Like a lot of 50-something intermediate pickleball players, I’m interested in pickleball instruction that helps me advance my game but without the “boot camp” workout aspect that makes me too exhausted to actually learn anything. Vulcan IQ Pickleball is perfect for me! I have participated in more than a few of IQ Pickleball’s clinics and want to share my personal observations with you.

IQ Pickleball bills itself as a Game Development System rather than just another pickleball lesson, clinic, or camp. It is a well-designed progression of instruction over time, with foundational teachings about pickleball’s fundamentals, and building blocks of beginner, intermediate, and advanced techniques. So, once you become a student, it is an instructional program that becomes your permanent guide to developing your game – and it’s a proven system without the randomness of traditional private and group lessons that I’ve experienced.

At the IQ clinics that I’ve attended, the groups are intentionally small so each participant receives plenty of individual attention. Whether one-hour or two-hours long, the instruction is varied (but not overly so), with lots of on-court drills (and fun drill-games), with occasional rest-times when players can hydrate, rest and towel-off, while the IQ instructor teaches lecture-style and answers questions so you keep learning even while resting. Just a cursory review of IQ Pickleball’s Game Development System literature and clinic handouts demonstrates that this pickleball instruction is different. It’s the alternative to one of those once-in-a-lifetime, expensive pickleball camps you see advertised everywhere; and, it is quite different than even taking a private lesson from a professional where you show up and are asked, “So, what would you like to learn today?”

So, Vulcan IQ Pickleball is my personal choice to help me continue improving on my pickleball journey – and each time that I participate I walk away with new weapons in my arsenal and a better understanding of the game and the tactics. And, to my great delight, I learn new ways to enjoy the game, and to be a better ambassador of the game, which is an important theme that speaks to the unique mission of IQ Pickleball. The founders literally built into their system how to teach people “the joy of the game.”

Are you new to pickleball? Perhaps a true beginner who has never even hit a ball; or, maybe a recreational tennis player intrigued to try something new? I have observed IQ Pickleball’s beginner clinics and so admire the empathetic approach that they take in terms of helping so-called Pickleball Newbies overcome their shyness about becoming proficient enough to actually join others in recreational games. I think for many people new to pickleball, they need a comfortable on-ramp to actually start playing and I have watched how IQ Pickleball has made providing that one of their unique specialties. Even with their first two-hour session, because of IQ’s approach, anybody is going to walk away feeling ready to confidently jump-in the next open recreational play with others.

One IQ Pickleball student named Felicia recently put it this way after a session: “Their style of teaching is fantastic no matter your level of play. (IQ Pickleball) layers the fundamentals, skills, and drills to build your game to the next level. Their systematic approach is logical and yields immediate improvement. I can’t wait to bring more people out.” And I say, yes, you get all this – without the boot camp!