Pickleball Rules You Can Learn in Two Minutes

Pickleball is easy to start, but the first game can feel confusing because of the serving order, the two-bounce rule, and the area everyone calls the kitchen. Fortunately, the basics are simple.

A standard game is usually played to 11 points, and you must win by at least two. Under standard scoring, only the serving player or team can score. The serve travels diagonally into the opposite service court, and the serving side keeps serving until it loses a rally. In doubles, both partners normally get a chance to serve before the other team takes over, except at the very beginning of the game.

The first two shots must bounce. The receiving side must let the serve bounce, and the serving side must also let the return bounce. After those two bounces, players may hit the ball before or after it bounces. This is known as the two-bounce rule.

The kitchen is the seven-foot non-volley zone beside the net. You may stand in the kitchen and play a ball that has bounced, but you may not volley the ball while touching the kitchen or its boundary line. Your momentum also cannot carry you into the kitchen after a volley.

A ball touching a boundary line is usually in, but a serve that lands on the kitchen line is a fault. You lose the rally by hitting the ball out, into the net, allowing it to bounce twice, breaking the two-bounce rule, or volleying illegally from the kitchen.

So remember: serve diagonally, let the first two shots bounce, stay out of the kitchen when volleying, and play to 11 by two. After that, stop studying the rules, grab a paddle, and get on the court.