Singles: rules and positioning basics

Singles is one player against one player on the standard 20 × 44 ft court. Rule 3.A.1 of the 2026 USA Pickleball Official Rulebook sets that size "for both singles and doubles matches," so the lines, the net and the 7-foot non-volley zone are the same. Nearly all rules are shared; the differences sit mainly in Section 5.A, Singles Service and Positions, and in how the score is called. Rule numbers below are from the 2026 rulebook; the full text always wins over a summary.

Singles vs. doubles: what changes

Wikipedia's summary puts the main contrast simply: in singles the serve changes hands every time the server faults, while a doubles team gets two servers per turn after the first side out of the game. Standard scoring is otherwise the same: only the serving side scores (4.A), and games are typically played to 11, won by 2 (Section 1). The scoring page covers doubles calls in detail.

Where to serve from: the score decides

Because there is only one server, position follows one number, the server's score. A score of zero counts as even.

1. Start of the game: the score is "zero – zero"; the server serves from the right serving area to the receiver's right service court (5.A.1, 6.B.1).
2. Server wins the rally: one point, and the next serve comes from the other side (5.A.2).
3. Server loses the rally: side out (5.A.3). The new server serves from the side their own score sets: right if it is even, left if it is odd.
4. Every serve: land it in the service court diagonally opposite (7.E), with the server's feet behind the baseline in the correct serving area (see serve rules).

Worked example built on this site from Rules 5.A.1–5.A.3 and 6.B.1. A quick self-check during play: if the server's score is even and they are standing on the left, someone is out of position.

1. Server (S) at zero or an even score: behind the baseline in the right serving area, which from the server's view is the lower half here (5.A.1).
2. Correct service court (shaded): the receiver's (R) right service court, diagonally opposite (5.A.1, 7.E).
3. Non-volley zone, 7 ft deep on each side of the net; same as doubles (11.A).
4. Centerline: divides each side into right and left service courts.
5. Server at an odd score: left serving area.
6. Correct service court at an odd score: the receiver's left service court.
7. Net.

Mini-singles ("skinny singles")

USA Pickleball added mini-singles as a sanctioning format effective April 1, 2022, describing it as half-court singles "sometimes referred to as 'skinny singles'" that does not replace standard singles. The 2026 rulebook covers it in Rule 14.B:

• Only the right or left half of each player's end is in play, chosen by that player's own score (14.B.1.a, 14.B.2).
• The in-play half is bounded by the baseline, its sideline and the centerline; the other half is out (14.B.1.b).
• An extra line extends the centerline through each non-volley zone (14.B.1.c).
• Every serve and return must land on the opponent's in-play half (14.B.3).

Rally scoring, still provisional in 2026, applies to singles too: a point goes to whoever wins the rally and the score is called as two numbers (14.A.2, 14.A.3). Background is on the rally scoring page.

Positioning basics: what published guidance says

The rulebook says nothing about where a singles player should stand once the ball is in play. Coaching guidance does, and it does not all agree. The table summarizes three published sources: a Pickleball Channel tip by Kyle Yates on the USA Pickleball site, the Pickleball.com strategy guide and a 2024 Pickleheads article. None of it is a rule.

Where they agree: serve and return deep, recover toward the middle, and aim at the opponent's backhand or weaker side. Where they differ: how soon to move forward. The Pickleheads article urges reaching the kitchen line quickly; the Pickleball.com guide says to advance only on short balls; the USA Pickleball tip falls between, with a back-third base and a move to the net after a forcing shot. Pickleball.com and Pickleheads both stress that a singles player has to cover the court alone.

1. Back of the court (lighter band): the USA Pickleball tip says to stay "generally" near the back third; the band is drawn approximately.
2. Central recovery or ready spot, close to the centerline (all three sources).
3. Serving from near the centerline or center "T" (USA Pickleball tip, Pickleheads); the serve itself must still come from the correct half under Rule 5.A.1.
4. Moving forward: after a forcing shot (USA Pickleball tip), on short balls only (Pickleball.com) or as quickly as possible (Pickleheads).
5. Kitchen line (dashed): volleys must start behind it (11.A).
6. Non-volley zone; the dark bar at the right is the net.

Pre-match checklist for singles

1. Agree on the format: standard singles, mini-singles or provisional rally scoring.
2. Call two numbers, server first, starting at "zero – zero."
3. Before each serve, check the server's score: even or zero means right, odd means left.
4. Remember there is no second server: one lost rally means a side out.
5. Let the serve and the return bounce, and keep volleys out of the kitchen.

Related: rules summary, faults list, kitchen rules, court dimensions.