How to Stop Being a Pickleball Banger and Master Soft Game Skills

Calm hands and repetition unlock control under pressure

Anna hits everything hard. Really hard. So hard that Cliff from Cliff Pickleball joked he thought she might chop off his head. But here's the thing: that aggressive style isn't a strength in pickleball. It's actually holding her back.

In a recent lesson, Cliff breaks down exactly why "bangers" struggle and teaches Anna the two soft game skills that separate casual players from smart competitors.

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The Problem With Hitting Everything Hard

Most players who drive the ball constantly don't realize they're doing it because they don't know how to reset or drop properly. Instead of slowing the game down, they speed it up and lose control. It's a vicious cycle.

The real issue is tension. When you're in the midcourt and your opponent is about to smash the ball at you, every fiber in your body wants to protect itself. That instinct makes resetting feel impossible.

Mastering the Reset Under Pressure

Cliff starts with a drill that sounds simple but feels anything but: the flinch drill. He throws balls at Anna while she stands still, not moving, not flinching, even when the ball comes straight at her face. The goal is to train her nervous system to stay calm when the ball is coming hot.

Once you remove the tension from your body, resetting becomes learnable. Here's what Cliff teaches:

When the ball comes straight at your body, use two hands to reset it back.
When it comes to your forehand side, take it with your forehand, not your backhand.
When it comes to your backhand side, do the opposite.
You can reset off the bounce or out of the air, depending on the situation.

The key is repetition. Cliff tells Anna she'll need to hit hundreds of balls before her brain gets used to the pattern and her hands move automatically. There's no shortcut here, just practice.

The Third Shot Drop: Getting Under the Ball

The second skill Cliff focuses on is the third shot drop, and it's where most players go wrong. They try to put spin on the ball or hit it offensively. That's backwards.

The real goal of a drop is to clear the net and land the ball softly in the kitchen so your opponent can't attack it. To do that, you have to get under the ball, not brush it.

Think of it like dinking. Instead of brushing the ball forward, you're lifting it up and over the net with control. Once you master that basic motion, you can add a little angle to make the ball move forward. But that angle comes from your paddle position, not from hitting harder.

The 45-Degree Paddle Angle

Here's the game-changer: a 45-degree paddle angle. When you hold your paddle at that angle while getting under the ball, the ball clears the net and moves forward into the kitchen instead of sitting there waiting to be attacked.

It's not about power. It's about geometry and touch. Cliff demonstrates this over and over with Anna, and you can see the moment it clicks for her. The ball suddenly has trajectory and control without any aggressive swing.

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Drive vs. Drop: Knowing When to Use Each

By the end of the lesson, Cliff has Anna practice switching between drives and drops. He hits a ball, she drives it. Next ball, she drops it. The challenge isn't the mechanics anymore; it's the decision-making.

Most bangers drive everything because they don't trust their drop. Once you build confidence in your soft game, you can actually read the court and choose the right shot at the right time. That's when you stop being a banger and start being a smart player.

The Takeaway

Soft game wins. Control wins. Smart players win. If you're hitting everything hard and wondering why you're not improving, this lesson is for you. The path forward isn't more power; it's less tension, better touch, and a whole lot of practice.