The Dink Shot in Pickleball: How to Hit It and When to Use It

If you watch experienced players, you will notice long rallies of gentle shots that barely clear the net and drop into the kitchen. Those are dinks. They look polite, but they are how good doubles players create openings: whoever lifts the ball too high first usually loses the point. Learning a reliable dink is one of the biggest steps from beginner to confident club player.

This guide explains what a dink is, how to hit one, where to aim, and how the kitchen rules apply while you dink. Rules references follow the 2026 USA Pickleball Official Rulebook, available at usapickleball.org.

What a dink is, and why it works

A dink is a soft shot, usually hit after the ball bounces, from at or near your kitchen line into your opponents' kitchen. Its job is to land low and short. A ball that bounces in the kitchen and stays below the top of the net is very hard to hit hard: your opponent would have to swing upward, which usually sends the ball long or gives you an easy volley back.

That is the whole idea of the soft game. Neither team can simply smash from the net, because the non-volley zone keeps players seven feet back from it. So players trade dinks, waiting for one that floats up high enough to attack.

How to hit a dink, step by step

1. Get set at the line. Stand just behind the kitchen line, feet a little wider than your shoulders, knees bent, weight forward on the balls of your feet.
2. Paddle out in front. Hold the paddle in front of your body at about waist height, face slightly open (tilted up). Keep the grip relaxed; a common cue is about 3 or 4 on a 1 to 10 squeeze scale.
3. Bend your legs, not your back. To reach a low ball, lower your body with your knees so the paddle stays under the ball.
4. Swing from the shoulder. Use a short, smooth, pendulum motion from the shoulder, with a quiet wrist. Think lift, not hit.
5. Follow toward the target. Finish with the paddle pointing where you want the ball to land, low over the net.
6. Recover. Return to your ready position right away, because the next ball is coming back fast.

Where to aim

• Cross court. The diagonal dink travels a longer distance and crosses the lower middle part of the net (34 inches at the center versus 36 at the sidelines), so there is more room for error. It is the safest dink for beginners.
• At your opponent's feet. A ball that lands near their toes forces them to reach low and lift.
• To the backhand. Many recreational players are less steady on the backhand side.
• Straight ahead. Shorter and quicker. Use it occasionally to surprise someone leaning cross court.

When to dink, and when not to

The key read is the height of the ball when you make contact:

• Below the top of the net: dink. You cannot hit down on it safely, so keep it soft and low.
• Clearly above the top of the net, and you are balanced: this is the ball to attack, usually with a firm volley angled down at your opponents' feet.
• In doubt: dink. A patient dink rarely loses the point by itself; a rushed attack on a low ball often does.

Getting this read right is where most recreational players leak points, and it is exactly what our free level quiz asks about in its shot choice question.

The rules that matter while dinking

• You may step into the kitchen to dink a ball that has bounced there. That is legal.
• Before you volley the next ball, both of your feet must be back on the ground completely outside the kitchen.
• If you dink a ball out of the air (a dink volley), your feet must be outside the kitchen and your momentum must not carry you in.
• Do not touch the net with your paddle or body while the ball is in play, a real risk when you reach for short dinks.
• Reaching over the net is only allowed after the ball has crossed to your side, so wait for it.

Common dink mistakes

• Too much wrist. A flicky wrist makes the height unpredictable. Lock it gently and swing from the shoulder.
• Standing up straight. If your legs are straight, you will lift the paddle to reach low balls, and the dink pops up.
• Taking the paddle back too far. A big backswing adds pace you do not want. Keep the swing short.
• Standing too far back. Dinking from midcourt is much harder. Get to the line first.
• Speeding up a low ball. Attacking a ball below the net is the most common way to lose a good dink rally.

Three beginner dink drills

1. Dink to 20. With a partner, dink cross court and count how many you can hit in a row, both landing in the kitchen. Start the count again after any pop up. Beat your record next session.
2. Up or down. In a dink rally, say "up" or "down" out loud on every ball you touch: up means you made contact above the top of the net. Only attack the "up" balls. This builds the habit of reading height before you swing.
3. Step in, step out. Your partner mixes short dinks that bounce in the kitchen with ones that land near the line. Step in for the short ones, then get both feet out before the next ball.

New to the game? Start with our pickleball rules for beginners, and keep the free Pickleball Rules Cheat Sheet in your bag for the kitchen and scoring rules.

FAQ