Pickleball Tips for Playing in Small Spaces

Mastering Pickleball in Small Spaces: Essential Tips for Garage and Driveway Practice

Pickleball is taking off. It’s a sport that’s easily accessible for people of all ages while still being tremendously fun. One thing that can be hard to find is space to play. Traditional pickleball courts aren’t in every town, and some people have had to get creative.

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Some take to their local parks and set up impromptu pickleball courts. Others will convert their driveways for a more homey feel.

Understanding the Challenges of Limited Space

Pickleball players who only have a small space in which to practice will, understandably, be limited in a few ways. They’ll have less room to pull back for a full hit, and have a harder time practicing more dynamic game elements like serving and volleying.

Pickleball is as much about positioning as it is about hitting. We all know that, when we’ve played a few games back-to-back, the best way to practice is simply to work on our footwork so we can be light on our feet and cover as much ground as possible when we’re playing up at the kitchen!

If you’re limited in terms of practice space, you want to adapt a drill that conditions touch and control mechanics, as opposed to power mechanics. Grab a partner to rally with on a make-shift hard-court. Or, if you’re on your own, work on wall hits with the drills we featured above.

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Essential Pickleball Drills for Small Areas

Another way to practice is in a small space, such as a garage or driveway with a few simple drills. Wall rallies are a great way to improve consistency and ball control. You are essentially hitting balls against a wall wherever you want. You do not need to rally with a partner. You hit balls in rapid fire which is a great way to build muscle memory for the forehand and backhand groundstrokes. It improves footwork because you constantly have to point your feet toward the wall. Doing this drill works out the kinks so that you start hitting balls to build confidence until you can land shot after shot against the wall while hitting the sweet spot. This is simple and basic but a great drill for new players.

Target practice is also a fun game to play with this drill against the wall. You can mark specific spots on the wall or have small targets to make it difficult to hit accurate groundstroke drives off the wall. By now, you will get a sense of your stroke tendencies as well as a better understanding of how to control the ball to make it go how you want it to.

Try practicing the service motion in a small space as well. This is another basic drill using just a paddle and a ball to get the service motion down. Serving is a shot that can be practiced alone where you have all the control with power, spin, and trajectory.

Setting Up Your Practice Area

Whether you’re converting the garage into a hitting area, a key point is to stay organized by reorganizing your space to provide enough free area for the ball to travel. The wall should be flat and have a bounce that imitates a hit from a paddle. In one corner, you can have a wall-mounted storage solution to provide space that you need for your pickleball accessories such as paddles and balls.

Also, be sure to follow safety protocols as well. For example, put padding in certain places to add a level of safety if sharp corners are exposed. And if this is in an area where your kids will be active, make sure there is proper ventilation or that you are making proper renovating steps to bring that into your garage or space such as adding a window.

Also, consider using your driveway for a larger surface to practice techniques. You can do this by creating a temporary outline of the pickleball court with chalk or tape. You don’t need a full court, just be sure your painted lines are easily explained, as to what they represent. Also, check the court surface for items like cracks or debris or things that could cause you to trip. Be sure to sweep off items like smaller rocks before you start playing.

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Sometimes, it’s fun to set up a temporary net, to give you a feel of how a regulation court works when playing, surrounded by a net. If you do go that route, there are many affordable nets that don’t take much area; you’ll also need a toolkit to screw them together, then simply take them apart and move them.

Maximizing Your Practice Time

Creating a disciplined practice routine when you have only small spaces to use can take careful planning and a little bit of discipline. Start with what you want to accomplish and what are your goals for your training? You might find it beneficial to make a goal list. The list could include improving the drive, third shot drop, volleys, or fast reaction.

Break specific activities or tasks down into smaller, achievable bite-sized pieces where each might require only a few minutes of practice each day. Try to practice something each day even if sessions might only last a few minutes in duration. Your skills can only get better if practiced over time with consistent repetition and progress.

Find a space where it’s quiet and where you can make a bit of noise. The ball can make a loud distinct pop sound. Timers might be your best friend to keep you on task and to keep you moving on to other drills to plan to do. To see how far you’ve come, keep a record of your progress.

Notice that many of these drills don’t involve hitting the ball a long distance. The concept here is that with a little creativity, you can find ways to practice the skills you need to get better at this sport even in adverse conditions. And once you can practice your skills in your kitchen or hallway, then you will be able to conquer any conditions on the court.