How to Keep Your Eye on the Pickleball

We have all seen athletes take their eye off the ball.  A professional football player is on the receiving end of a wide open pass and they drop the ball because they have started to look up field to see where the defense is.  A pickleball player goes to hit the third shot but looks up and misses the ball because their opponent put so much spin on it which they didn't see.  So why does this happen in pickleball and what can you do about it?

I am definitely guilty of playing pickleball without watching the ball.  And while the ball and game moves so fast it's hard to see the ball actually make contact with the paddle, we still should be looking closely at the ball.  I know I tend to hit the ball without looking at it when I am at the non-volley zone line.  Instead I am looking at the position of my opponents to see where there may be an opening to place the ball.  In talking with John Sperling on the Pickleball Fire podcast he said, “ What you're going to do is you're going to alter your shot right?  By lifting up your head and breaking your kinetic chain, you're going to actually start to make more errors.”  While John confirms we should be more focused on the ball, how do you do this?

Use a Target

Put a target on the court.  It can be at the kitchen line or even deep in the court.  Have a partner feed balls to you and aim for the target without looking at the target.  This forces you to keep your head down so you are looking at the ball.  Your practice partner can then give you feedback as to where your shot landed in relation to the target.

Wear a Hat

I always wear a baseball cap when I play pickleball to keep my hair out of my eyes.  I also find it useful to pull my hat low over my eyes when practicing.  This reminds me to keep my head down when hitting the ball and it gives me tunnel vision so I am not sneaking a peak at where my ball is going on the other side of the court.

Focus on the Holes 

When the ball is on your side of the net focus on the holes in it.  I find if I do this my level of play improves dramatically because I am not pulling my head up and it helps me to mentally get into the game.  When I can even read the logo on the ball, I know my eye is definitely on the ball!