You are at the NVZ line. The ball comes back nice and high. This is the one you have been waiting for.

But you hit it into the net.

Or you blow it 4 feet past the baseline. 

Or you catch the ball somewhere off the edge of the paddle, and it sails 10 feet wide.

Players often treat the volley as a “hands” shot. It happens fast, it happens at close range, and there is little time to think. So when it misses, the fix feels like it should be in the hands. That is a reasonable place to look, because that is where you felt the miss happen.

But your hands are just one link in a chain.

Every shot you hit is built from three parts. Your footwork, which gets your body in position to hit the ball and connects your feet to the court. Your paddle swing, which connects your shoulder to the paddle. And in between, your foundation, which is the connection between your feet and your shoulder. So, foundation is the piece of the stroke mechanic that connects the footwork and the paddle swing.

Often, when you miss a volley, one of those three mechanical parts breaks down. But here is the useful part: the nature of the miss helps you pinpoint what went wrong. Once you get to the cause of the error, you can get to work correcting it.

The volley into the net

There are two main causes of volleys that land in the net.

The first is your target over the net. Many players do not pick a target at all for their volleys. They swing, and wherever the ball goes, it goes. Others pick a target, but they pick one that is too low, right near the top of the net. Little margin for error.

Give yourself room. A paddle width over the net at a minimum. Paddle height is better. Set a target that takes the net out of play.

Picking a target with a good margin over the net is intentionality, and intentionality is a difference maker. When players start choosing where they want the ball to go instead of hitting it haphazardly and hoping for the best, consistency improves, and so do results.

The second cause of missed volleys into the net has to do with your footwork. This one often surprises people.

The ball comes out to your side. Instead of stepping laterally over to it, you reach for it. When you reach, your shoulder dips. When your shoulder dips, the paddle follows. And the ball goes down and into the net.

Try to take a lateral shuffle step instead of reaching. The point is to keep your shoulders level so the paddle angle stays where you intended. 

The volley that goes long

You hit the volley long. Here comes the misdiagnosis: I hit it too hard.

That is often the wrong answer. It is an energy explanation, but hitting a volley long is usually a trajectory problem.

Watch what happens on your backswing. When you pull the paddle back too far, its face opens up toward the sky. Now, as the paddle moves forward, you have to close its face before you make contact. You have given yourself a second job to do with almost no time to do it. Be a hair late closing that face, and the ball heads toward the fence. 

This is trajectory; not energy.

So shorten or eliminate the backswing. Instead of taking the paddle way back, take it back a little. Or barely at all. With no backswing, the paddle angle at your point of contact is simply the angle you set.

The volley off the edge of the paddle

This one is often a foundation issue.

If your body is moving while you are making contact, clean contact is a matter of chance. Shoulders turning. Legs pumping. Pulling yourself backward out of the shot as you hit it. Each of those changes the point of contact.

Finish your footwork first. Get where you are going. Then be still and volley from there, whether you block it or punch it.

Extra coaching tip: The shortened backswing and calm body are two applications of a bigger idea. On every shot you hit, ask yourself what the least you need to do to get this job done is. Whatever you are doing beyond that is unnecessary and an opportunity for error. Find the unnecessary parts, take them out, and your shots get more consistent. Not because you added something, but because you subtracted variables you did not need.

Recognizing the different types of missed volleys will help you identify their cause. Diagnosing the cause of a miss will help you take corrective action during gameplay. Making informed corrections instead of guessing will reduce frustration, increase confidence, and improve your results.

This post was adapted from Coach Tony Roig's video, Pickleball Volley Mistakes That Cost You Points, with the help of AI, then edited for accuracy and clarity by the TRP coaching team before publishing.