Outsmart, Outlast, Outplay: The Secret Formula for Beating Younger Players at Pickleball
- Tom Kiat
- Jul 23
- 2 min read
I've Done It Hundreds of Times, You will Too!
There’s something incredibly satisfying about walking off the court, sweat dripping, paddle in hand, having just outplayed a guy half your age. He might have had the quicker feet, the higher vertical, and the bionic knees, but you had the secret sauce: wisdom, grit, and a strategy he never saw coming.
As a pickleball coach who’s trained hundred's of players, many of them over 40, 50, even 70, age is not your weakness. It's your weapon. The secret isn't to try to keep up with the younger players. The secret is to make them play your game.
1. Slow the Game Down
Younger players want chaos. Fast hands, aggressive drives, rush-rush-rush. You? You bring the calm to the storm. Dink like a surgeon. Reset like a Jedi. Make them bend low, make them bend often, and eventually, they break.
2. Win the Mental War
Most younger players think power = points. Let them think that. Keep feeding them balls that look attackable but lead to errors. Use patterns. Bait them. Frustrate them. Then strike when they’re flustered and overhitting.
3. Play High-Percentage Pickleball
Forget the flashy shots. Hit 80% winners with 20% effort. Place your serves deep and consistent. Drop your thirds into the kitchen like clockwork. Target the weaker player relentlessly. Stay in the point longer than anyone expects, and you’ll win far more than you lose.
4. Train for Endurance, Not Explosiveness
You don’t need to be the fastest. You need to be there, point after point. Build stamina. Be the last man standing when their legs give out in game three. Your rally tolerance becomes your deadliest weapon.
5. Know Your Role, and Own It
You’re the tactician. The chess master. You don’t need to be flashy. You need to be efficient. Strategic. Ruthless in execution. That’s what wins games.
The younger player might beat you in a sprint. But pickleball isn’t a sprint. It’s a chess match played at 60 miles per hour.
So next time you step onto the court against that energetic 20 something, smile. You already know how the story ends. Because you’ve read the playbook. And more importantly, you’ve lived it.
Outsmart them. Outlast them. Outplay them.
And when they ask what just happened?
Just wink and tell them:
“I’ve been playing your game longer than you’ve been alive.”
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If you're tired of losing to players who shouldn't beat you, this is your Secret Weapon. Pickleball IQ Advantage hands you the exact shots, tactics, strategies, and mental edge top players use to dominate every rally, without spending years figuring it out the hard way.
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