Skinny Singles Pickleball: Rules and How to Play
Skinny singles is one-on-one pickleball played on half of each end of the court at a time. Which half is in play is set by each player's own score. The 2026 USA Pickleball rulebook calls it mini-singles and covers it in Rule 14.B.
It's for two players on one standard court. The rules page has the full rulebook view, and this page covers just the half-court version.
How is skinny singles different from regular singles?
Only the court area and where you stand change. Everything else is standard singles (Rule 14.B).
| Regular singles | Skinny singles | |
|---|---|---|
| Court in play | The full court | One side of each end, right or left |
| Where you stand | Set by the server's score | Set by each player's own score |
| Where the serve goes | Diagonally | Into the receiver's in-play side |
| Scoring, kitchen, two bounces | Standard | The same |
The singles rules cover the standard version.
What does the court look like?
It's a standard court (Rule 14.B.1). For each rally, only the right or left side of each end is in play. The boundary of that side is the baseline, the sideline on that side and the centre line. The other side is out (Rules 14.B.1.a and 14.B.1.b).
Each in-play half is 10 feet wide, measured to the middle of the centre line (Figure 3-1 in the rulebook), and 22 feet from the net to the baseline. The kitchen part of it is 7 feet deep. That answers the width question: a skinny singles court is half of the usual 20 feet. The court dimensions page lists the rest.
The centre line has to be extended through each kitchen with an extra line. It can be a different colour (Rule 14.B.1.c). A standard court has no line there, so tape or chalk will do.
Where do you stand, and where does the serve go?
Each player's position comes from their own score. An even score, including zero, means the right side. An odd score means the left (Rules 14.B.2 and 5.A.1). Right and left are each player's own, as they face the net. A served or returned ball has to land in the opponent's in-play side (Rule 14.B.3), and the serve still has to clear the kitchen (Rule 7.E).
Put those two rules together and the direction follows. If both players are on their own right, or both on their own left, the ball goes crosscourt. If one is on the right and the other on the left, it goes straight down the same sideline. PlayPickleball's explainer describes the same two patterns.
Here's a game's first five rallies. Player A serves first, and the rally winners are A, A, B, B, A. The call is what the server says before the rally.
| Rally | Call | Stands | The serve goes | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0-0 | A right, B right | Crosscourt | A wins. A 1, B 0 |
| 2 | 1-0 | A left, B right | Straight | A wins. A 2, B 0 |
| 3 | 2-0 | A right, B right | Crosscourt | B wins. Side out, no point |
| 4 | 0-2 | B right, A right | Crosscourt | B wins. A 2, B 1 |
| 5 | 1-2 | B left, A right | Straight | A wins. Side out, no point |
| 6 | 2-1 | A right, B left | Straight | Next rally. A 2, B 1 |
Look at rally 2. A is on 1, so A moves to the left. B is still on 0, so B stays on the right. Those two sit on the same sideline, so the serve goes straight.
How do you score skinny singles?
As in standard singles. Only the server scores (Rule 4.A). A game goes to 11 and you win by 2. The call is two numbers, the server's score first (Rule 6.B.1). The server has to serve within 10 seconds after the call (Rule 6.D). The scoring guide has more calls.
Is skinny singles official?
It's in the rulebook, as mini-singles (Rule 14.B). That sits in Part II, which applies to standard play, not only tournaments. Players usually say skinny singles, and PlayPickleball uses both names for the same game.
Groups often adapt it. If yours plays a fixed half or marks different lines, say so before the first serve.
What mistakes come up?
- Serving crosscourt out of habit, when the receiver is straight ahead on the same sideline.
- Forgetting that your side changes every time your own score changes. Win a point and you cross to the other half.
- Hitting into the out-of-play half. The ball is out (Rules 14.B.1.b and 14.B.3).
- Volleying from the kitchen. That rule hasn't changed, so the kitchen rules still apply.
- Playing without the extra line through the kitchens, so nobody can judge a ball that lands there.
Try it
Mark the extra line with tape, then play to 11 and check each call against the table. Pickleball Game plays standard full-court singles and has no skinny mode. It's a good place to see the score call before each serve, then try the half-court version.