Improving Your Beach Volleyball Skills:
A Guide to Finding Your Lesson Level

We understand that it can be challenging to determine which skill level you belong to. That's why we have provided guidelines to help you identify your current level and what you need to progress to the next one.

However, please note that these are general guidelines, and everyone progresses at their own pace. Our coaches can also assess your skills and understanding of the game in person or by contacting us.

If you have any doubts about your level, feel free to chat with us and share your playing or training experience. We are here to help you get the most out of your beach volleyball journey.

Let's get started!

Beginner Level

Players at this stage are developing their basic motor skills and picking up on various skill fundamentals while learning how the game works.

Who this level is for:

Brand new players with little to no experience
New players wanting to learn basic fundamentals of beach volleyball

Lesson Focus:

Developing basic motor skills:
- Players will learn essential sports movements such as running, jumping, shuffling, and lunging, as well as improving their hand-eye coordination, reaction time, and ball perception.
Learning basic skill fundamentals and techniques:
- Players will be taught the basics of passing, setting, spiking, jump spiking approach, and serving.
Developing basic ball control:
- Players will learn how to pass the ball forward, set the ball with adequate height, and spike with proper hand contact and timing.
Learning court and ball feel:
- Players will become familiar with how to move on sand, sync their overall body movement, and understand how to make contact with the ball.

*These are important basics that player should have a certain level degree of control over before moving on to the next level

Beginner Intermediate Level

Players at this stage have a good sense of the ball and are familiar with basic fundamental concepts. They are now transitioning into basic gameplay, focusing on keeping the ball alive and understanding the importance of winning a point.

Who this level is for:

Players who have adequate body and ball control on sand and are transitioning to a more game-like training approach and moving on sand.
New beach volleyball players who can play proper 6v6s or 4v4s and are trying to pick up 2v2 play.
Low-level indoor volleyball players who are trying to pick up beach volleyball.

Overall Criteria:

Developing fundamental skills in game situations:
- Forearm passing, overhand 2 hand "setting," underhand serving, overhand serving, and overhand hitting.
Developing basic "sideout" strategies:
- Understanding how and where to pass and set.
- Developing a good sense of your partner's set ball to make a proper spike.
Developing ball control:
- Controlling the general direction and height of simple passes and sets.
- Making basic standing or jump spikes over the net without too much struggle.
Able to make simple rallies happen:
- Using three touches on the ball to prevent it from dropping on your side of the court.
Developing basic teamwork and communication:
- Understand basic communication calls to relay information to your partner (e.g., calling sets, calling receives).

Intermediate Level

Players at the intermediate level should have a solid foundation of overall ball control and movement on sand to handle 2v2 game-like drills in the form of sideout and defense system. They should also possess a basic knowledge of an overall winning game strategy, including how to convert rallies into kills effectively.

Who this level is for:

This level is suitable for players transitioning from the Beginner to Intermediate level, with the goal of winning points both from sideout and defense. It is also appropriate for mid to high-level indoor volleyball players trying to pick up beach volleyball.

Overall Criteria:

Reliable ball control in favorable conditions such as passing easy serves or spikes, setting from almost perfect passes, and spiking from almost or perfect sets.
Players should be able to more or less control where they want the ball to go when an "easy" ball is coming.
Consistent serves that go in, either underhand or overhand, with a certain degree of control.
Basic understanding of court movement patterns, including ideal block/defense positioning, peel from net defense timing, and usage of basic block signs communication to the partner.
Basic understanding of the rules unique to beach volleyball, including common faults resulting from bad play, such as double or carry on hand sets, and attacking the ball by tipping.
Relatively successful attack in situations where the set is perfect, with the ability to "kill" the ball in optimal situations, such as poor defense or an empty court.

Note: Players with strong athleticism in attacking, either raw or trained from other sports, can make up for some degree of ball control deficiency.

Expert Level

Players at the expert level should have exceptional ball control and body awareness to handle challenging game situations against tough competition. They should be able to execute a variety of attacking skills with ease, such as hard-driven spikes and well-placed shots. Additionally, they should have a deep understanding of game strategy to execute effective plays in both in and out-of-system situations.

Who this level is for:

This level is suitable for beach volleyball players who have participated in high-level tournaments such as AA or AAA level overseas or state tournaments. It is also appropriate for very high-level indoor volleyball players who have experience playing 2v2 beach volleyball. Finally, seasoned beach volleyball players with mainly 2v2s experience and exceptional ball control skills can also attempt this level.

Overall Criteria:

Exceptional ball control in all situations, including unexpected or difficult balls.
- Quick reaction time and the ability to handle sudden or difficult balls effectively, such as passing well-placed hits through one-arm digging or setting partners up for successful attacks even from shanks.
- Strong attacking skills, with the ability to execute both hard-driven hits and shots with ease.
High attack success rate, even when sets are not perfect.
- Strong attack and defense strategy, with the ability to win rallies by spiking optimal hit zones based on vision and reading of the opposition, as well as deceiving opponents into hitting balls where the player wants it to go.
Good endurance and stamina, with the ability to make successful hits or great shots over multiple rallies.
Comfortable in high-stress situations
- With the ability to maintain a strong mental state of mind in competitive environments, especially when playing from behind or under extreme conditions.
Ability to adapt and control play on windy or hot days, as well as play effectively in unfavorable weather conditions.

Note: Players with unusually strong attributes, such as tall height or extreme athleticism, may partly make up for some ball control deficiencies.

Improving Your Beach Volleyball Skills: A Guide to Finding Your Lesson Level

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Improving Your Beach Volleyball Skills:
A Guide to Finding Your Lesson Level