Team Pickleball Consistency Drills: Pickleball mental coach DJ Howard introduced a four-player game called “Ping Pong/Rally/Game On,” designed to help athletes warm up, build consistency, and improve decision-making on the court. The drill mixes cooperative play with competitive action while giving players practice across the entire court.
How the Drill Begins
DJ Howard explained that the first four shots of each rally must be controlled and cooperative. He said, “The first four shots have to be cooperative so whomever starts the point with a friendly start, a friendly feed, a serve if you will. John you have the ball let’s just have you start. Your first one is Ping, the return is Pong, next return is Rally, that fourth ball now game on which means the full court is open.”
After the first four controlled shots, the rally becomes competitive. “The players may do whatever they want to try to score a point. Full length of the court is in. You may lob, you can speed the ball up, anything you think you can do to try to win a point. But the first four shots must be cooperative. If you make a mistake within the first four let’s just replay the point.”
Rules and Scoring
Howard described how the game continues once play becomes live. “Ping pong rally game on. Now it’s a live point. Good speed up, good reset, nice try you guys. Ear in the point. Now let’s have you switch sides.”
The game uses rally scoring, and switching sides happens when the serving team wins. “If as a starting team you served the ball and you win the rally, swap sides. Now if you lose the rally, it’s rally scoring so the receiving team would still score a point but you won’t switch sides.”
Playing to Seven or Eleven
Howard suggested a flexible scoring system to fit practice schedules. “We’ll play this game to seven and then we’ll rotate and play with a new partner. That way we can get in three full rounds of this before we go ahead and play our full points pickleball.”
He added that the drill helps players make smarter choices. “This is a great warm-up game but also helps you with your decision making on when is a good time to speed it up, when is a good time to maybe not speed it up and just merely dink the ball back in the court.”
Rhythm Before Aggression
Howard reminded players not to be too aggressive in the early shots. “We’re not trying to win the point with the first four shots. We want to develop a little rhythm, get some consistency before we open it up and try to score a point.”
He also explained what to do if a ball is slightly off. “If it’s playable, go ahead and play it. We’re not going to be such sticklers about that that we’re not just going to play on. But if it had been a little deeper, too challenging, we could just pause and replay. Goal is not to be too aggressive within the first four. Again, we want to develop a little bit of rhythm before we try to be aggressive and try to win that point.”
Why the Drill Matters
The “Ping Pong/Rally/Game On” drill works as both a warm-up and a practice tool. It teaches players consistency, patience, and how to read the right moments to attack. By rotating partners and sides, it ensures variety and balance in practice while keeping athletes engaged before full matches.
News in Brief: Team Pickleball Consistency Drills
DJ Howard introduced “Ping Pong/Rally/Game On,” a four-player pickleball drill. The game requires the first four shots to be cooperative before points become live. Using rally scoring, it helps players practice rhythm, consistency, and decision-making. Teams play to seven or eleven while switching sides for variety and balanced training.
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