This week in Five Dink Friday:
• 😂 Scoreboard Struggles — why pickleball “improves memory”… NOT
• 🔥 Ode to the Lob — why it’s trending, why I love it, and why haters are wrong
• 🎯 How & When to Lob (Without Getting Hammered) — pro tips, patterns, and drills
• 🥒 Reset Like a Pro — transition zone secrets from Coach Chris in Croatia
• 🚫 Out Means Out — the partner drill that might finally cure “out-ball hitters”
Let’s get to it!
#1🧠 Playing Pickleball Improves Memory
(…kinda)
Saw this on a t-shirt the other day and about died laughing—
because it’s me.
I never remember the score.
If it’s been a long rally, I’m totally discombobulated.
Was I server 1 or server 2?
Was that a side out?
Did Lance serve last, or did I?
He’s no help either.
We’re the worst duo for scorekeeping.
Thank goodness for the Rain Men and idiot savants of pickleball who bail us out. 😉
My one big “unlock” was realizing that if I start serving, then every time I’m back in the first service box, it’ll be an even number.
Zero = even. Shift over = odd. Back again = two.
Easy, right?
Until I play with a partner who starts off serving, then I’m toast!
People who know me, or play with me regularly, know I’m not cheating—
I’m just numerically challenged.
New opponents?
They probably think I’m trying to scam points.
But no, pickleball has not improved my memory.
It’s simply exposed how bad it is.
👉 Poll time:
How’s your pickleball memory?
#2🎯 Ode to the Lob
The lob is having a moment.
If you’ve been on Reddit or watching the PPA the past couple of weeks, you’ve probably seen everyone talking about it. One fan even noted that in most pro events, you’d only see a lob in ~5% of rallies, but in the most recent indoor PPA tournament, they were flying a lot more often.
Why?
Indoors = no wind.
Outdoors, a gust can turn your perfect lob into a total disaster.
Indoors, the lob becomes a surgical weapon.
I love lobbing.
I drill it.
I trust it.
And, I use it against my 6’4” husband with Inspector Gadget arms—
if I can get it over him and still land it in,
I can lob anyone.
Here’s the thing: skilled players know the lob is gold.
It’s one of the smartest momentum-shifting shots in the game.
But it’s also one of the most hated shots…
because so many people butcher it.
⮕ A desperate, off-balance lob = death.
⮕ A lazy “I don’t feel like dinking” lob = death.
⮕ A sloppy, poorly aimed lob = death.
That’s why the lob has a bad rap.
But blaming the lob for bad execution is like saying the dink is a “bad” shot just because beginners pop it up. We don’t throw away the dink—we practice it, we drill it, we learn how to do it.
Same goes for the lob.
So yeah, the lob is trending again.
But it’s not new,
and it’s not cheap.
It’s always been a great shot, and it always will be—
if you put in the reps and learn the right moments to pull it out.
👉 And if you’re still on the fence, stick around.
In the next section, I’ll share some of my favorite tips on how to execute and drill the lob like a pro—so you can add it to your arsenal the right way.
📊 Poll Time:
Where do you stand on the lob? 🎯
#3🔨 How & When to Use the Lob (Without Getting Hammered)
As I mentioned last section, the lob is getting a ton of attention right now—and for good reason. It’s an awesome shot when executed with strategic precision.
🎯 What Makes a Good Lob?
Think precision, practice, purpose.
Not a “help me, I’m panicking” toss.
Clears the reach by 2–3 feet (not a moon ball).
Lands deep with margin.
Arrives by surprise—set up like a dink, then flick.
Bonus points if you can add topspin so it drops faster and skips nastier
✅ When to Lob
1) Offensive lob from the kitchen
This is the high-percentage one and is best executed when both you and your opponents are at the NVZ.
Look for green lights like:
Short dink / net-tipper → forces opponent to lean forward into the kitchen—their weight is over their toes and makes fetching the lob difficult.
Wide dink → pull them off court, then lob over the backhand shoulder while they’re scrambling to get back into position.
Any off-balance recovery → if they’re falling sideways or lunging, you’ve got time to go up and over.
To spoil an erne attempt → I use the lob—or the body bag—when my opponent tries to erne on me.
2) Volley-dink → lob (the deception jackpot)
Take a dink out of the air: prep like a normal dink, then flick it last second. It steals time and looks identical to your soft game—until it isn’t.
👉 Remember “don’t telegraph” it. The element of surprise is what makes the lob so powerful. Both Connor and Allyce explain how to disguise your lob in the videos I’ve included below.
3) Defensive “sky lob”
Different category. You’re scrambling deep, no good drop available? Throw up a skyscraper lob to reset the point and buy time to recover. Outdoors, the sun/wind can even force misses.
This is not the same as a panic lob.
Panic = you’re off-balance at the NVZ.
Defensive lob = intentional, from way back, to stay alive.
👉 Connor from Enhance Pickleball breaks down all three of these scenarios in the video below.
P.S., please disregard his advice on a 3rd shot lob. Why drill something that is only going to get you punished when you play advanced or higher-level players?
4) Pattern play (kitchen chess)
Pull wide → lob over the backhand shoulder. Allyce Jones shows this off in the video below. It’s so simple and so mean—it freezes both players, buys you space, and sets your partner up to crush the next ball.
❌ When Not to Lob
Opponents are already a step off the line (easy smash).
You’re off-balance at the NVZ (that’s when it becomes a true panic lob).
You can’t disguise it or you telegraph it (big backswing, obvious prep).
Third-shot lob vs 4.0+: leave it at home. Allyce will lob players into the back third of the court, but that’s very different than trying a third-shot lob against quick, athletic opponents—you’ll most likely get tattooed.
🕵️ How to Execute (Disguise = Everything)
Both Connor and Allyce stress this:
Prep identical to a dink or speed-up. No tells.
Compact wrist/forearm flick = lift.
Optional topspin = quicker drop.
Clearance = 2–3 ft above their full reach, not the clouds.
Allyce’s kitchen secret: paddle in neutral position so she can dink, speed up, or lob from the same setup. Opponents have no clue what’s coming.
Safety PSA: if you’re retrieving, never backpedal. Drop step, turn, run (I’ll share my favorite ways to defend against the lob next week).
🏋️ Drills That Make Your Lob Dangerous
Dink-to-Lob Live Drill → dink until someone lobs, then play it out. If it’s short, partner smashes (painful feedback, but effective). This video here.
Disguise Reps → 10 forehand, 10 backhand lobs from NVZ, all with dink-like prep. See Connor’s video
Pattern Builder → wide dink, then lob over backhand, ready for the second ball. Allyce’s go-to. Video explanation here.
📋 Quick Checklist
☑️ Same setup as dink/speed-up (no tell).
☑️ Aim crosscourt or over the backhand shoulder.
☑️ 2–3 ft clearance, deep with margin.
☑️ Never lob off-balance.
☑️ Use it strategically—sometimes that’s 1–2 a game, or as Allyce says, “back-to-back” lobs.
☑️ Indoors = lob city. Outdoors = respect the wind.
📺 Summary List of Resources
#4 🥒 Resetting Like a Pro (Straight from Croatia)
If you’ve ever found yourself stuck mid-court, eating drive after drive or slam after slam and wishing you had a better answer… this one’s for you.
When I was in Croatia, Coach Chris ran a reset clinic that was 🔥.
🎥 The video isn’t polished (hello, iPhone + echoey gym), but the teaching?
Gold.
You’re basically getting a private session from one of the best coaches in the world — the same one people paid thousands to learn from.
I drill resets a lot, but a few of Chris’s cues were brand new to me (and yes, I still suck at them):
Two hands on the paddle → almost like a ping-pong grip, with your non-dominant hand supporting. (I already use two hands for most resets in transition, but hadn’t seen this version for extra control.)
Paddle flat like a platter → think serving dessert or digging a volleyball. Totally new visual for me.
Let it bounce → you don’t always have to take it out of the air. The ground steals speed and spin for you. (This is what I need to drill—Chris is insane at scooping balls that are bouncing between his legs or almost behind him.)
Lift with the legs, not just the shoulders → Chris emphasized using your shoulders in the video, but when I drilled it, both he and Frank Solana corrected me: I was still muscling too much with my arms. They wanted to see more legs powering the lift to get that smooth arc. Game-changer.
The wild part?
Watching Chris reset balls that should have been winners. He transformed hard and fast put-aways into soft little arcs that landed perfectly in the first half of the kitchen.
Absolute wizardry.
👉 Watch Chris break it down here and then grab a partner to feed you drives and put aways while you are in the midcourt. Practice digging with that “tray” paddle face, stay low, and see how many you can drop in the shallow kitchen.
#5🚫 Out Means Out
We all know that player — the one who just cannot let out balls go, turning freebies into gifts for the other team.
If you want a drill that might finally cure them of that curse, you’ve got to see this. It cracked me up, and it’s actually effective.
Pro tip: DM it to your partner who’s guilty of this. (I already sent it to Lance. 😏)
And that’s a wrap on this week’s Five Dink Friday.
👉 If you laughed, learned, or secretly thought of that one partner who never lets an out ball go… do them a favor and forward this along.
👉 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 your lobs land deep and your resets drop soft as butter in the kitchen. 🧈🎯
—Janelle
P.S. 👀 I was hoping to test the NetX Vortex quiet balls this week, but no gameplay yet. Early drilling = amazing. Full review coming soon… stay tuned.