The Unspoken Art of Pickleball Doubles Strategy

Everyone knows the basics of pickleball: keep it low, get to the kitchen, don’t pop it up. But if you're finding your progress has stalled or you're stuck between rec-level rallies and wanting to play smarter, there’s a layer of strategy in doubles that no one is talking about—but should be. From strategic placement on putaways to deliberately ball-hogging the middle, there’s a chess game happening under the surface of every point. Learning how and when to execute these nuanced plays could be the difference between surviving and dominating on the court.

Take the art of the putaway, for example. Just because you have a ball above net height doesn’t mean swinging harder is the answer. There’s nuance in choosing where to hit based on ball height—middle or feet for a lower putaway, angles for a higher one—and understanding the setup shot that creates the true finisher. Or how about dinking? The typical mindset is to out-soft your opponent until someone makes a mistake. But smart players know when to push dinks deep to provoke a pop-up and when to lay back, go soft, and bait their opponent into a reckless speed-up. The same goes for returns: if you see a slow transition, ditch the drop and go hybrid or drive—it’s a simple read that gets missed constantly at the 3.0–4.0 levels.

Then there are the fun, slightly rebellious tactics—ball-hogging the middle, surprise drop shots when your opponent’s weight is wrong, and mixing up spin and pace on serves and returns. These aren’t things most coaches will drill into you. They’re real-game adaptions for real-court chaos. And if your partner is lagging behind on a good drop? That’s your cue to poach and control the point. Stop waiting for ideal conditions and start dictating play. Strategy in doubles isn’t just about where you hit the ball—it’s about when, why, and whether your opponent even knows what’s coming.