Pickleball Strategy Book: A Guide to 3.5 and Beyond
Ready to level up your pickleball game? This Pickleball Strategy Book focuses on pickleball strategy, positioning, and smart shot choices for the 3.0 to 3.5+ level. Skip the fluff and learn how to play smarter, win more points, and build a stronger doubles game.
Amazon Kindle Edition — $4.99 (See it on Amazon)
Beginner-friendly, with foundational sections to help new players build solid habits and avoid early mistakes.
Clear explanations and court diagrams show how to move with purpose, place your shots, and avoid common errors that hold players back.
Portions of this guide have already helped thousands of players in popular communities like The Pickleball Clinic, Pickleball Forum, Senior Pickleball Tips and The Kitchen Pickle, powered by PickleballCentral.
See the sample on Amazon or scroll down for the full Table of Contents and complete list of topics.
No Kindle device needed. Formatted for easy reading on phones and tablets with the Kindle app.
👉 Get it now… Amazon Kindle Edition — $4.99 (See it on Amazon)
Pickleball Strategy Book – Table of Contents
• Introduction
• Pickleball Skill Level 3.5 – How to Know If You’re There
• Who This Book Is For and What’s Inside
Pickleball Primer
• Pickleball Rules
• Pickleball Terminology
• Paddle Grips – The Basics
• Footwork – The Split Step
• Warm Up Routine – Wake up Your Muscle Memory
• Skinny Singles – How to Play and Why
• Pickleball Skill Levels Defined
The Serve Basics (2.0-3.0 Level)
• Pickleball Serve Overview
• Serve Consistency
• Serve Options – Volley and Drop
• Pickleball Serve Legality
• Serving Under Pressure
• Serve Offensive Positioning
• Serve Defensive Positioning
Advanced Serve Strategy (3.5+ Level)
• Pickleball Stacking
• Serve Stacking
• Defensive Stacking
• Advanced Serves – Targeting and Spin
Return of Serve Basics (2.0-3.0 Level)
• Pickleball Serve Return Basics
• Serve Return Control
• Serve Return – Advance to the Kitchen
• Serve Return Freeze – Don’t Do This
• Serve Return – Handling Spin Serves
• Mastering the Serve Return – Consistency First
Advanced Serve Return (3.5+ Level)
• Serve Return – Targeting & Using Spin
• Pickleball Spin Physics
The Third Shot Basics (2.0-3.0 Level)
• Third Shot Options
• Third Shot Communication
• Third Shot – Stepping In With Your Forehand
• The Third Shot Drive
• How to Hit an Effective Drive
• The Third Shot Drop
• How to Hit a Drop Shot
• The Lob Shot
• How to Hit a Lob
• The Overhead Smash – Close the Deal
Advanced Third Shot Strategy (3.5+ Level)
• Poaching in Pickleball
• Poaching Personalities
• The Shake and Bake
• Pinching the Middle
• Blocking a Drive
• The 5th and 7th Shot Drop
• Third Shot Drop – Put Away
• Third Shot Drop – Targeting
• Third Shot Drop – Advancing to the Kitchen
• Drop Shot Mistake – Drawing Your Opponent In
• Drop Shot Defense
• The Reset Shot – Your Defensive Lifeline
• Using Drop Shots to Beat Power Players
• The Lob Switch
• The Angle Smash Shot
Dinking Basics (2.0-3.0 Level)
• Dinking Overview
• Footwork and Tethering
• The Cross-Court Dink – Your Best Option
• Attacking a Bad Dink
• 3 Common Dinking Mistakes
Advanced Dinking Strategy (3.5+)
• The Dink Fake – End the Dink Rally
• The ATP (Around the Post)
• The Erne
The 3.5+ Player’s Mindset
• Seeing the Court as a 3.5 Player
• The Power of Resilience in Pickleball
• Patience in Pickleball
• The Power Player Challenge
• From Tennis to Pickleball
Pickleball Etiquette (For All Levels)
Celebrating Your 3.5 Milestone (and Beyond)