How to Beat a Banger in Pickleball

Quick Answer: Beat a banger by taking pace off the ball rather than matching it. Block their drives into the kitchen, hold the line instead of backing up, and make them hit a soft shot. Bangers win against players who trade power with them and lose against players who slow the game down.

A banger is a player who drives nearly every ball hard and flat rather than dinking or dropping, and the style beats most recreational opponents until it runs into someone who resets.

Why do bangers win so often at recreational levels?

Because most players react to pace by backing up and swinging harder, and both of those responses help the banger.

Backing up gives them more court to aim at and more time. Swinging back turns the point into a power contest, which is the one contest the banger has practiced. Meanwhile the banger never has to hit the shots they are bad at, because nobody makes them.

The style has a ceiling, and it is a low one. A banger who cannot dink or drop has no answer to a soft game. The whole problem is that most opponents never make them play one.

What actually beats a banger?

Take the pace off. That is the entire strategy, and everything else is detail.

• Block, do not swing. A firm paddle out in front absorbs a drive and drops it into the kitchen. No backswing needed. The pace is already on the ball.
• Hold the kitchen line. Backing up is the instinct and it is wrong. At the line you take the ball earlier and give them less angle.
• Reset every hard ball. A ball that lands soft in the kitchen forces them to hit up. See what a reset is.
• Make them dink. Once the ball is soft and low, a banger is playing a game they have not practiced. That is where the point turns.

Where should you stand?

At the kitchen line, and this is counterintuitive enough that most players get it wrong.

Standing back feels safer against pace. It is not. From the baseline you are covering the whole court against a player who can aim anywhere, and you have more time only in the sense that the ball has more room to get past you.

At the line you cut off angles, take the ball before it drops, and put the banger under pressure to hit a smaller target. The one adjustment is paddle position: chest height, out in front, ready to block rather than swing.

The transition zone is the dangerous place. Getting from the baseline to the line against a banger means moving during their backswing and stopping to split step when they hit. Our guide to the transition zone covers the footwork.

What should you do with your paddle?

Get it up and keep it there.

The most common physical error against a banger is a low paddle. A paddle at hip height cannot get to a body shot, and body shots are what bangers hunt. Chest height, slightly in front, elbows in.

The second error is a tight grip. A firm wrist with a relaxed grip absorbs pace. A death grip sends the ball back with all its speed and usually long.

How do you handle the banger who is actually good?

Some drivers are not bangers. A player who drives with purpose, aims at feet, and follows the drive in is playing modern pickleball, not bashing.

Against that player, the soft game still works but it needs to be better. Your resets have to be low, your dinks have to be crosscourt rather than straight, and your third shots need to actually land in the kitchen. See pickleball doubles strategy for the positioning side.

The tell is what happens when you slow the ball down. A true banger gets impatient and starts attacking balls that are not attackable. A good driver settles in and dinks with you.

What should you not do?

• Do not back up. It is the single most common losing response.
• Do not swing harder. You are playing their game and they are better at it.
• Do not lob out of desperation. A short lob against a player who likes to hit hard is a gift. See what a lob is for when it actually works.
• Do not aim for the sideline. Under pressure, margin matters more than angle. Middle is fine.
• Do not get annoyed. Bangers win a lot of points off opponents who are irritated rather than opponents who are outplayed.

FAQ

What is a banger in pickleball?

A player who drives nearly every ball hard and flat rather than dinking, dropping, or resetting. The term is descriptive rather than an insult, though it is often used as one.

Should I back up against a banger?

No. Hold the kitchen line. Backing up gives them more court and more time, and it is the reason most players lose to this style.

How do I block a hard drive?

Paddle out in front at chest height, firm wrist, relaxed grip, no backswing. Let the ball’s own pace do the work and aim to drop it into the kitchen.

Why does slowing the game down beat a banger?

Because it makes them hit shots they have not practiced. A banger’s whole advantage disappears once the ball is low and soft.

Is banging a bad strategy?

It is effective up to a point and then it stops working. Players who only drive tend to plateau, because the soft game is what separates levels above 3.5.

Should I lob against a banger?

Only when it is a genuinely good lob and they are leaning in. A short lob against a player who wants to hit hard is the worst possible outcome.

What if my partner keeps banging back?

Talk about it between games. Two players with different plans against a driver lose more points than either plan would on its own.

Do bangers get better?

Many do, once they run into enough opponents who reset. The style is often a stage rather than a permanent identity.

If resets are the missing piece in your game, that is the classic thing to fix with a coach rather than alone. Our directory lists coaches by city.

Written by the Pickler Junction Team.