"I don't understand pickleball patterns."

Every once in a while someone comes up to me and says, "I don't understand what a pickleball pattern is..."

And my response is, “Sure you do.”

A 3rd shot drop, 5th shot drive? That's a pattern. Hitting several cross-court dinks in a row to someone’s outside foot, then inside foot. That’s a pattern.

You already know more patterns than you think.

We just don’t realize these are patterns.

And here's what most players miss. . .

They recognize the obvious patterns—like serve, return, third shot drop—but they're completely blind to the subtle ones that happen during rallies. The ones that actually determine who wins and loses points.

And honestly? I get it. When you're focused on just getting the ball back over the net, you're not exactly thinking about where your opponent is likely to hit their next three shots.

But the players who start seeing these patterns? They stop scrambling. They start anticipating. They begin controlling points instead of just reacting to them.

And that's when pickleball gets really fun.

Look, I spent years thinking pickleball was mostly random. Sure, I knew some basic sequences, but during fast rallies? It felt like pure chaos.

Then something clicked.

I started noticing that when I hit certain shots, my opponents would respond in predictable ways. Not every time, but way more often than I expected.

Speed up down the line? It usually comes back cross-court. Dink to their backhand? They often return it to the same spot. Attack the middle? It frequently gets redirected to the outside player.

These weren't coincidences. They were patterns.

And once I started positioning myself based on these patterns instead of just hoping for the best? My game changed dramatically.

I went from constantly being out of position to feeling like I knew what was coming next. From getting caught off-guard to being ready for the ball before my opponent even hit it.

That's the power of pattern recognition. You legitamitely start thinking you’re psychic.

Ha!

But what you’re really doing is understanding pickleball in a NEW way.

Every time I watch film, it’s amazing to me how often players are standing in the wrong position.

They position themselves where the ball is instead of where it's going.

Example:

Your partner hits a speed-up down the line. Where do you stand?

Most players stay in their current position and react to whatever comes next. But if you know the triangle pattern (more on that in a sec), you know that ball is probably coming cross-court/middle to you about 80% of the time.

So instead of reacting, you can prepare. Shift slightly toward the center. Get your paddle in position. Be ready to counter before the ball even gets hit.

That's the difference between playing chess and playing checkers.

And it works at every level. I see 3.0 players doing this stuff instinctively. I watch 5.0+ players who've mastered it completely.

The patterns are the same. The only difference is how quickly players recognize and respond to them.

I know this sounds crazy, but I genuinely believe that being smarter about the game will make you a better player than being a master of technique.

Why?

Because when you KNOW what’s coming, your technique will instantly improve by being in a better position.

Too often, we focus on hitting perfect shots. However, if we become pattern-aware, we can be a bit messier with our shots because we’ll be in position WAY earlier.

You can have the most beautiful third shot drop in the world, but if you don't know where to position after hitting it, you're going to struggle against players who do.

Alright, let's get into the specific patterns I see constantly. And I mean constantly. From beginner rec games to professional tournaments.

If you haven’t seen my video yet with Jake from Friday Pickleball, where I break down game film, going over each of these patterns, you can watch that here:

This is the big one. The pattern that, once you see it, you can't unsee it.

Here's how it works:

When you hit a shot, your opponent redirects it at an angle, creating a triangle shape. And about 80% of the time, you can predict where that redirected shot is going.

Speed up down the line → Usually comes back cross-court Cross-court dink → Often gets redirected down the line

Attack to the middle → Frequently goes to the outside player

Why this happens:

It's the path of least resistance. When players are under pressure, they tend to hit the most natural shot available. And that's usually the one that completes the triangle.

How to use it:

Tell your partner where you're planning to attack. "My next speed-up is going down the line." Now they can position for the triangle completion instead of guessing.

Even better? Break the triangle. Hit it back to where it came from instead of completing the expected pattern. Watch your opponents scramble to cover a spot they weren't expecting.

This one's all about contact point, but not in the way most people think.

Everyone knows "hit the ball at the highest point." But the real pattern is about recognizing when the highest contact point is out of the air vs. after the bounce.

The mistake I see constantly:

Player sees a ball coming in at knee height and thinks, "I'll take this out of the air and keep the pressure on!"

Wrong.

You just reached for trash. And good players are counting on you to make that mistake.

The pattern:

Why this works:

Better players will actually bait you into taking balls from disadvantageous positions. They'll give you something that looks attackable but forces you into a weak contact point.

Learn to recognize these setups, and you'll stop falling for them.

Oh man, this one is everywhere in recreational play.

The setup:

Someone hits a short return that lands in the mid-court area. What happens next?

Eyes light up. "This is my moment!"

THWACK!

. . . and it sails long.

The pattern:

Players get excited about "easy" mid-court balls and try to crush them. But here's the thing—you don't practice hitting drives from the mid-court. You practice them from the baseline or as volleys at the kitchen line.

That weird in-between shot? It's not in your muscle memory.

How to use it:

If you hit a short return, get ready to duck. Most aggressive responses are going long.

If you get a short ball, resist the hero shot urge. Hit a controlled shot, move forward deliberately, then look for your opportunity.

This one's more advanced, but it's deadly when you get it right.

The situation:

You're getting pushed around in a rally. You're behind the kitchen line, your opponent is reading everything you do, and they're positioning to cut off your predictable shots.

The pattern:

Instead of waiting for the ball to rise to its peak (giving them more time to read), hit it on the short hop—right as it's coming up from the bounce.

Quick push shot up the line where they've left a gap.

Why it works:

This exploits positioning, not power. Even if they get to it, they're usually off-balance and likely to give you a weak response.

If you're going to focus on just one pattern, make it the triangle effect.

Why?

How to practice:

Next time you play, just watch for triangles. Don't try to do anything with them yet. Just notice when they happen.

I guarantee you'll start seeing them everywhere.

Then, start positioning based on the triangle completions. Move slightly toward where you expect the ball to come.

Finally, try breaking a few triangles. Hit the ball back to where it came from instead of completing the expected pattern.

You'll be amazed how often this catches people off-guard.

Here's the thing about patterns: Once you start seeing them, pickleball stops being a reaction game and starts being a strategy game.

Instead of just trying to hit the ball back, you're thinking about sequences. Instead of just moving to where the ball is, you're positioning for where it's going.

That's when you stop playing checkers and start playing chess.

And honestly? That's when pickleball gets really addictive. Because instead of feeling like you're constantly scrambling, you start feeling like you're in control.

You start anticipating instead of reacting. Planning instead of hoping.

You start playing the game instead of letting the game play you.

BTW, if this kind of strategic breakdown gets you excited, we dive way deeper into pattern recognition inside ThatPickleballSchool. Court positioning, sequence recognition, how to communicate patterns with your partner—all that good stuff.

We actually have an entire course dedicated to it called the Pattern Recognition Library.

It’s so strong that we made it only available for Annual Members of ThatPickleballSchool.

But if you want to try it out, and see if learning patterns can truly change your game, you can start right now on a free 7-day trial.

This is the one course that we get a ton of feedback on because players aboslutely love it.

I hope you’ll try it out free and tell me what you think.

Talk soon,

Kyle

P.S. - Try the triangle pattern thing this week and let me know how it goes. I bet you'll spot at least 10 triangles in your first game once you know what to look for.