SESKStuff Everyone Should Know

Games · Sports & Fitness

Stuff Every Pickleball Player Should Know

The kitchen, the two-bounce rule, scoring, etiquette and staying injury free.

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Free to start, no sign-up. 60 cards so far. One Knowledge Score and day streak across all your courses.

⏱ Timed practice exam

SESK practice exam: 50 questions, 50 minutes, pass with 40 right (80%).

Take it like the real thing: a countdown, no hints until you finish, then your score by topic, every miss explained, and a readiness score from your last 3 exams.

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  1. On a regular volley serve, which way must the paddle be moving when it hits the ball?
    Show the answer

    In a clear upward arc. Pickleball serves are underhand. On a volley serve the paddle must be swinging upward when it meets the ball, so no overhead smashes to start a point.

  2. On a volley serve, how high can the ball be when your paddle hits it?
    Show the answer

    No higher than your waist. On a volley serve, the ball must be at waist level or lower when the paddle hits it. This keeps the serve underhand.

  3. On a volley serve, the top of the paddle head cannot be above what?
    Show the answer

    The highest part of your wrist. At contact, the paddle head must not be higher than the top of your wrist. This is another rule that keeps the volley serve truly underhand.

All 60 practice questions

The first 50 are free, with the answer, why it's right and the official sources. The other 10 (🔒) are for SESK members. Or play them as a game and track what you've learned.

Show all 60 questions
  1. On a regular volley serve, which way must the paddle be moving when it hits the ball?
  2. On a volley serve, how high can the ball be when your paddle hits it?
  3. On a volley serve, the top of the paddle head cannot be above what?
  4. Where must a pickleball serve go?
  5. What is a drop serve in pickleball?
  6. On a drop serve, how many times may the ball bounce before you hit it?
  7. On a drop serve, do the waist, wrist and upward-arc rules still apply?
  8. When you serve, where must at least one of your feet be?
  9. Can you jump into the air while hitting a pickleball serve?
  10. Your serve lands right on the kitchen line. Is it in or out?
  11. A serve clips the top of the net, then lands in the right service court. What happens?
  12. Can the receiver hit the serve out of the air before it bounces?
  13. After the return of serve, what must the serving team do?
  14. What is the main reason pickleball has the two-bounce rule?
  15. How far from the net does the non-volley zone reach?
  16. What do most players call the non-volley zone?
  17. You volley the ball with your toe touching the kitchen line. Is that legal?
  18. Can you step into the kitchen to hit a ball that has already bounced?
  19. You volley a winner, then your momentum carries you into the kitchen after the ball is dead. Is it a fault?
  20. You were just in the kitchen. Before you volley, what must be outside it?
  21. Can you volley a ball that is in the air above the kitchen, if your feet are outside it?
  22. During a rally, the ball lands on the baseline. Is it in or out?
  23. When can you call a ball out?
  24. How big is a pickleball court?
  25. How tall is a pickleball net at the sidelines?
  26. How tall is a pickleball net at the center?
  27. During a rally, your shot touches the top of the net and goes over. What happens?
  28. The ball hits your paddle hand, below the wrist, while you are holding the paddle. Is it a fault?
  29. How many times may the ball bounce on your side before you must hit it?
  30. How many bounces may players using wheelchairs allow before returning the ball?
  31. In regular scoring, what happens when the receiving team commits a fault?
  32. In traditional side-out scoring, who can score points?
  33. In rally scoring, which team scores a point?
  34. In doubles rally scoring, how many players on a team serve before a side out?
  35. In doubles using traditional side-out scoring, what three numbers are in the score call?
  36. In singles pickleball, how many numbers are in the score call?
  37. In doubles scoring, what do server numbers 1 and 2 indicate?
  38. Under standard side-out scoring, what is the first server exception at the start of a doubles game?
  39. In standard pickleball, how many points win a game?
  40. In a USA Pickleball tournament, when do teams switch ends between games?
  41. In a USA Pickleball tournament, when do teams switch ends in a deciding game to 11?
  42. What is a dink in pickleball?
  43. What is the third shot drop in pickleball?
  44. In doubles, may partners switch sides during a rally after the serve and return?
  45. Who calls the lines in recreational pickleball?
  46. Where and when did pickleball begin?
  47. According to USA Pickleball, what inspired the name pickleball?
  48. How do indoor and outdoor pickleballs generally differ?
  49. What is the maximum combined length and width of an official paddle?
  50. Which tendon can tear when you land from a jump or make a quick cutting move?
  51. Which shoulder structure is commonly injured in overhead pickleball shots? 🔒
  52. What is the best warm-up before a pickleball match? 🔒
  53. Why do some pickleball players wear protective eyewear? 🔒
  54. When must the server announce the score? 🔒
  55. In singles, where do you serve from when your score is zero or even? 🔒
  56. On a scale of 1 to 10, how tight should you hold the paddle for a dink? 🔒
  57. What does USA Pickleball's Sportsmanship Guide say to do at the end of each game? 🔒
  58. You need to walk past a court where people are playing. What should you do? 🔒
  59. How many holes may an approved pickleball have? 🔒
  60. USA Pickleball says which training can improve your balance and help prevent falls? 🔒