Why Do My Drop Shots Keep Going High Like Lobs?

The three causes

In nine out of ten cases, a lobbed drop comes from one of these — and they compound each other.

1. The paddle face is too open

An open face points the ball at the sky. You often open it without realising, because opening the face is the easiest way to get a low ball over the net. Keep the face closer to neutral and let the upward path of the swing — not the angle of the face — create the lift.

2. The swing path is too steep

If you swing sharply from low to high, the ball leaves steeply. A drop should travel forward and gently up, not up and barely forward. Think of pushing the ball toward the far kitchen rather than lifting it over the net.

3. Contact is behind you

This is the real culprit and it causes the other two. When the ball gets beside or behind your body, you cannot push forward — the only way to reach it is to open the face and lift. Contact in front of your lead knee and the other two faults fix themselves.

The fix, in order

1. Move earlier. Most late contact is late feet, not a late swing.
2. Contact in front. If you can see your paddle in your peripheral vision at contact, you are roughly right.
3. Soften the grip. Three or four out of ten. A tight grip adds pace you did not ask for.
4. Lift from the shoulder. Quiet wrist. The wrist is what turns a drop into a lob.

A drill that actually works

Stand at the baseline. Have a partner feed you deep. Your only goal: make the ball peak before the net. Do not aim at a target, do not try to win. Just watch the apex. Twenty balls, then swap. Once the apex is on your side consistently, accuracy comes on its own.

Final thought

A high drop is not a touch problem, it is a position problem. Fix your contact point and the touch appears. If you want eyes on your actual swing rather than guessing, that is exactly what private pickleball lessons in San Diego are for — and if you are still building the basics, start with beginner pickleball lessons in San Diego.