Pickleball has elements of tennis, badminton, and ping-pong, which impacts how the game is scored. It’s important to understand the basics rules and how to score pickleball before hitting the court, so if you’re new to the game, here’s a quick guide to help you get started understanding the fundamentals!
What Score Do You Play to in Pickleball?
A pickleball game is usually played to 11 points, but in some tournaments, games are played to 15 or 21. And you must win a game by at least two points.So, this means that when playing to 11 points if the score is 10-10, then getting to 11 points won’t mean the match is over. You will have to get to 12 to put yourself two points ahead in order to win. But technically this could keep going until a team secures a two-point lead!
Basic Rules on Traditional Scoring in Pickleball
Pickleball can be played as singles or doubles, and the scoring and rules are similar for both. With traditional scoring, you can only win points as the server or serving team. A flip of the coin or spinning a racket determines who serves first. As with many racket sports, the goal is to win the rally. A player serves until they commit a fault, which involves any rule violations that stops play. This includes failing to return a ball, hitting the ball out of bounds, or volleying in the non-volley zone.The amount of points the serving player or team has impacts where the serve is hit from. When the serving player or team has a score that’s an even number, they play from the right side of the court, and when the score is in an odd number, the server plays from the left side.Before each point, the pickleball score should also be announced by the server. This ensures everyone knows what the score is and agrees on it. But there are some differences to keep in mind when it comes to keeping score in singles and doubles.
How to Keep Score in Pickleball Doubles
With doubles, the team that serves first gets only one chance to serve until they commit a fault. However, the opposing team gets a chance for both players to serve, meaning until they make two faults. And from then on, once the serving team makes two faults, the receiving team then gets to serve. The score should be announced before every serve, making it easier to keep up with the score and who should be serving. And in doubles, the score includes three numbers: serving team score, receiving team score, and the current server number (one or two). When it’s a team’s turn to serve, the player on the right side will always be the first server. So, the teammate on the right side is the first server, and the teammate on the left side is the second server. The first server keeps serving if their team scores a point. But if they lose a point, then it’s their partner’s turn to serve. Once they lose a point again, it’s called “side out”, meaning they’re out of serves and the opposing team now serves.Keep in mind that the serving team does not move sides unless they score a point. So, if they lose the point and a sideout occurs, they stay on the same side from which they started the point that just ended. The receiving team also does not rotate sides. They only do once they are their serving team and have won a point.
How to Keep Score in Pickleball Singles
In singles, the server keeps serving until they lose the point or make a fault. Once they do, a side out occurs and the other play will now serve. And the receiver should line up on the right or left side according to the server’s score (even or odd).With singles, the score should be called out as only two numbers: server score, receiver score. As there aren't additional servers, there is no need for the third number (server number), which is used in doubles.
Traditional vs Rally Scoring in Pickleball
This is one of the hottest topics in pickleball! Some people argue that rally scoring may be the future of the sport. Major League Pickleball, the highest level league in professional pickleball, uses rally scoring for its matches.But what is rally scoring? It’s a twist on the traditional rules of pickleball, where every rally results in a point (no matter which player or team served first). The exception is the last point where only the serving team can score a point off the serve. This leads to a fast-paced game and adds a whole new level of excitement to matches. Additionally, there is no longer the unfair advantage of serving first or going on a run with serves. With the two different kinds of scoring, you may need to evolve your strategy depending on what kind of scoring is being used in a match, tournament, or league.
Ready to Get Playing?
For players starting out, remembering the basic rules is key to ensure you don't lose track of how to score when playing your next singles to doubles game! And practicing keeping score with the traditional and rally scoring rules will help you get a better grasp of it.If you know how to score in pickleball, you can take your understanding of the sport to the next step. To find hitting partners at your level, coaches who can help elevate your game, the nearest courts to you, and tournaments you can participate in, check out Bounce for all of your pickleball needs!
