The third shot drop is a soft, arcing shot hit by the serving team on the third hit of the rally (serve, return, drop) that lands in the opponents’ kitchen. It exists to solve the serving team’s core problem, and it’s the most-requested shot in every lesson I teach.
Why the third shot decides the rally
The rules stack the start of every rally against the server. The returning team gets to run to the net while their return travels, so by your third hit they’re at the kitchen line and you’re at the baseline. Hit anything attackable and they’ll put it at your feet.
The drop is the escape. A ball that dies softly in their kitchen can’t be attacked; they have to let it bounce and hit up on it, and while it floats, you and your partner walk to the kitchen line. The drop isn’t trying to win the point. It’s buying the real estate that wins the point.
Drop or drive? The simple rule
Don’t drop everything. The working rule at every level: deep, strong return, drop it, because you need time and safety. Short or weak return, drive it; don’t gift them a free exchange when you could punish. When in doubt early in a game, drive once and watch. If the drive comes back hard because the returner can volley comfortably, start dropping. At 3.5 this choice is random. At 4.0 it’s deliberate.
How to hit it (the short version)
Think lift, don’t hit: compact swing, paddle face open, contact out front, and push from the shoulder with a firm wrist, like tossing a ball underhand into a laundry basket. Aim for the arc to peak on your side of the net, so the ball is falling as it crosses. While you’re learning, miss long rather than into the net; a deep drop is playable, a netted one is a lost point.
The drill progression
- Toss-and-drop: partner at the kitchen tosses, you drop from mid-court. Twenty in a row.
- Move back: repeat from three-quarter court, then the baseline.
- Return-to-drop: partner hits real returns; you drop and advance one step per shot.
- Live thirds: play points where the serving team must drop the third. Feel how the point opens up when the drop works.
Ten focused minutes a session beats an hour of games. It’s also the shot where in-person feedback pays off fastest: the difference between a drop and a sitter is inches of paddle angle, and you can’t see your own. Book a lesson and I’ll find yours in one session. Grooving the fix is the ten minutes a day after that.
We coach private lessons and clinics across Tacoma, Fircrest, and Lakewood. Book a lesson or see pricing.