What is the difference between a pickleball hinder and a distraction?

Have you ever been out on the pickleball court when someone called a hinder, or a distraction, and you were not sure if they were calling it correctly? It has happened to all of us — because many players use the terms interchangeably. But a pickleball hinder and a pickleball distraction are two very different things. So what is the difference between a pickleball hinder and distraction?

Pickleball hinder

A pickleball hinder, or hindrance, is something that affects the ability to play the game but is not caused by a player.

USA Pickleball’s official hindrance rule:

3.A.16. Hinder – Any transient element or occurrence not caused by a player that adversely impacts play, not including permanent objects. Examples include, but are not limited to, balls, flying insects, foreign material, players, or officials on another court that, in the opinion of the referee, impacted a player’s ability to make a play on the ball.

Pickleball distraction

A pickleball distraction is something that affects the ability to play the game that is caused by another player.

USA Pickleball’s official distraction rule:

3.A.7. Distraction – Physical actions by a player that are ‘not common to the game’ that, in the judgment of the referee, may interfere with the opponent’s ability or concentration to hit the ball. Examples include, but are not limited to, making loud noises, stomping feet, waving the paddle in a distracting manner, or otherwise interfering with the opponent’s concentration or ability to hit the ball.

Pickleball hinder vs. distraction

A hinder and a distraction in pickleball are both things that affect any player’s ability to play the ball. The difference is that a hinder is something not caused by another player, while a distraction is something that is caused by another player.

Read USA Pickleball’s official rules here.