Will Rally Scoring Take Over Traditional Scoring in Pickleball?

If you’ve played recreational pickleball, chances are you’re accustomed to “side out,” or traditional scoring. In this method, a team must be serving in order to score a point.

More recently, many professional pickleball leagues, in addition to the U.S. Pickleball Association, have begun using rally scoring to ensure that the games progress faster and provide more excitement for spectators. This scoring method yields a point after every rally, regardless of which team served the ball.

Tournament organizers also have begun adopting rally scoring, because games tend to conclude in a more consistent amount of time, allowing them to construct a more reliable tournament schedule.

Side out “traditional” scoring is still the most common way to score for recreational players. Since teams can only score a point when serving, two comparably skilled teams may find it difficult to quickly or easily score in this format. The serving team doesn’t have to worry about losing a point to an opponent if they lose the rally.

Because pickleball’s “two-bounce rule” generally puts the serving team on defense, points may be slow to come by. Games are played to 11 points, and two good teams can have a single game last 20 to 30 minutes.

So, how do you score in a traditional format?

When a team forces a side out — the other team lost both partner rallies — the serving team’s player on the right always serves first. Before serving, the player must announce their score, their opponent’s score, and conclude with whether they are the first or second server for their team (3-5-1, for example).

If the serving team wins the rally then the two partners switch sides and the server gets to serve again from the opposite side. This continues until the serving team loses a rally, at which time the other player on the serving team gets a chance to serve (6-5-2, for example). Teams must win by two points.

Although this format is very common in many places, keeping score can be confusing for beginners.

Rally scoring’s biggest appeal is the speed in which the game finishes. Aside from improving the pace of play, it’s gaining popularity at clubs where there are too many players for the number of courts. This dramatically cuts down on wait times in between games and affords players the opportunity to play more games in the allotted amount of time. It tends to be more exciting and puts an emphasis on serving accuracy and minimizing unforced errors.

In this format, games typically are played to 15 points, and the winning team must win by two. On occasion, tournament or competition games may be played to 21 points.

So, how do you score in a rally scoring format?

The right side of your court is considered the “even side,” and the left side the “odd side.” This is important, because when you win a rally your score determines who will serve for your team.

To start the game, the score is 0-0, and the player on the right (even) side serves first. If that team wins the rally, players switch sides and that server continues to serve, switching sides every time they win a rally. Once that team loses a rally, the other team gets a point and becomes the serving team. When this transition of service occurs, whether the team’s score is odd or even will determine whether the player on the right or left side of the court will serve.

A major difference in rally scoring is that only one player will serve for each team, not both. It is important to remember who was the even and odd player prior to a serve being made. For example, if the receiving team wins a rally and the new score is 5-6, the original left side, or odd, player will serve for that round; however, that player must now switch to the right side, since all serves start from the right each time a serve transition occurs.

The only caveat to this scoring format is that a game must be won by the serving team; you can’t win the game if your opponent is serving and loses the rally. The serving team must win the rally to get the 15th point. If the serving team is ahead and loses the rally, the receiving team does get a point. If the game is tied, 14-14, the next rally determines who will get the point to make it 15-14. Once again, the serving team must win the next rally to make it 16-14. If the receiving team wins that rally, the score becomes 15-15, and the previous scoring process is repeated.

I have played rally scoring at a few clubs, and some clubs do have some minor variations of the USPA-approved doubles rally scoring. Despite these slight differences, the fact that a point is scored after each rally and only one player per team serves should be consistent in every rally scoring game.

Regardless of which scoring format you play, having an understanding and appreciation of both is important. The next time you watch a professional match, be sure to pay close attention to how they play, how points are scored and what their strategy is.

If you find yourself visiting a club as a player, be sure to clarify all rally scoring rules prior to beginning your game so you can avoid any confusion or controversy.