THIRD SHOT DROPS AND FLAMINGOS

by Jenny Foster

Third shot drops are one of the most important shots in pickleball. Mastery of this shot ensures that a team will get a point at some point in a pickleball game.

Basically, a 3rd shot drop is an arching shot aimed at hitting the ball softly to the opponent’s court. With this shot, the opponents’ team is expected to have less time to run and hit the ball as it drops over the net.

However, some top players have found a way to improve their 3rd drop shots by a mile.

In pickleball games, one might notice how players, especially the professional ones, sometimes assume a flamingo-like position as they hit a 3rd drop shot, that is, one of their leg is lifted up while they make for the 3rd shot drop.

So how does this position helps in making a reliable 3rd drop shot?

First of all, when doing the flaming-style position to do a 3rd drop shot, a player must know which foot should be lifted up and which one should remain firmly in the ground. In this case, if a player hits the ball from the right side, then his left foot should be the one off the ground, and vice versa.

The reason for this is pretty simple. The flamingo-style 3rd drop shots requires putting most of the player’s weight or load to the foot nearer the ball. Why? Because it helps the player to make a quick recovery after hitting the ball and allows them to transition into a running position as they head forward to the net after their shot.

Understandably, not everyone gets the chance to use the flamingo-style position for their 3rd drop shots. However, when both feet are on the ground, and the weight is distributed evenly between the feet, a player’s forward movements tend to be clumsy or awkward.  

So how does lifting one foot up helps in the 3rd shot drop?

Before explaining this, one must understand first the direction of paddle in a 3rd drop shot, that is, from a low to high direction, which helps in creating an arching path for the ball after hitting it.

Witt such low-to-high paddle movement, the ball gets over the net smoothly and without too much speed. In relation to this hitting technique, the paddle should be stable enough. Notably, hitting the ball involves several body parts, such as the hand, forearm, and elbow. As more body parts become involved in a shot, the room for error also increases.

Fortunately, there is a solution. If a player focuses on their legs when lifting their paddle upward, they decrease the involvement of various arm parts in hitting the ball, thus increasing stability.

At this point comes the importance of the flamingo action. With the weight concentrated on one foot, a player can easily do a “sit-and-stand” action which helps in pushing off the foot on the ground as the paddle hits the ball with minimum movement of arm parts. What results is a 3rd drop shot with minimum resistance and stable enough to go over the net at the desired speed.

Again, it is not possible to always assume the flamingo position, but when opportunity presents itself, pickleball players should grab the chance to make a smooth 3rd shot drop and possibly win a point. In addition, practice also helps. Pickleball players should not be afraid to try out techniques, such as the flamingo-style 3rd drop shot, to constantly improve their game and practice mindfulness in every game.