PICKLEPODIUM UMPIRE TRAINING

Rules refresher

Three minutes, in plain words. The console counts for you; this is what it is counting.

The serve

  • One attempt. There is no second serve.
  • Serve underhand. For a volley serve, hit the ball below the waist with the paddle head below the wrist. For a drop serve, let the ball bounce first; it may bounce more than once.
  • Both feet stay behind the baseline until the ball is struck, and inside the lines' extensions.
  • The ball goes diagonally into the far service box. Landing on the kitchen line is a fault; landing on any other line is in.

Who serves, and from where

  • Doubles: the pair that starts a game gets one server only. That is why the first call is 0-0-2.
  • After that, both partners serve before the serve passes to the other pair. The server switches sides after each point their pair wins; the receivers do not move.
  • Singles: serve from the right when your score is even, from the left when it is odd.
  • Say the score before every serve: server's score, receiver's score, then server number.

Two bounces first

  • The receiver lets the serve bounce. The serving pair lets the return bounce.
  • After those two bounces anyone may volley or play the ball off a bounce.

The kitchen

  • The non-volley zone runs seven feet from the net on each side.
  • Do not volley while touching it, including being carried into it by your own swing.
  • You may stand in it to play a ball that has bounced.

Faults you will call

  • Serve into the net, out, or into the wrong box.
  • Ball hit out, into the net, or bounced twice.
  • A volley from the kitchen, or a volley of the serve or of the return.
  • Touching the net or the net posts while the ball is live.
  • A fault by the serving side is a side-out. A fault by the receiving side is a point to the servers.

Lines and calls

  • A ball touching a line is in, apart from a serve on the kitchen line.
  • Players call their own lines. If they cannot see the ball out, it is in.
  • When the players disagree and ask, the umpire decides.

Scoring

  • Side-out scoring: only the serving side scores. Games are to 11, win by two, unless the division says otherwise. The console shows the target for each game.
  • Rally scoring: every rally scores a point, whoever served. The console handles it when the division uses it.
  • Timeouts are set by the tournament's guidelines; the console shows how many each pair has. A medical timeout is the umpire's call.

SOURCES

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