Pickleball Strategy: Should I hit down the side?

      Do not hit shots down sideline unless

                    Your opponents poach.

                           Your team is favored to win.

Your team has a good lead

      You have an easy ball to hit.

You want to keep your opponents honest when they are close to center court.

Your opponent’s backhand is to the outside of the court and he is the weaker player. 

 A soft ball down the line is just as good, if not better, and if you can bounce the ball beside your opponent and be ready to jump on a ball hit 12" above the net.

If you make contact on a shot outside the sideline, try a shot around the post deep to the baseline corner, or put up a very high lob to give yourself time to recover. 
If you don’t think that you will be able to recover, try to finish point with pure winner.

Courtesy of Coach Mo (Florida)