How to keep score in pickleball

The part that confuses everyone

Scoring is the thing new players hate most. It feels like math while you are trying to play. Let me make it simple.

Only the server scores

Start here, because it changes everything. You can only win a point when your team is serving. If the other team is serving and they miss, you do not get a point. You just win the serve back. So most of the game is about earning the serve, then scoring on it.

The three numbers (doubles)

In doubles you call three numbers before every serve, in this order:

1. Your team's score
2. The other team's score
3. Which server you are, 1 or 2

So "4, 2, 1" means: my team has 4, your team has 2, and I am the first server. When your team loses the serve the first time, the second player serves. When they lose it again, the serve goes to the other team. (One catch: at the very start of a game, the first team only gets one server, not two. Just call "0, 0, 2" to start and you are fine.)

Which side do I serve from?

Easy trick. Look at your own score. If it is an even number (0, 2, 4...), serve from the right side. If it is odd (1, 3, 5...), serve from the left. Your score tells you where to stand.

Winning

First to 11, win by 2. If it is 10 to 10, you keep going until someone leads by two.

Real talk: you will lose track of the score for your first few games. Everyone does. Say the score out loud before you serve, and ask the group if you forget. Nobody minds. After a week it becomes automatic.