How to Handle the Serial Lobber

Turn frustration into control when opponents go airborne

There’s a special place in pickleball purgatory for the player who lobs all the time, especially against the mobility-challenged. You know the one, the high-arching, gravity-defying, soul-testing shots that somehow stay in. every. single. time.

Playing against a lobber can make you question your life choices. You start a rally full of optimism, move into position, and then whoosh, you’re backpedaling like a startled cat. But take heart, you can absolutely handle this, and even turn the lob game to your advantage.

Step 1: Stop taking the bait

Lobbers want you frustrated. They feed on chaos. When you charge the kitchen line like a hero after every shot, you’re practically inviting them to send one sailing over your head.
Instead, play a step or so deeper than normal. This doesn’t mean giving up the kitchen entirely, it just means respecting the possibility that your opponent’s next “strategic masterpiece” will be another sky ball.

Step 2: Learn to read the setup

Most lobbers have a tell. Watch their paddle face,  if it opens up like they’re scooping ice cream, you know what’s coming. Often, their body language gives it away too: they lean back slightly and take a slower, loopy swing.

If you can spot the lob before it happens, you’ll move early and have more time to set up your response, whether that’s a controlled overhead or simply repositioning to keep them honest.

Step 3: Don’t over-swing the overhead

The temptation to smash every lob into next Tuesday is real. But that’s exactly how unforced errors are born.
When the ball finally drops from orbit, take a breath, get your feet under you, and aim your overhead at a high-percentage target, not the highlight reel. Deep to the middle or between your opponents usually does the trick.

Remember, the goal isn’t to punish the lobber. It’s to make them regret that it didn’t work.

Step 4: No overhead, no problem

If you or your partner aren’t able to hit the ball out of the air for an overhead and it’s bouncing near the baseline, you have 3 choices. Drive the ball back at your opponent, drop it into the kitchen, or lob it back at them. Often, choice 3 makes the most sense. A drive just gives your opponent the ball quickly, so you’ll need to be ready, which if you sprinted back to get the lob, odds are you are out of position. This also means a drop will probably be a tough shot at this point. So a counter-lob is often the best option. You can even try to sky the ball to give you more time to recover your position, and it sometimes messes up less skilled players.

Step 5: Communicate with your partner

When you play doubles, decide who takes overheads ahead of time. Usually, it’s whoever’s on the opposite side of where the lob is headed so they can get it at an angle, rather than backing up by backpedaling.

If a lob goes up, call it early (“Yours!” or “Mine!”) and move together, one stays deep, one covers the middle. The faster you settle back into formation, the less likely you’ll both end up staring at each other while the ball drops between you.

Step 6: Keep your sense of humor

The truth is, lobs happen. They’ll keep happening. But when you start expecting them ,  and handling them calmly, the lobber loses their power.

And the next time someone tries to rainbow one over your head, smile. You’ve already seen this movie. And this time, you know exactly how it ends.