Target Practice: Win More Points by Attacking the Right Spots on Your Opponents

One of the most valuable lessons you’ll learn as you progress in pickleball is that raw power alone won’t carry you to victory. Sure, you might be able to blast the ball past beginners or lower-rated players who lack the reflexes to respond. But as you climb the skill ladder and face opponents with better hand speed and court awareness, something becomes crystal clear: location matters more than velocity.

Even with all the advances in paddle technology that have introduced more power and spin potential into the game, strategic placement remains the cornerstone of winning pickleball. The question isn’t whether you can hit the ball hard—it’s whether you can hit it to the right spot at the right time. And just as importantly, can you vary your targets enough to keep your opponents guessing?

The reality is that predictability is your enemy on the pickleball court. If you attack the same spot every single time you go on offense, your opponents will eventually catch on. And when they do, they’ll make you pay for it. The key to maintaining offensive pressure is understanding which spots create the most problems for your opponents and then mixing up your attacks to keep them off balance.

Understanding the Fundamentals: What Does Attacking Mean in Pickleball?

Before diving into specific target areas, it’s worth taking a step back to explain what we mean by “attacking” for those who might be newer to competitive pickleball strategy. When we talk about attacking in pickleball, we’re referring to shots that put your opponents on the defensive—shots that force them to react quickly, hit from awkward positions, or make difficult decisions under pressure.

These attacking shots can happen from anywhere on the court. You might attack off the bounce with a hard drive from the baseline, or you might attack at the kitchen line during a hands battle where all four players are engaged in rapid-fire exchanges. The common thread is that you’re taking the initiative to put your opponents in a compromised position.

The opposite of attacking is resetting or defending, where you’re trying to slow down the pace, regain control of the rally, or simply keep the ball in play. Both approaches have their place in pickleball, but knowing when and how to attack—and more specifically, where to aim your attacks—can dramatically improve your win rate.

For recreational players, attacking often means simply hitting the ball harder or faster. But as you improve, you’ll discover that placement trumps power almost every time. A well-placed shot at 75% power will be far more effective than a poorly placed shot at 100% power. This is because a strategic shot to the right location limits your opponent’s options and forces them into mechanical positions where they can’t generate quality shots in return.

Target Number One: The Right Hip of Your Down-the-Line Opponent

If there’s one target that every intermediate to advanced pickleball player should have locked into their arsenal, it’s the right hip of their down-the-line opponent. This is the bread-and-butter target in pickleball, and for good reason—it’s incredibly effective at generating weak returns and giving you an advantage in the rally.

Let’s break down exactly how this works. Imagine you’re playing on the left side of the court. Your opponent directly across from you on their left side is right-handed. You want to locate their right hip and visualize a bullseye about the size of a dinner plate centered on that spot. This becomes your primary target when you decide to attack.

Why is this spot so effective? When you successfully hit your opponent’s right hip, you’re jamming them—meaning you’re hitting the ball into their body in a way that makes it extremely difficult for them to execute a quality shot. They’re forced into one of two uncomfortable options. They can try to hit what’s commonly called a “chicken wing,” where their elbow stays bent and they have to awkwardly swipe at the ball with limited extension. Or they can attempt a short-arm forehand counter, which requires excellent hand-eye coordination and often results in a weak or errant shot.

The execution of this shot is just as important as the target selection. When attacking the right hip, you should be hitting with about 75-80% power rather than going all-out. The focus should be on generating topspin to keep the ball low over the net and to give you better control as you aim for that specific spot. If you hit the ball too hard and flat, one of two things will happen: either it’ll dive into the net, or you’ll hit it too high and give your opponent an easy ball to counter or let fly out.

This target works from virtually anywhere on the court—whether you’re driving from the baseline, countering at mid-court, or engaged in speed-ups at the kitchen line. The technique can be applied with either your forehand or backhand. Personally, I use both my two-handed backhand and my forehand off the bounce to generate topspin and aim for this location with consistent success.

One important caveat: always target the opponent down the line from you, not the one cross-court. Speed-ups and attacks cross-court are generally low-percentage shots that give your opponents angles to work with. Attacking down the line limits their options and makes it harder for them to find space on the court.

Also worth noting is that this target shifts when you’re playing against left-handed opponents. For a lefty, the right hip is on the opposite side, which means you’ll be attacking more toward the middle of the court. This is a critical adjustment that many players forget to make, and it can be the difference between an effective attack and one that plays right into your opponent’s forehand strength.

Target Number Two: The Right Shoulder of Your Down-the-Line Opponent

Once you’ve established the right hip as your go-to target and you’ve hit it successfully a few times in a game, attentive opponents will start to adapt. They might shift their positioning to protect that hip, either by sliding toward the sideline (which creates a gap in the middle) or by keeping their paddle stationed in front of that area. This is exactly when you need your second primary target: the right shoulder.

The best asset in attacking successfully in pickleball is unpredictability. If you can keep your opponents guessing about where the next ball is coming, you’ll stay ahead in rallies and consistently put yourself in high-percentage positions to win points. You simply cannot go to the same spot every single time you attack—eventually, your opponent will catch on and be ready for it.

Targeting the right shoulder (or left shoulder for lefties) of your down-the-line opponent creates a different kind of problem than the hip attack. This shot forces your opponent into an awkward arm position where they can’t swing freely. From a biomechanical standpoint, it’s extremely difficult to counter a ball that’s coming straight down from your paddle-side shoulder. The natural swing path is compromised, and most players will either miss, hit it weakly, or pop it up.

The execution here requires even more finesse than the hip shot. Because you’re targeting a higher point on your opponent’s body, you need to be careful not to hit the ball too hard, or it will sail long. Power takes a back seat to spin and placement. You want to utilize topspin by brushing up the back of the ball, causing it to launch upward toward your opponent’s right shoulder but with enough spin to bring it back down into the court if they choose to dodge it.

The real magic happens when you mix the shoulder and hip targets throughout a match. This one-two pattern can wreak havoc on your opponents’ positioning and mental game. They’re constantly having to guess whether the ball is coming high or low to their paddle side, which makes it nearly impossible to establish a comfortable defensive position. This pattern is particularly effective when all four players are at the kitchen line, where reaction time is already compressed and every split-second of hesitation matters.

If you time this two-shot pattern correctly, you’ll force your opponents to hit higher quality volleys on their fourth shot, and the added stress of having to defend multiple zones can lead them to commit unforced errors. Many players will either overcompensate by moving too much or freeze in indecision, both of which work in your favor.

Target Number Three: Low Through the Middle

Once you’ve successfully established the first two targets—the hip and shoulder of your down-the-line opponent—something interesting starts to happen. Your opponents are forced to adapt their positioning, and most players will overcompensate by sliding toward the sideline to protect those vulnerable spots. This defensive adjustment is exactly what creates your third primary target: low through the middle.

When your down-the-line opponent shifts toward the sideline, they expose the middle of the court between themselves and their partner. This is prime real estate for an attack, but only if you execute it correctly. The key phrase here is “low through the middle.” Height matters tremendously when attacking this zone.

According to standard pickleball positioning and communication, the cross-court opponent should be responsible for covering middle balls. But here’s the thing: if you hit the ball too high, they’ll be able to cover it easily and potentially slam a counter back at you. However, if you can keep the ball at waist height or lower as it passes through the middle, you force your opponent to hit up on the ball, which puts them on the defensive.

This upward trajectory on their return gives you options. You can either counter-attack if the ball sits up in a good position, or you can let it sail out if they’ve hit it with too much pace or at a poor angle. Many players, when forced to hit up from below the net, will either hit the ball too hard and send it long or pop it up for an easy put-away.

The middle attack is particularly effective because it also introduces confusion about who should take the ball. Even in well-coordinated teams, a low ball through the middle can cause a split-second of hesitation as both players decide who has it. That moment of uncertainty often results in a weak shot or, in some cases, both players leaving it for each other.

As highlighted in discussions about controlling the middle, this area of the court is valuable real estate, and players who actively hunt these balls rather than avoiding them tend to win more points. By attacking low through the middle, you’re testing your opponents’ willingness to take charge and their ability to execute under pressure.

The Critical Element: Variability in Your Attack

Understanding these three target zones is only half the battle. The other half is learning to vary not just your placement but also your pace, spin, and timing. This layered approach to attacking is what separates good players from great ones.

Throughout a match, you should be mixing up the speed of your attacking shots in addition to varying the location. For example, you might hit a softer backhand to your opponent’s right shoulder, then follow it up with a faster ball at their right hip, and then hit a heavy topspin shot dipping through the middle. This variation adds another dimension that your opponents have to account for when defending against your attacks.

Think of it like a pitcher in baseball who mixes fastballs, curveballs, and change-ups. If every pitch came at the same speed, even if the location varied, the batter would eventually time it. The same principle applies in pickleball. By varying both location and pace, you’re forcing your opponents to constantly recalibrate their defensive reads, which increases the likelihood they’ll be caught off-guard or make an error.

The goal is to always keep your opponents guessing about what attack you’re going to hit next. This uncertainty keeps you in front of the rally, meaning you’re dictating the pace and flow rather than responding to their shots. When you’re dictating, you’re in the best position to execute your game plan and ultimately win the point.

This concept ties into broader offensive tactics at the kitchen line, where reading your opponents and adjusting in real-time becomes essential. Advanced pickleball isn’t about hitting the same shot repeatedly—it’s about having a diverse toolkit and knowing when to deploy each tool.

Practical Application: Putting These Targets Into Your Game

Knowing where to aim is one thing; actually hitting those spots consistently is another challenge entirely. Like any skill in pickleball, targeting requires dedicated practice. You can’t expect to simply read about these three zones and immediately execute them perfectly in match play.

Start by practicing each target individually during drilling sessions. Set up scenarios where you’re specifically trying to hit your partner’s right hip, then their right shoulder, then low through the middle. Get comfortable with the mechanics and the feel of each shot. Pay attention to how much spin you need to generate, what trajectory works best, and how much pace to put on the ball.

As you become more comfortable with each individual target, start mixing them in random sequences. This better simulates match conditions where you need to make split-second decisions about which target to choose based on court positioning, your opponent’s defensive stance, and the game situation.

During matches, start by establishing one target—typically the right hip—early in the game. Once you see your opponents adjusting to protect that spot, introduce the second target. And when they’ve shifted to protect both the hip and shoulder, open up the middle. This progressive approach allows you to systematically break down your opponents’ defense rather than randomly hitting to different spots without a strategic purpose.

It’s also worth noting that these targets work in conjunction with other strategic elements of pickleball. For instance, your positioning at the kitchen line, your communication with your partner, and your ability to recognize when to attack versus when to reset all play into how effectively you can utilize these target zones.

Common Mistakes to Avoid When Targeting

Even when players understand these concepts intellectually, several common mistakes can undermine their effectiveness. The most frequent error is hitting with too much power. Remember, we’re talking about 75-80% power on most of these attacks. The extra 20-25% of power you give up is more than compensated for by the increased control and consistency you gain.

Another mistake is being too predictable with your patterns. Just because you read that hip-shoulder-middle is an effective sequence doesn’t mean you should use it robotically in that exact order every time. Mix up the patterns, sometimes going shoulder-hip-shoulder, or hip-middle-hip. The pattern itself shouldn’t become predictable.

Many players also fail to adjust their targets based on their opponents’ handedness and positioning. A left-handed opponent requires different targeting than a right-handed one. Similarly, if your opponent is already standing with their paddle protecting their hip, attacking that same spot is unlikely to be effective. You need to read the defense and adjust accordingly.

Finally, some players get so focused on targeting that they forget about shot selection entirely. Not every ball is an opportunity to attack these spots. Sometimes the smart play is to reset, to hit a drop, or to simply keep the ball in play. Forcing attacks when you’re out of position or when the ball isn’t conducive to an aggressive shot will lead to unforced errors. The art is knowing when to attack and when to be patient.

Building This Into Your Overall Strategy

These three target zones shouldn’t exist in isolation from the rest of your pickleball strategy. They’re most effective when integrated into a comprehensive approach that includes solid fundamentals, good positioning, smart shot selection, and strong communication with your partner.

For instance, your third-shot drops and dinks should be setting up opportunities to attack these zones. If you’re consistently hitting quality drops that force your opponents to hit up, you’re creating ideal situations to then attack their hip, shoulder, or the middle. The entire rally structure should be building toward these attacking opportunities.

Similarly, your defensive positioning should be accounting for the fact that your opponents might be using these same targets against you. Be aware of protecting your own right hip and shoulder, and make sure you and your partner have clear communication about who takes middle balls. Understanding these targets makes you both a better attacker and a better defender.

This holistic approach to court strategy, including understanding pickleball etiquette and the mental game, separates players who occasionally hit good shots from players who consistently win matches. Every element of your game should be working together toward the goal of creating and capitalizing on opportunities.

Conclusion: Precision Over Power

The evolution of pickleball has brought more powerful paddles and faster-paced play, but the fundamental truth remains: