When a person gets an ace in pickleball, this refers to a serve that is most sensational. As someone living in the Pacific Northwest where pickleball was born, there are some seriously difficult moves to make in playing the game. The ace is one of the hardest serves in pickleball to carry out, but when I get an ace, I win the game–most of the time.
Discern what a pickleball ace is and how you can achieve this style of serve in your next pickleball match.
About an Ace in Pickleball
An ace in pickleball is a type of serve that will practically always result in a win for the player who carries it through. According to Margaritaville, “Ace: A serve that is so epic, the opponent cannot return it and a point is won.”
Therefore, this is the ideal move for anyone to make when playing pickleball. However, one cannot always count on getting an ace when serving. As a result, this is a needle in a haystack as the serve that is always on the horizon.
Try to score with an ace in pickleball the next time you play the game.
What is a serve in pickleball?
The USA Pickleball Association (USAPA), “The purpose of the serve (at the developing levels) is simply to place the ball in play and is not intended as an offensive weapon. The serve must be hit with an underhand stroke so that contact with the ball is made below the waist, defined as the navel.” So, if I were to hit an ace when serving, that is the best move possible for the match.
Note that there are three types of serves in pickleball, including soft angle, high soft serve, and power serve. However, only the ace serve is going to ensure you get a perfect score. Which one of these three serves is an ace?
Most likely, you will need to use the power serve to score an ace at pickleball. But a soft angle and high soft serve might also land you that power move that wins your team the match. You might also achieve a combination of serves that helps you seal the deal with a winning game.
How do you get an ace serve in pickleball?
To ace a serve in pickleball is not difficult but it requires specific skills. For starters, the pickleball must be hit below your waste line using a paddle. Keep the paddle below your stomach as you hit the pickleball using your wrist. This is how you get an ace for a serve in pickleball.
To practice getting an ace pickleball serve, work to release your wrist for the most control of the paddle. The more flexible and strong your wrist, the better you will be able to serve a pickleball. Strengthen your wrist and hand muscles in between playing pickleball games to improve physical stamina when playing.
What are exercises for wrist and hand muscles for ace serves in pickleball?
One way to increase game play and efficiency when scoring an ace in pickleball is through strength training. However, in this sport, you do not want to run faster or jump higher. Instead, your goal is to increase flexibility and strength in your hands and wrists.
Since pickleball serving requires agility in the hands, fingers, and wrists, you need exercises for these limbs. Healthline shares 10 exercises you can do at any time to strengthen your wrists and hand muscles, including this exercise: “While standing, place your palms together in a praying position.
Have your elbows touch each other. Your hands should be in front of your face. Your arms should be touching each other from the tips of your fingers to your elbows.”
From this point, you will need to press your fingertips together as if you are praying. Hold this move for 30 seconds and release. Practice the praying position regularly to help improve finger and hand muscle coordination.
Use the praying hands exercise on a consistent basis to see results and to improve your odds of getting an ace serve in pickleball. While you are at it, if you are a religious person, you might also pray that you can get an ace. This, too, could land you the serve you have been waiting for–and help you win that pickleball match or tournament.
Can sports vision therapy help me get an ace pickleball serve?
Yes! One way that sports players increase accuracy when serving a ball is through sports vision therapy. Make an appointment with an eye doctor in order to start sports vision therapy. The use of sports vision therapy involves vision exercises that help improve vision acuity and sharpness.
These exercises work to build up your eye muscles and increase your ability to see the pickleball. The Vision Therapy Center states, “There are many other visual skills used to accurately see objects in space that are crucial for every athlete to have. These visual skills make up what is called “functional” vision and include: eye teaming, tracking, focusing and visualization.”
By going to an eye doctor or optometrist for sports vision therapy, you can improve the way your eyes function naturally and without surgery. Yes, even if you have 20/20 vision, the use of sports vision therapy will help you see better, faster, and sharper. This type of therapy can improve your ability to get an ace serve in a pickleball match.
This is accomplished through improved focus, visualization, and tracking of the pickleball.
Is sports vision therapy safe and legal for pickleball players going pro?
Yes! If you are a pickleball player hoping to go professional with the game, you want to stay safe and legal with any support you obtain. This includes sports vision therapy. As long as your vision therapy does not involve drugs or stimulants, you will be able to use this technique to improve your game play.
However, if an eye doctor suggests a new therapy involving drugs of any sort, you will want to consult with the USAPA to make sure this is legal for playing at the Opens or other professional level. The last thing you want to do is get kicked out of the tournament you are about to win–just because you used a substance during sports vision therapy that is not kosher by the league.
How to Get an Ace in Pickleball?
It is not impossible, but you do need to practice before you are able to ace a serve. Additionally, if you ace a serve, which means you do it perfectly well, the end result does not have to be that you win the match. The opponent could also ace a serve in pickleball, resulting in a perfect play.
However, if you ace a serve, you make it almost impossible for the other player or players to serve back the pickleball. That would mean you win a point and possibly the match by serving an ace. The Pickler explains how to get an ace in pickleball:
“By extending your arm above your head, you will give yourself the highest bounce possible (i.e. more gravitational pull), and, by extending your arm slightly in front of your body toward your paddle side, you will drop the pickleball in a manner that gives it the best chance to bounce to an ideal point of contact – out in front of your body and slightly on your paddle side.” Another tip is to be cautious about where you release the pickleball when getting ready to swing for a serve. The ball should be in the perfect position–not too high above the player’s navel and not too low where they cannot reach it with the paddle.
Practice makes perfect with pickleball playing, and getting an ace serve is no exception.
Do players always score when serving an ace?
No, and this can be a kicker when playing pickleball for money, and when you really want to win. If you are serving an ace, you will not win many points, according to The Pickler: “Not many points are won in a pickleball game off of an ace serve; however, many opportunities are lost by serves that are hit out of bounds.”
Therefore, the goal of an ace serve is to win without needing to score points. That means you want to reserve an ace serve for when you are either far behind in points, or when you are trying to stop the other team from scoring points. The ace serve sends the pickleball sailing and you win all in one fell swoop.
No worrying about counting points when you ace a serve in pickleball–unless you are playing in a tournament including regionals and national championships called Opens.