This week, I had the absolute privilege of playing pickleball in one of the most surreal settings imaginable:

on a floating court, anchored off the coast of Croatia, while sailing on a private yacht with IWorld of Travel. (Yes, that’s a real thing. Yes, it was insane. Yes, I kept pinching myself.)

Even better, our coach for the week was Chris Herradine—Colin Johns’ lead coach in the Johns brothers’ RPO certification program.

Translation: the guy literally drills, coaches, and plays with Colin Johns every week. Super knowledgeable, sharp, and fun, and we got to soak it all in.

And we also had the legendary pro player Frank Solana join us, too. Remind me to tell you all about the Tornado shot.

On the very first coaching session, Chris hit us with this stat:
👉 85% of pickleball points are decided before the 6th shot.*

Read that again.

Most rallies don’t even make it to the dink game.

And yet what do you usually see at rec play or in drilling groups?

Everyone heads straight to the kitchen and starts…dinking. Nothing wrong with that—dinking absolutely matters once you’re playing at a higher level.

But here’s the kicker: if you haven’t dialed in your serve, your return, your third, and your fourth, you’re skipping the shots that actually decide the majority of points.

👉 Master those first. Then your dinking practice will actually pay off, because you’ll be making it to the kitchen more often and starting those dink exchanges on your terms.

So for this week’s Five Dink Friday, I’m breaking down the real lessons from the cruise:

why your return is more than just a reply, why the second and fourth shots are secretly the killers, and how to target smarter with your third.

Oh, and stick around for the last segment—I’ll spill what it’s actually like playing pickleball on a floating court in the middle of the Adriatic. 🛶🎾

If 85% of points are decided in the first six shots, then every one of those shots has to matter. And after the serve, the next shot that often gets overlooked—but absolutely shapes the point—is the return.

Most rec players treat the return of serve like a throwaway shot. Just get it back, right?

Wrong.

Your return is the setup shot that buys you time to get to the net and into an offensive position. If you’re not hitting it with intention, you’re basically spotting your opponents a free ride to the kitchen.

On the Pickleball Cruise this week, Chris Herradine had us drilling what he calls the “rainbow return”—a deep, high, arcing ball that gives you the time you need to get all the way up to the NVZ line.

Why does that matter?

Because you don’t win games from the baseline or the transition zone (at least not at higher levels).

You win them at the kitchen. A deep, controlled return buys you the position you need to start dictating.

🎯 Where Should You Send It?

⚾ Think Like a Pitcher

Don’t just spray your returns around “to keep them guessing.” Consistency is what pressures opponents into coughing up errors.

But every now and then, mix in a wrinkle—a shorter ball, a flatter drive, a knuckly spinner.

The key?

Change-ups with intention.

Just like a pitcher, you’ve got your fastball (deep rainbow), your slider (flat deep return), and your occasional off-speed knuckler.

Don’t use them for fun.

Use them to win.

👉 Bottom line: a return isn’t just a reply, it’s a strategy. Depth + discipline + smart targeting = control.

📊 Poll Time:

Everyone talks about the third shot like it’s the holy grail of pickleball. Drop, drive, or drip.

But Coach Chris flipped that on its head.

He argued that the second and fourth shots are actually the most important in pickleball.

Here’s why:

That’s why Chris calls the 2nd and 4th the “money shots.”

👉 Bottom line: Don’t just focus on the third shot. Yes, it’s important, but it’s the 2nd and 4th shots that decide points. They’re the ones that actually cost you points when you mess them up.

👉 And here’s the kicker: once you’ve nailed those “money shots” (the 2nd and 4th), the next big lever is what you do with your third. Not just whether you drop or drive—but who you aim it at.

Here’s another gem from Coach Chris Herradine this week: your third shot shouldn’t just be “a drop.” It should be aimed with intent.

The rule of thumb?
👉 Hit your third to the player who’s still stuck in transition.

Think about it: after the serve and return, one opponent is usually already set at the kitchen, while the other is hustling forward from the baseline.

That mover is off balance, mid-stride, and under pressure.

That’s your target.

Now—whether you choose to drop, drive, drip, or Tornado*, absolutely matters. That’s a strategic decision, not a coin flip.

🔗 If you missed last week’s deep dive on when to drop vs. drive, catch up here (section 3).

Why target the mover?

Because making a player hit while running forward is one of the hardest asks in pickleball.

They’re late, they’re leaning, and their error rate skyrockets.

Bonus: even if they manage to block it back, you’ve likely neutralized them long enough to control the rally.

👉 Bottom line: Stop floating your thirds aimlessly crosscourt “because that’s what everyone does.” Pick off the transition player and make their life miserable.

Pickleball is already addictive on land… but on water? That’s next-level.

So what was it like playing pickleball on a floating court? Here’s the scoop:

But once you adjust? Total blast. Way more fun than fighting the wind.

The highlight: Frank Solana nails an Erne… and then promptly Erne’s himself off the court into the water. 😂 Which left me 1v2 until he climbed back up.

Spoiler alert: I held my own but lost the point. Here’s the footage (the first part of the video is a drill Coach Chris taught us called “Kitchen Juggling.” We got up to 4 balls going. Super fun and challenging).

Floating courts are popping up everywhere — Florida’s already got some, iWorld of Travel is about to launch one off the coast of Italy, and manufacturers are going all-in.

Give it a year or two, and you’ll probably see “lake pickleball” vacations in every luxury travel brochure.

👉 Moral of the story: if you ever get the chance to play on a floating pickleball court, take it. It’s chaos, it’s hilarious, and it’s way more fun than wind.

And I’m dying to know if you’ve played on a floating court yet. Reply and let me know.

And that’s a wrap on this week’s special Pickleball Cruise Edition of Five Dink Friday.

From rainbow returns to money-shot 4ths to Frank’s legendary Erne splash into the sea, this week proves pickleball really does belong everywhere—even on the open waters. 🌊

👉 If you enjoyed this, forward it to your pickleball crew so they can get in on the fun.
👉 And if this was forwarded to you, make sure you don’t miss the next one—

Until next week—stay sharp, dink smart, and may every Erne you hit end in glory, not a splash. 😉

—Janelle

P.S. 📤 Coach Chris taught us how to customize our paddles with lead tape. I’m gonna teach his special secrets to you, too.