Simple Hack to Get More ATPs: Hit Your Dinks Out of the Air

Baiting your opponent into coughing up more ATP balls is an effective offensive tool to add to your arsenal. It's also just a lot of fun.

You'd think that after years of analyzing pickleball strategy, coaches and players would've discovered some elaborate, multi-step system to dominate the kitchen.

But like anything, it's often the simplest approaches that prove the most effective.

Like baiting your opponent into giving you more ATP balls, for example. Kevin Dong from Kevin Dong Pickleball just shared one of the most elegant tactical adjustments you can make to achieve this end: hit more dinks out of the air.

That's it. That's the hack.

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Now, before you scroll past thinking you already know this, hear us out. Dong's insight isn't just about the mechanics of taking dinks early. It's about what happens in your opponent's head when you start doing it consistently.

More ATPs: The Psychology of Margin

Like you, your opponent is always calculating margins. They're thinking about how much space they have to work with, how much room for error exists in their shot selection, how much time they have to prepare for your next advance.

When you start hitting dinks out of the air, you're essentially shrinking that perceived margin in their mind.

Dong explains it perfectly in his video.

"It tricks your opponent into thinking they have less margin so they'll hit a shorter and shorter dink which will open up the ATP," says Dong.

This is psychological warfare disguised as a technical adjustment. Your opponent doesn't consciously think, "Oh, they're taking my dinks early, so I need to adjust." Instead, they feel the pressure mounting, and their instinct is to play it safer, which means hitting shorter dinks.

And that's when you strike.

Why This Actually Works

Hitting an ATP requires your opponent giving you something to attack. You can't hit this shot at will; you have to set it up first.

Most players wait for a high ball or a weak dink. Dong's approach is simple: make your opponent more and more uncomfortable, baiting them into something they may not want to do.

When you're taking dinks out of the air, you're doing a few things simultaneously.

First, you're shortening the rally, which means fewer opportunities for your opponent to set up their ideal shot.
Second, you're demonstrating confidence and aggression, which can rattle players who prefer to grind from the baseline.
Third, and most importantly, you're forcing your opponent to make a choice: hit the dink higher (which gives you an easier put-away) or hit it shorter (which opens up the ATP).

It's a no-win scenario for them, which is exactly where you want them.

The Execution

Now, the tricky part isn't understanding the concept. It's actually doing it well. Taking dinks out of the air requires timing, footwork, and court positioning.

You can't just flail at every dink that comes your way. You need to be selective and intentional about which dinks you're attacking.

The best players make it look effortless, but there's definitely a learning curve. You'll probably mishit a few, pop some up, and give your opponent easy put-aways while you're learning. That's normal.

The key is consistency. Once your opponent realizes you're genuinely threatening to take dinks out of the air, they'll start adjusting their game. That's when the real advantage kicks in. They're no longer playing their game; they're playing yours.

Bringing It All Together

What makes Dong's insight so valuable is that it's simple enough to implement immediately, but sophisticated enough to create real competitive advantages.

You don't need to overhaul your entire game. You don't need new equipment or a complete tactical realignment. You just need to be more aggressive with your dink game and trust that your opponent will respond predictably.

Taking dinks out of the air with purpose and precision is a skill that forces your opponent to respect your game and opens up the ATP opportunities you've been waiting for.

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The next time you're on the court, try it. Pick a few dinks to attack early in the rally. Watch how your opponent reacts. Notice how they start hitting shorter, more defensive dinks. And then capitalize on those opportunities.

You might just find that this simple hack becomes one of your most effective weapons.