Pickleball Doubles Strategies You NEED to Know

Ryan Morneau (Pickleball Daily) teaches how to adjust against unique playing styles using real pro points — not generic “play the middle” advice. The lesson opens on how hard it is to adjust to weird grips and patterns (example: Callan Dawson’s ping-pong-like choke-up grip with a finger on the paddle face). Morneau also frames lessons from competing against uniquely styled players such as Tama: the theme is recognize disadvantages (before or during the match), then attack those pain points.

On Dawson specifically, he maps concrete targets: going at the right shoulder (hard to get the shoulder up to put the ball down with that grip) and going through the middle / behind the body when there is no true two-hand backhand recovery. He also notes that not every weird technique is a “disadvantage” — Dawson taking dinks off the rise / short hop can be neutral/safe and can bait bad speed-ups if you are undisciplined. Separately, the video stresses learn as you go: when you see a unique drive or shape (e.g. a pushy shoulder/elbow drive that lives in the chest), stop labeling it good/bad and adapt — including setting your feet in transition before that ball arrives.

Use this when opponents have non-standard grips, extreme BH bias, off-the-rise dinking, or other styles that make your stock patterns fail. Common mistake addressed: hitting “good shots for normal players” that actually play into this opponent’s strengths. Strategy is opponent-specific.

Key takeaways:

• Scout unique grips/patterns early; name the pain points
• Example map (Dawson): right shoulder + middle behind the body
• Weird ≠ automatically bad — some unique shapes are safe or baiting
• Learn mid-match: unique drives may require an earlier plant/split-step
• Don’t force your default plan against a style it feeds

Action items:

• Warm-up scout: write one grip/shape note and one target before game 1
• After two lost exchanges to a weird style, mandatory plan change (new target)
• Practice “shoulder / middle” targeting in hands drills with a choked-up partner demo
• Partner role-play: one player dinks only off the rise; other must stay disciplined (no free speed-ups)
• Film one match section: mark where stock middle balls helped vs hurt
• Next session: watch 5 minutes of this video, then play a set with a pre-written adjust card
• Transition plant drill vs “chest-high push drives” so feet stop before contact
• Debrief: “What was unique?” / “What was the pain point?” / “Did we attack it?”