How to Play Ping Pong: Rules, Scoring and Serving
To play ping pong, two players hit a light ball back and forth over a net with paddles. You win a point when your opponent misses, hits the ball into the net or off the table. A game goes to 11 points, and you must win by 2; the serve passes to the other player every two points, and every point once the score reaches 10–10.
What you need and the aim of the game
Ping pong (the official sport is called table tennis) is played on a table split in half by a low net. Each player has a paddle, sometimes called a bat or racket, and there is one small, light ball. The aim is simple: keep hitting the ball back onto your opponent's half until they can't return it.
A full-size table is 2.74 m long and 1.525 m wide (9 ft by 5 ft), the net is 15.25 cm (6 in) high, and the ball is 40 mm across. You don't need any of that to play a casual game on a kitchen table, though, and you don't need a table at all to practise: the GameLake ping pong game works on a phone or a computer.
The basic rules
- The server starts each point. The ball must bounce once on the server's side, clear the net, and bounce on the receiver's side.
- After the serve, each player must let the ball bounce once on their own side, then hit it back so it lands on the other side. You can't volley it (hit it before it bounces).
- You win the point if your opponent misses the ball, lets it bounce twice, hits it into the net, or hits it so it doesn't land on your half.
- A ball that clips the top of the net during a rally and still lands on the other side is in. Play on.
- If a serve touches the net and then lands correctly, it's a let: nobody scores and the server serves again.
- You can't touch the table with your free hand or move it during a point.
In the online game the rules are simplified to the classic paddle-game version: the ball comes straight to you without bouncing, and you score whenever it gets past the other paddle. The scoring and serving below are the real ones.
How scoring works
Every rally scores a point, whoever served. The first player to 11 points wins the game, but only with a lead of two points. At 10–10 (called deuce) play goes on until someone is two points ahead, so a game can end 12–10, 13–11 or even later.
| Score | What happens |
|---|---|
| 11–9 | Game over: 11 points with a two-point lead. |
| 11–10 | Not over yet: the lead is only one point. |
| 10–10 | Deuce: the next player to get two points ahead wins. |
| 12–10 | Game over after deuce. |
Competitive matches are best of three, five or seven games. Older rules played games to 21 points with five serves each; the international rules changed to 11 points in 2001, and that is what almost everyone plays today, GameLake included.
Who serves, and when
Players take turns serving two points each. After every two points, the serve switches to the other player, no matter who won them. Once the score reaches 10–10, the serve switches after every point instead, so nobody gets two serves in a row while the game is on a knife's edge.
| Points | Who serves |
|---|---|
| 1st and 2nd | Player A |
| 3rd and 4th | Player B |
| 5th and 6th | Player A |
| … and so on … | two serves each |
| From 10–10 | one serve each, alternating |
The player who received first in one game serves first in the next. On GameLake you serve the first game against Hop, he serves first in the rematch, and the same two-and-two rule, with single serves from 10–10, is built in.
How to serve legally
- Stand behind your end of the table. Hold the ball still on your open, flat palm, above the height of the table.
- Toss it straight up at least 16 cm (about 6 in) without spinning it with your fingers.
- Hit it on the way down, from behind your end line, so it bounces once on your side and then once on your opponent's side.
- Keep the ball visible to your opponent the whole time; don't hide it behind your body or arm.
In singles you can serve from and to anywhere on the table. In doubles the serve must go diagonally, from your right half to your opponent's right half, which is what the centre line is for.
Beginners lose most serves by tossing the ball and swinging hard. A gentle, low serve that bounces close to the net is harder to attack than a fast one.
How the GameLake version plays
The online game keeps the parts of ping pong that make it fun on a screen. You and Hop the frog face each other on a table floating on the lake. You slide your paddle along your end; the ball comes to you without a table bounce, and if it gets past a paddle, the other player wins the point. First to 11, win by 2, with serves swapping every two points.
- Angle: the spot where the ball meets your paddle decides its direction, up to about 54 degrees from straight at the very edge.
- Spin: move your paddle sideways as you hit and the ball curves on its way across.
- Speed: every hit in a rally makes the ball a little faster, until a long rally is properly quick.
- Modes: Easy, Medium or Hard against Hop, 2 players on one phone (top and bottom halves) or keyboard (W/S and the arrow keys), or Online against a friend in real time.
New to it? Turn on Teach me and Hop draws where the ball will arrive and where to put your paddle, with one line on why. Coached games are practice and don't count as wins. For ways to beat Hop on Hard, read our ping pong tips.
Frequently asked questions
How many points is a game of ping pong?
A game goes to 11 points, and you must win by two. At 10–10 the game continues until one player leads by two points.
How often do you switch serves in ping pong?
Every two points. From 10–10 onwards the serve switches after every point.
Do you have to win by 2 in ping pong?
Yes. You need at least 11 points and a two-point lead, so a game can finish 11–9, 12–10, 13–11 and so on.
Can the ball hit the net in ping pong?
In a rally, yes: if it clips the net and lands on the other side, play continues. On a serve, a ball that touches the net and lands correctly is a let and is served again.
Can you play ping pong online with a friend?
Yes. On GameLake, choose Online, then Play a friend, and send the link. You both play at the same time on your own screens, and the table referees every hit.