Connor Garnett recently posted a short YouTube video aimed at helping pickleball players stop missing easy shots and become more consistent on the court.

In the video, he works with an amateur player named Chelsea, who comes from a baseball background and has a powerful, but overly large backswing.

“Feeling like your swings are too big or you’re struggling a little bit with that repeatability?” inquired Garnett. “Oftentimes, when we come from other sports, we have these big motions that take away our power in pickleball.” 

Many players rely on big backswings or try to swipe at the ball, which often leads to inconsistent shots.

“The more we can simplify the motion, it creates consistency that really allows us to be precise and dominate on the court,” explained Garnett. 

Garnett introduced a “push-through” concept designed to simplify the game, helping players do less while getting more out of each shot.

Because of her baseball background, Chelsea explained that she excels at getting to the ball and staying low, but struggles with being intentional in her shot selection.

“Because of your speed and your ability to get there, if we work on intentionality, we can start putting your opponents in uncomfortable positions,” insisted Garnett. 

He then evaluated her game as the two hit dinks and drives, giving Garnett the opportunity to offer a few tips to help her improve.

He gave her three key areas to focus on.

“The first thing we’re going to think about is staying grounded with our lower body. If we think about baseball, you catch the ball, then you have a hop, but then when you’re throwing the ball, we’re balanced,” shared Garnett. “We want to take away that little hop in that action, so think about we’re hopping to get to the ball, then we’re pushing through.”

By getting more grounded, players can better engage the push-through motion. Garnett then demonstrated a subtle swing technique, emphasizing keeping the elbow down and avoiding an arched arm path. He also advised players not to focus on creating spin, noting that proper mechanics naturally produce it.

“The second thing you want to do is keep your shoulders down. The moment they pop up, it’s adding an extra variable. If we keep these down, we can keep our energy going towards our target,” he mentioned. “The third thing you want to focus on is to keep your head down and really extend your arm, and keep your head down until your shoulders hit your chin. It’s a really simple move that you can finish your motion, then look up. It’s all about simplifying what we’re trying to do with the ball.”

Given her baseball background, these small mechanical adjustments will help her shorten her backswing and produce more consistent shots.

“This will help get you a consistent contact point so that you’re hitting all these the same. Then when you focus on the push-through, now you’re going to be able to really place this ball. The goal of what we’re doing here is to create a more precise shot,” noted Garnett. “The more we take away from that backswing, the more consistent we are on that contact point.” 

With these small adjustments, Chelsea saw immediate improvements in her game.

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