Learning the Basics of the Two-Handed Backhand in Pickleball | Connor Garnett

In the ever-evolving world of pickleball, 2023 witnessed the rise of a game-changing shot: the 'TWO-HANDED BACKHAND' (The TWOEY). Adopted by trailblazers like Connor Garnett and Anna Leigh Waters, this technique has revolutionized gameplay, offering fresh angles and strategies. As the year drew to a close, top players across the field honed their two-handed backhands, recognizing its potency in amplifying offensive prowess and challenging opponents' defenses. Embracing and mastering this shot will elevate your game, empowering you to bring an intensified offensive edge to the court.
Timestamps
00:00 - Intro
00:36 - Grip
01:13 - Footwork
02:15 - How to aim - Down the line & crosscourt
03:59 - Example - Backhand down the line
04:39 - Example - Backhand Cross Court
05:34 - Example - Backhand at the Kitchen Line
06:01 - Example - Backhand through the Transition Zone
06:39 - Backhand Speed Up Off Bounce
07:31 - Outro
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[@mex5341]

the best Two-Handed Backhand in Pickleball video ! hands down

[@congarnett]

Appreciate it

[@DinkMastery]

Connor Garnett so happy to see you making content! Keep up the grind brother. Instant subscriber and thank you for the tips

[@congarnett]

Appreciate it!

[@arautus]

You've got all the necessary tools to be number 1! Subscribed.

[@cashclark113]

Hey Connor! I met you at the PPA Hertz Gold Cup and you were one of the nicest guys there. I actually got a game ball that you and Christian signed! Thanks for being awesome and keep up the good work!

[@SawsyDawsy]

Haha met Connor at TOC and he was just the nicest guy. Definitely one of my favorite players

[@mkuschmusic2]

Thank You! Very well done!

[@PickleballBros.]

Dropping Gems 💎

[@jusan_tinos]

Twoie king!!!! 🙌

[@TinaMarie-cq2fb]

Great video and tips! Can’t wait to get out and practice 🙌

[@roman2011]

So good. Going to be watching this vid several times

[@bonniebrickley6544]

Love this video You have best backhand in game Love the arrow thing Can’t wait to try it

[@annsydeman]

Excellent instruction. Look forward to other videos on stroke mechanics!!

[@pamcoblyn5310]

Excellent “recipe”: clear explanation that includes critical details.

[@user-it2zv6ih9s]

this is outstanding, thank you for sharing

[@Dinkdifferent]

great vid! love all the examples

[@xeviuus]

I met him at a camp. What a great guy and awesome coach. Big fan of Connor!

[@nix5074]

Can you please make a video about defense and reset? Like your style of playing.

[@congarnett]

Will do! Thanks

[@MikeCaryNC1]

Absolutely awesome video and explanation, Connor. I really liked the focus on exposing gaps. 😎

[@congarnett]

Thank you, appreciate the note

[@tristeele9457]

Great stuff! I'm only a few months in and this is super helpful!

[@sleevespickleballreport]

Great start to your channel!🤙💯🎬❤️😎

[@congarnett]

Thank you 🙌

[@Sparky31388]

Thanks for a great video. You a beast

[@redheadedgolfer]

Excellent instruction, with great intro + recap and demonstration.

[@congarnett]

Thank you, glad you liked it

[@parnej]

Awesome instruction! I met Connor at PPA Minnesota recently and he was approachable, enthusiastic and genuine even as he was getting ready for his Sunday match. Thank you Connor- your two handed backhand wizardry is a joy to watch.

[@congarnett]

Thank you, much appreciated!

[@IRWE905]

Excellent Explanation, I have Subscribed :)

[@kevngu7256]

Hope you manifest to be the #1 player bro. I’m cheering for you.

[@TonyFieldson]

Love it bro! I'll always remember our few EMD Worthy Park sesh's in Huntington Beach w/ Eric Eng :)

[@congarnett]

Thanks man!

[@wafarris]

Great instruction. Worth watching over and over as I practice these shots. Thank you!

[@congarnett]

Thanks, appreciate it!

[@86309]

good stuff! just some pos feedback, if the cameraman could back off the frame just a bit so we can see your footwork on the shots and not film for effect that would help us see your whole stroke and footwork mechanics as well as the arc of the inbound ball and the contact timing of the stroke(on the arc of the ball) Thanks!!! appreciate the lesson!

[@congarnett]

Sounds good, appreciate the feedback!

[@WilliamBrownGuitar]

Also, maybe a slow-motion of each shot would be helpful. Great stuff Connor!

[@DanielLiu-lc3ly]

This video worths to watch many times. Thank you, Connor. Master piece of advanced pickleball technique teaching.

[@congarnett]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@Steve_K2]

My thoughts, exactly. Courts (at the Y) are closed for the weekend, but can't wait to get out Monday to try this. Until then, a lot of dry runs in the living room.

[@congarnett]

Heck ya! Get after it

[@CurtisSimpson]

Fantastic lesson. I've struggled with the two handed backhand but this makes it understandable and I can't wait to go try this on a court. And I love watching you play Connor.

[@congarnett]

Thank you!

[@Zenon-fg4dw]

Great tutorial on double handed backhand…exactly what I needed. Thank you!

[@congarnett]

Glad it was helpful!

[@jonathannyquist582]

Congrats on your first gold. Your final against Fredrico was a real pleasure to watch.

[@congarnett]

Thank you!

[@mediumdun18]

Thanks for this. Couldnt figure out why I was so inconsistent with this stroke till seeing your description. The emphasis of letting the hip turn bring the paddle forward after weight transfer and before arm swing was key. I think I was coming forward with weight transfer but with an incomplete hip turn and that led to significantly reduced power. Without that hip turn my arms came across my body rather than forward . Thx!

[@congarnett]

Awesome to hear. Thanks for the comment

[@rockerobertson4002]

Started working on my 2 hander this spring. This is good. Seems like footwork isnt quite so important as is needed for single hand. Pls come to Canada! Love to see you play.

[@danielbonca7591]

Awesome video bro great stuff. Also I order the Twoey hat just waiting until it says shipped 😂 I cant wait to rock the hat when it arrives it’s look so cool

[@congarnett]

Awesome thank you! Appreciate the support

[@SourBiscuit-1102]

Good stuff.

[@congarnett]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@kenny5772]

Connor can you make a video on hitting a 2 handed Swing volley at the kitchen as well as a 2-handed Counterattack one

[@congarnett]

Got it, appreciate the thought. Thanks!

[@paulyp70]

Conor - #1 singles player in 2024!

[@ProjektSol]

Nope

[@TooHonestButtTrue]

Not even close champ

[@ProjektSol]

@@TooHonestButtTrue No Conoer is not #1, clearing you are high

[@JFraza]

these replies didn’t age well

[@TooHonestButtTrue]

He’s still not #1 champ. Winning one PPA gold doesn’t mean you are ranked #1. I think this is his first gold btw and kuddos to him he deserved it, but don’t act like he’s the best singles player.

[@bar1350]

Just subscribed. Thanks for the very thorough explanation on how to do the 2-handed backhand. Saw your match against Donald Young. I didn't see that coming. Still, great to see new faces competing for medals.

[@congarnett]

Thanks! Yeah awesome for the sport having more and more players competing at a high level

[@wallyhustad3686]

Connor this is excellent - So glad I found your channel - You’re an excellent teacher! My question relates to what you said about not breaking your wrists. If you’re crashing and taking a higher ball close to the kitchen- and you want to get it down- do you break your wrists then? Thanks!

[@congarnett]

So its more of a wrist turning over then flat out breaking them. The left arm is the driver of the shot so the right wrist may break a little but the left one think more turning a doorknob type motion

[@noellekim8317]

Thank you, Connor, very helpful. Any tips on how to return hard and low serve coming to my backhand side?

[@congarnett]

Awesome, glad to hear! Def coming out with some videos like that. I would say the main things though are 1) compact swing 2) weight shift through 3) if time letting the ball slightly descend vs hitting on the rise

[@TheDoglover1970]

I've had a bad case of tennis elbow the last few weeks that has been very frustrating as I can't progress in skill because of it. As a newer player, I am very motivated to put the work into increasing my skill, but the pain interferes. After playing for even just 30-45 minutes, I can barely do a backhand. I need to learn a two-handed backhand to take some pressure off my arm. Thanks for the video!

[@congarnett]

Awesome! Glad to hear the twoey is helping

[@michaelantonio1367]

Thanks Connor one issue I'm having is knowing when to go with the Two=hander vs the one hander in live play. I think focusing on trying to use the two-hander is the issue instead of just being ready to play the next shot however it needs to be.

[@congarnett]

Thanks! So I typically block with a one hander directly in front of me and go two-hander for everything else. So my thought process is try and block the ball and then when I have time to get the second hand on the paddle I do

[@michaelantonio1367]

@@congarnett Yeah being new to it with no tennis background I figure it will take some time for it to be instinctive for me but I like it.

[@deanrgraves]

Thanks Connor- I love your game and especially your two hand backhand. As a singles player, I am interested in your lead tape setup. It appears you have a lot on top. Does this negatively affect the swing weight to head heavy and make the paddle more powerful, but less maneuverable? Does your paddle weigh around 9 oz? Thanks much, Connor and good luck getting to number 1.

[@congarnett]

Thank you! I weight it up to 9.3 and the tape at the top helps the paddle dip more naturally. I would imagine it slightly slows down hand speed, but I haven't noticed

[@Tesujiful]

Can you discuss the backhand return of serve and baseline to baseline ralley? I presume you aim higher over then net with more shape?

[@congarnett]

Yeah, the backhand return of serve I am keeping the swing short and trying to get the ball deep and in singles by yourself time to get in the net. Baseline to baseline it is keeping it low over the net with depth

[@user-wd5hs6rq7x]

Great instructions good video when do you think you would do the left leg kick out, you know like AL😮

[@congarnett]

Hmm, not entirely sure what your referencing. I do do a kick on the higher balls or on the run to get balance and extra power

[@user-wd5hs6rq7x]

@@congarnett yeah that’s what I was referring to. I just started working on this and noticed if at the kitchen taking a ball above net height kicking that left leg back really helps with power and feels natural. Thanks again for the great video. Love watching you play singles. You will be #1 for sure soon

[@vuongvo5962]

Can we see a breakdown of how you hit your forehand? TY

[@congarnett]

In the works! Always welcome anything people are curious about and will work to get it uploaded

[@picklesnj]

Hey Connor, thank you for the video. Your backhand cross court do you use that shot in doubles as an aggressive drop? Or is that shot mostly for singles.

[@congarnett]

Not as much in doubles; I'll slow it down for the cross court drop in doubles

[@jonathannyquist582]

Watching in slow motion it seem as though you are adding some wrist pop at contact. My imagination?

[@GIO_RUBBLE]

whats your priority on that killer on the run dub backhand?

[@mingez]

Great tutorial! Do you recommend an elongated paddle? I ask because I prefer lighter low swing weight wide body paddles for faster hands. I use a hybrid shape but was about to change to a wide body.

[@mingez]

To be clear it’s a wide body with a longer handle

[@congarnett]

So I use a longer handle and the paddle width is standard. The longer handle allows for more whip on the ball and ability to get the second hand on which is why I like that

[@millisock]

At 1:44 you say if you're on the run you can take a step forward with your right foot. Does this mean if you're not on the run you shouldn't take that step? Do you always have your right foot in front when you hit this 2HBH or do you sometimes have your left foot forward?

[@congarnett]

I try and take a step forward any time I can it naturally allows me to get my kinetic chain involved but if I am on the dead sprint I will sometimes hit open stance where my left foot is in front of

[@millisock]

THANK YOU! 🤩

[@Spaceman_Spiffo]

I used a two handed backhand when I played tennis, but since I have started playing Pickleball (about 3 months in), it feels so unnatural to try and use both hands. I can't decide if i want to work on my one handed top spin backhand or make that switch. With such a small light paddle it just feels weird with 2 hands.

[@congarnett]

At the kitchen when dinking the two hander allows more power to pull a topspin / sidespin dink wide; however, countering one and two hands both work well and with the flick one hand is better. All in all I like it for the aggressiveness dinking + the swing volleys, but def a personal pref

[@Spaceman_Spiffo]

Thanks for your reply and the great video. Looks like I need to give this a try. Seems like all the good player videos I see are using 2 hands.

[@seanpascale7849]

It looks like you keep your paddle pretty locked, as oppossed to dropping the head down and then lifting and flicking through at the end. Is that stylistic or best practice?

[@congarnett]

Stylistic! From the baseline I think you can go either way and I drop it a bit more unless I am going for a sharp angle. At the kitchen the more compact the motion it keeps you ready for the next shot if attacking off the bounce

[@seanpascale7849]

@@congarnett Got it. I am sure you will be making more of these. When you do, try zooming out a bit away from your body, and possibly providing a few slow mo's from different angles. Would be helpful, at least for me.

[@congarnett]

Copy that, appreciate it@@seanpascale7849

[@bonniebrickley6544]

Are you dropping racket head or getting low and coming up a little with body

[@congarnett]

dropping the paddle head to get extra spin. Would say more going forward with the body vs up

[@nueloblack]

Could you explain why you chose a two handed backhand? What's the advantage over single handed? Why is this your best shot?

[@ehlai1676]

You want your backhand shot to have more power, more pace, and even more considence, you'd like to have this skill in your toolbox.

[@congarnett]

In tennis the one hander gives a lot more power and is more dynamic, in pickleball with the shorter swings you don't gain those benefits with the one hand and allows for more optionality whether the short angles or hitting through the ball

[@toddpierce4283]

Connor - do u have the left index finger on baseline backhand shots or just rolls at the kitchen? Thx and gl in 2024.

[@congarnett]

I have it on both! Thank you!

[@caryt59]

2 handed backhand seems like it would hurt your range of motion. Extended reach is more effective.

[@congarnett]

I could see an argument if you have a split second on a volley and you are stretching with one hand or blocking directly in front of you. Everything else the range of motion doesn’t affect me and the benefits outweigh it. That being said everything is a personal preference

[@HM-gm1kn]

I find the pace of the video is too fast. Especially the music

[@congarnett]

thanks for the feedback

[@HM-gm1kn]

No problem. Still a great video@@congarnett