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Today’s article is all about the “3rd shot drop.” 

Have you heard the term yet? If not, you will soon.

You have? Then, you’re probably like me…

Trying to figure out all the ways to improve the shot, so you become a greater threat on the court and win more games. 

Don’t worry, I got you covered. Here’s what I believe are the best practices to quickly master the 3rd shot drop.

The 3rd Shot Drive vs. the 3rd Shot Drop:

To start, let's make sure we’re all on the same page. 

We’re talking about the 3rd shot in the rally. When you serve, that’s the first shot. When they return, that’s the second. After that, the next ball you hit is the third shot. 

Now, there are a couple of different shots you can hit with this 3rd shot. 

1. 3rd shot drive - this is when you hit the ball hard at your opponent in an attempt to make them miss or potentially pop the ball up. Let me be clear. This isn’t a bad choice. It just isn’t the shot we’ll be talking about in this article.
2. 3rd shot drop - this is the one we’ll dive deeper into right now.

Breaking Down the 3rd Shot Drop - The Sneaky Game Changer:

Why is the 3rd shot drop so important? 

If you're serving, you're at a disadvantage, because the official pickleball rules state that before the serving team can advance to the kitchen line to hit the ball out of the air, they must wait for the returning shot to bounce on their side of the court at least once. 

Since your opponent's first bounce will come on the serve, they will get to the kitchen line before you. And you’ll have to create that window of time to get to the kitchen line so that you're not at a disadvantage anymore. The 3rd shot drop is one of the best ways to help with this.

Technique coming. But first. Let’s talk “POSITIONING!” 

Here's a golden rule after you serve the ball: Don’t step forward into the court.

It sounds tempting. But trust me, it's like wearing roller skates on a tightrope. Not a good idea! 

Why?

Because you have to wait for that ball to bounce. So, if you serve, step in, and your opponent hits a deep return, you’ll have to backpedal before hitting your next shot, which can in turn make you hit your next shot off balance. That rarely turns out well!

Instead, serve, stay back, read your opponent's shot, and then keep all your momentum going forward into that shot.

"The 3 L's" - A Combo of Winning Techniques:

Now, let's talk about the techniques I use to hit consistent 3rd shot drops that allow you to get into the kitchen and avoid your opponent smashing the ball at you. I call it “The 3 L’s.”

L1 - Loose Grip

Most beginners death grip their paddle, which tends to cause pop-ups. Pop-ups are bad because your opponent will smash those and win the point. Instead, loosen your grip. When you do this, you’ll be closer to achieving that “soft touch” you hear people talk about.

Feel free to perform an experiment with a loose vs. tight grip and notice how the ball bounces off the paddle a lot harder when you have a tighter grip — making it more difficult to control and hit good 3rd shot drops.

L2 - Less Swing

It’s natural for a lot of people to use big swings, especially if they came from tennis. But hey, different game, different rules - this is all for the sake of better control.

Try to keep the paddle in the front of your foot, instead of winding so far back that it's no longer in your line of view. Keep that paddle close with a short swing and landing more efficient drop shots will become 2nd nature. In fact, this technique can be incredibly useful for multiple parts of your game. Dinks, volleys, drops, flicks. All shots where it’s useful to use a short compact swing to execute on the shot you’re trying to hit. 

L3 - Lift The Ball

Finally, and this is the big one! Lift the ball, so the ball trajectory rises. This will give you more time to reach the kitchen after your shot! And remember, being in the kitchen is a good thing. You want to be at the net as much as possible in pickleball.

OO, here’s a pro tip when lifting the ball. Make sure the "apex" or the height of your shot reaches its peak in your kitchen area. If it peaks before your kitchen, then it'll more than likely hit the net. If it peaks way into your opponent's kitchen, then you’ll give them the opportunity to crush the ball at you. So, try to make the ball reach its apex around eye level as well. (see image below).

Success Metric - Watch The Return:

Most don’t know what a “good 3rd shot drop" even looks like.

Let’s change that. 

The main metric I use to know whether I hit a good 3rd shot drop is not just if the ball bounces in the kitchen. BUT, if my opponent is hitting up on the ball, whether it bounces or not. So when you’re practicing, pay attention to that. Shoot, you could even put your phone to the side and watch how often your practice partner hits up on the ball while you’re training so you get even more immediate feedback.

Bonus Tip: The Top Spin Drop Shot - A Mr. Myagi special!

Alright, that’s everything you need to know about how to master the 3rd shot drop! But since you made it to the end, I wanna throw in a little bonus. 

“The Top Spin Drop.”

Although this shot sounds cool, there’s a reason why it’s more advanced. It's a bit difficult to explain through text, but I want you to envision the full motion of your car's windshield wiper. That's how you would hit the ball, you start paddle tip down, then rotate your paddle tip until the paddle tip is pointing toward the ceiling (or sky).

Kinda like a windshield wiper, orrr like how like in the movie Karate Kid when Daniel-son was cleaning Mr. Myagi’s windows.

Conclusion:

Alright, you've got the recipe for pickleball greatness! Nail that 3rd shot drop like a pro, keep your opponents guessing and become a threat on the court. 

OO, and one more thing. If you want to not just improve your offense, but your defense too, I have something for you. Check out this short video where I show you the single skill that beefed up my defense and consistently gets me out of trouble when I hit a bad shot. 

Tap here to learn the defensive skill every pickleball player needs to know.

Get ready to hit the pickleball court and dominate the game!