're at about the 3.0 level - this episode will certainly help you improve your pickleball.

Check out Coach Jeff at Limitless Pickleball here https://limitlesspickleball.com/

Check us out here (it's FREE!) https://www.skool.com/senior-pickleball-academy-9457/about

Karen Mitchell is an absolute star in regard to pickleball in England, and indeed throughout the UK. After starting to play the sport (beware putting your bins out in sleepy Sussex villages!!) she saw the need, together with Frank Arico, to organise pickleball in the country. So they started Pickleball England in 2018 to promote the sport, organised a tournament (with about 320 players) and, as they say, the rest is history. The last English Open (largest tournament outside North America) had 2,350 players - with senior categories in 5-year cohorts from 60+ upwards (Paddy played in the 65+ category in all three events).

Hear how the sport is growing in the UK - thanks partly to Karen's efforts - and her views on global growth of the sport.

Karen and her colleagues had their greatest victory when they won the right to be the National Governing Body - beating the (English) Lawn Tennis Association in that contest (yes that's right, the folks who organise Wimbledon every year and have millions £££££ !!!) - by putting together a petition of pickleball players (yes, Paddy did sign it!).

Learn about Karen's own pickleball story and about the army of volunteers who are the life-blood of the sport in the UK - including her husband Chris - who work tirelessly behind the scenes.

If you live in the UK - PLEASE JOIN YOUR NATIONAL GOVERNING BODY (no cost) - it is important that together we support our pickleball and have a strong voice over the sport.

Join Pickleball England here https://www.pickleballengland.org/individual-membership/

If you live in Scotland join here https://pickleballscotland.org/

If you live in Wales join here https://www.pickleballwales.org/

If you live in Ireland (incl NI) join here https://pickleballireland.ie/

Check out our (FREE) Academy here ; https://www.skool.com/senior-pickleball-academy-9457/about

If you're an advanced beginner (2.5) this is 38 minutes of pure gold. You're probably thinking "Whaaaat? THIRTY EIGHT minutes???" ... then remember you are a senior and (unlike many of our younger generation) you have the patience to do this...!!!

Paddy and Coach Jeff (Limitless Pickleball) take advanced beginners through the 10 essential shots they need to know about - from the serve, return, third shot, through to the forehand and backhand drives, and then the dick, lob, smash and the (all important) re-set shot. All from the perspective of the Advanced Beginner.

We know this is a long episode (and we did consider splitting it into two parts) but listen at your leisure - maybe in two or three goes. But listen to it you must ... to improve your game and enable you to have MORE fun.

Coach Jeff goes through each shot with Paddy steering the conversation - but they have some fun along the way too!!!

Check out Jeff's YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@limitlesspickleball

For more tips, coaching and advice check out our (FREE) Academy here ; https://www.skool.com/senior-pickleball-academy-9457/about

This is the episode for all beginners - especially those who are new to the sport.

Paddy & Coach Jeff Gehm (Limitless Pickleball) systematically go through each of the 10 essential shots in pickleball, aimed specifically for new beginners. Starting with the serve, return of serve and the third shot, then moving on to the forehand and backhand drives, then the dink, the lob and the smash and ending with the tricky re-set shot.

It's all here in one episode!

So grab the dog for 'walkies' or maybe listen on your way to play - this will give new beginners the confidence to just give it a go!

Oh - and we have a bit of fun along the way!

For Jeff's YouTube videos click here: https://www.youtube.com/@limitlesspickleball

For more our (FREE) Senior Pickleball Academy click here: https://www.skool.com/senior-pickleball-academy-9457/about

For a Beginners Guide click here: https://senior-pickleball-tips.kit.com/2f1f5a4d23

In this episode Paddy meets Karen Thomas from Seattle, who came to the sport 10 years ago (through her mother!), was the head of marketing at Pickleball Central for some time and is now the Marketing Director at US Senior Pickleball.

They chat about everything pickleball - including the growth of indoor facilities in the States, the costs of membership and playing, the continual growth still of seniors playing the sport and the importance of spreading the message to as many seniors as possible to consider pickleball as part of their own on-going health and wellbeing.

Paddy even mentions his pickle-related coffee mug!

Karen explains what USSP is all about and what members can get for only $20/year (see notes below for more details) and her call-out for more USSP Ambassadors to spread the word - if you're interested contact Karen direct at USSP.

So if you know of any seniors wanting a great new activity to make sure they 'use it, not lose it' - then get them to contact USSP

Check out USSP here: https://usseniorpickleball.com/

For our (FREE) Senior Pickleball Academy click here ; https://www.skool.com/senior-pickleball-academy-9457/about

A US Senior Pickleball (USSP) membership costs $20 per year. USSP is a non-profit organization focused on providing affordable tournaments and a dedicated circuit for senior pickleball players. Membership Benefits As a member of the US Senior Pickleball organization, you gain access to a dedicated community and specific benefits tailored for senior players:

• Affordable Tournaments: Access to low-cost tournaments designed specifically for age and skill groups within the senior demographic.
• Dedicated Circuit: Participation in a national circuit of events for seniors who want to compete.
• Community Focus: The organization is run by seniors for seniors, ensuring the events and structure meet the needs of its members.

How to Join To become a member and support the largest senior circuit, you will need to register via the official website. You can find information on joining the organization and registering for events on the US Senior Pickleball official website. https://usseniorpickleball.com/ The membership is a great way to stay active, compete, and connect with other senior pickleball enthusiasts

In this last episode in the 'Singles Series', Paddy goes through the importance of having a 'mental edge' - having those steely nerves when the chips are down. The importance of the mental side of singles matchplay cannot be overemphasised. It is SO important. If you can become mentally strong in singles (and doubles!), you can win more competitative matches and maybe even tournaments as well.

Most pickleball players are not mentally strong and this will definitely give you that 'edge'.

Paddy explains techniques to help get mentally stronger - like breathing techniques and tricks to avoid distractions - everything YOU need to get better, win more competitative matches and enjoy your poickleball even more (AND win tournaments!!).

So, if you're into singles, this is a must-listen podcast.

For our (FREE) Senior Pickleball Academy click here ; https://www.skool.com/senior-pickleball-academy-9457/about

In part 3 of this 4-part series, Paddy explores the arsenal of shots that you need to focus on to win at singles. Surprisingly you don't need a whole aray of different fancy shots - but you do need some of the basics and you need to get them right technically. And you need to know when to play them.

Serve, return, volley, 3rd/5th shot, lob, smash, re-set - all the usual suspects are there - but for singles it's about placement (even more so than for doubles!). Paddy goes through each one and explains their importance in the singles game - especially from a seniors' point of view!

For our (FREE) Senior Pickleball Academy click here: https://www.skool.com/senior-pickleball-academy-9457/about

In the second part of this 4-part series, Paddy explains why the return of serve is (in his opinion) THE most important shot in singles pickleball - especially if you're a senior.

He goes through all the options for the return of serve, including what to do and what NOT to do!

Then Paddy talks about court positioning and the importance of predicting where your opponent's shot is going to go - and how to do this. He explains how, as seniors, we do NOT have to running around like complete idiots - how we use our experience of sport and life to enable us to be in the right place at the right time.

Throughout the episode Paddy tells us about breathing techniques, using the timeout and gives all kinds of hints and tips to help YOU win on the singles court.

For our (FREE) Senior Pickleball Academy click here: https://www.skool.com/senior-pickleball-academy-9457/about

How on earth did they do it? How did they get to the 3.5 (65+) English Open final? The largest pickleball tournament outside USA! And did they win?

Listen to this episode and find out! And also discover how they both helped each other through it, how they communicated and how they changed tactics suddenly when they needed to. Go through their trials and triumphs on that day last summer.

You might learn something. You might take something away that helps YOU in your next tournament - or just to improve your game.

For our (FREE) Senior Pickleball Academy click here: https://www.skool.com/senior-pickleball-academy-9457/about