Executing a Successful Third Shot Drop in Pickleball
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.51224/SRXIV.499Keywords:
Pickleball, Third Shot Drop, ModellingAbstract
We define and investigate a successful third shot drop in pickleball using a numerical model of pickleball ball aerodynamics. Our overall objective is to investigate the ranges of initial speeds, angles and spins that result in a successful third shot drop. We conclude that the initial speed must be in the range 10.9 ms/s to 13m/s for down-the-line shots and 13.3 m/s to 16 m/s for cross-court shots. The initial angle must be in the range 15.5 degrees to 22.5 degrees for down-the-line shots and 12.5 degrees to 18 degrees for cross-court shots. We conclude that the effects of spin on the third shot drop are of secondary importance. We believe these results could be useful as a guide to coaches and players wanting to develop this crucial aspect of the game of pickleball.
Metrics
References
Alaways, L. W. and M. Hubbard (2001). “Experimental determination of baseball spin and lift”. In: Journal of Sports Sciences 19(5), pp. 349–358. doi: 10.1080/02640410152006126.
Anon (2022). Pickleball Dynamics : How Does Aerodynamic Drag Affect a Pickleball? url: https : / /pickleballscience.org/pickleball-aerodynamic-drag/.
Asai, T. (2007). “Fundamental aerodynamics of the soccer ball”. In: Sports Engineering 10, pp. 101–109. doi: 0.1007/BF02844207.
Bearman, P.W. and J.K. Harvey (1976). “Golf Ball Aerodynamics”. In: The Aeronautical Quarterly 27, pp. 112–122.
Brandt, J. (2024). Is pickleball an Olympic sport? url: https://www.https://www.playpickleball.com/is-pickleball-olympic-sport/.
Creer, Isaac (2023). “Computational Fluid Dynamics Analysis of Pickleball”. Bachelor’s Thesis. Brigham Young University-Idaho, p. 68.
Cross, R. and C. Lindsey (Apr. 2017). “Measurements of drag and lift on smooth balls in flight”. In: European Journal of Physics 38. doi: 10.1088/1361-6404/aa6e44.
Emond, Kye, Weiran Sun, and Tim B Swartz (2024). “Pickleball Flight Dynamics”. In: arXiv preprint arXiv:2409.19000, p. 15.
Fischetti, M. (2024). Pickleball Physics Explained, from Balls and Paddles to Shots. url: https://www. scientificamerican.com/article/pickleball-physics-explained-from-balls-and-paddles-to-shots/.
Ivanov, A. I. (2021). “Study of the Trajectories of a Tennis Ball”. In: Mechanics of Transport Communications. 19(3), pp. 27–34.
Koszuta, K. (2024). How to Hit a 3rd Shot Drop in Pickleball. url: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v= Bz2wXIKHXcs/.
Lindsey, C. (2022). Pickleball Spin — The Role of Surface Roughness in Spin Generation. url: https: //twu.tennis-warehouse.com/learning_center/pickleball/pickleballspin.php/.
Mehta, R. D. (1985). “Aerodynamics of Sports Balls”. In: Annual Review of Fluid Mechanics 17, pp. 151–189. doi: 10.1146/annurev.fl.17.010185.001055.
Mizota, T. (2002). 3-Dimensional Trajectory Analysis of Golf Balls. Routlege, p. 10.
Nard, M. et al. (2022). Pickleball for Dummies. J. Wiley and Sons., p. 448. isbn: 1119895138.
Sison, J (2024). How Pickleball Became America’s Fastest-Growing Sport. url: https://www.dogonews.com/2024/1/17/how-pickleball-became-americas-fastest-growing-sport.
Wen, B.-J. (2022). “Magnus-Forces Analysis of Pitched-Baseball Trajectories Using YOLOv3-Tiny Deep Learning Algorithm”. In: Applied Sciences 12, pp. 5540–5557.
Wollaston, S. (2023). The pickleball revolution: how a game for all ages became one of the world’s fastest growing sports. url: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2023/jan/27/the-pickleballrevolution-how-a-game-for-all-ages-became-one-of-the-worlds-fastest-growing-sports.
Downloads
Posted
Categories
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Douw Gerbrand Steyn Steyn, Chris Koentges, Troy Mithrush, Susan Andrews, Andre Plourde (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
