How to Play Beach Volleyball » Beach Volleyball Rules

Beach Volleyball Rules

Sat, 20 Mar 2010 00:03:00 +0000

Here are the basic beach volleyball rules that you need to know:

Not Allowed:

Open-hand tips
Setting the serve
Doubling the set
Side setting over the net

The most common mistake of new players is the setting. They set the ball with their hands too often and in times when it is illegal. There are sometimes that a set is okay but only if it is perfect, like on a free ball that is not hard driven. It is not against the rules to set a ball that comes over net but you have to do it with more perfection than a normal set that your partner passes to you. This means that if you don’t have perfect nectar hands, don’t ever set the ball with your hands when playing outdoor volleyball. You need to just arm set until you practice enough to have clean sets with no spin.

When blocking, if you touch the ball it counts as 1 of your 3 hits. This is not like indoor where you get 3 more touches after the block. This is another big difference to get used to.

You may go under the net all you want as long as it doesn’t interfere with the players on the opposing team.

Other than those rules most of the other rules still apply. You always do rally scoring but you go to 21 and then the 3rd game is to 15.

There are side switches every 7 points so that nobody is stuck with the bad wind side or the sun in their faces for a whole game.

Understanding the Beach Volleyball Game

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 21:48:52 +0000

The beach volleyball game is very fun once you understand how it is played. There are 2 teams that are each consisted of 2 players divided by a volleyball net. The court size is about 3 feet narrower and shorter on each side of the net than it is for indoor volleyball. The point of the game is to make the ball hit the sand on the opponents side of the net inside the boundary lines. The games are to 21 and you have to win by 2. Every serve results in a point, this is called rally scoring. Long ago it used to be that only the team that served the ball could win the point, but that was done away with years ago.

The server must be behind the back court line. Once you throw the ball up in the air to serve it, you must hit it. If you don’t like your toss and decide to catch it or let it hit the ground, you will lose the point.

Each team is allowed 3 hits to get the ball back of the net to the other teams side. One person cannot hit it 2 times in a row and you do not have to take all 3 hits before sending the ball back to the other side. The ideal way to do it is for the first person to bump, or pass it to their teammate. That teammate will then set the ball so that the person that passed it can spike it down into the opponents side.

A block counts as 1 of your 3 hits, unlike indoor volleyball where the block does not count as 1 of your 3 hits.

The setting is a little bit different for sand volleyball, you are allowed to cushion it a little bit more so that it comes out very clean without spinning. The beach volleyball set should look smooth and not be held for too long.

Once rule in beach volleyball that is different is that you are never allowed to open hand tip the ball over the net. You may shoot the ball from your palm or use your knuckles (cameltoe) to hit it over the net, but no finger action is allowed on the ball.

You are never allowed to touch the net, the only exception is if the ball hits the net into you. The nets are usually very tight so this does not happen often. Try staying close to the net when jumping to block and reaching over the net with your arms instead of jumping towards the net.

Can You Open Hand Tip in Beach Volleyball?

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 18:45:47 +0000

One of the most common mistakes that players make when making the transition to beach volleyball from indoor volleyball is assuming that the rules are the same. The fact is that beach volleyball rules and indoor volleyball rules vary in almost every aspect other than allowing three hits on each side.

Can you open hand tip the volleyball in beach volleyball?
No! I don’t know why this one is so hard for indoor players to understand. It doesn’t mean that you are not allowed to shoot the ball or dink it barely over the net, you just can’t do so with an open hand and direct where the ball will go with your fingers.

A shot is done with an open hand but the ball goes off your palm. You can also do the beach volleyball cameltoe or huff, this means that you hit it with your first 2 knuckles. You aren’t actually hitting the ball with your knuckle joint, you are hitting it on the flat part of the finger between the first and second joints on the finger.

You could also do the poky, this is when you hit the tip the ball from the tip of your fingers. Your fingers stay straight and your simply poke the ball. This is dangerous because if someone attacks the ball while you are attempting the poke you could get your fingers broken.

I would suggest that before you try to play some true beach volleyball you learn the rules. If you want to know how to play beach volleyball you will have to understand all the hits that are allowed and more importantly the ones that are not allowed.

Differences of Indoor Volleyball and Beach Volleyball Rules

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 06:12:15 +0000

When someone is trying to make the transition from the 6 on 6 indoor volleyball game to the 2 on 2 outdoor beach volleyball game there are many changes that need to be considered. In the usa volleyball is not a very popular sport but sand volleyball is becoming more and more popular each year. The NCAA has announced that there will be sand volleyball in college in 2010. The indoor game and outdoor game are so different that there are completely different beach volleyball drills that are done in the sand.
I will make a list of the differences of indoor volleyball and beach volleyball rules here:

In beach volleyball tips with an open hand are illegal. You must shoot the ball from the palm.
The set counts as one of your 3 contact with the ball in sand volleyball.
The court size of a beach volleyball court is smaller by 3 feet on each side.
The beach volleyball equipment is different, no volleyball shoes are worn and the volleyball shorts are board shorts for men and bikini bottoms for women.
The volleyballs are different. The beach volleyball ball is lighter, less inflated and slightly larger. Buy Wilson beach volleyballs only.
The are no volleyball positions in outdoor volleyball because there are only 2 people so you pick your favorite side and stick to that for the whole game.
Outdoor setting is very different. A beach volleyball set is done with softer hands and is held for a little longer so that it can come out clean and with no spin.
You are not allowed to set the serve in beach volleyball. You actually can not set any free ball.
You can double a hard driven ball.
You may not attack the ball until it has broken the plain of the net.
You can not side set over the net in sand volleyball.

These are some rules to help you learn how to play volleyball a little bit better.

Basic Beach Volleyball Rules

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 01:14:14 +0000

First things first, before you step in the sand to play some volleyball you need to realize that beach volleyball rules are very different than your indoor volleyball rules.

Lets start with the very basics of how to play beach volleyball. The volleyball pass is the almost the only thing that is similar between the two sports. Outdoor setting is very different than an indoor volleyball set. You are allowed to hold the ball a bit longer in beach volleyball setting so that the ball will not spin when it comes out of your hands. You will notice that the sets on the beach will look much cleaner than indoor sets.

While we are on the topic of volleyball setting let me explain an important rule to you. You can’t side set the ball over the net in sand volleyball. This means that you can only set over the net if you do so directly in front or behind you.

Beach Volleyball Net Height

The only difference between women’s beach volleyball and mens is that the net is lower for women. The ball and size of the court are the exact same. The official beach volleyball net height for women is 7’4 and 5/8″. The net height for men is 7’11 5/8″. If you are wondering yes that is the same net height as indoor volleyball. So you can see how much more difficult it will be to spike in the sand.

Volleyball Tips

One great thing about playing 2 on 2 is that there are no dinky open hand tips allowed in beach volleyball. If you are going to shoot the ball you must do so with knuckles (camel toe), poke it with the tips of your straight fingers (cobra) or do a roll shot from the palm of your hands. Make sure there is no “finger action” on the ball. Learning how to shoot a ball is very important in sand volleyball, this game is not all about power all the time. You will learn how to be a smarter player.

Setting the Serve

You are not allowed to set the serve in beach volleyball. You can let it bounce off your hands but your hands must be touching each other. This is where indoor players lose a lot of points when making the transition from indoor to outdoor volleyball.

The great thing about this sport is that there isn’t much beach volleyball equipment needed to play. For most places all you need is a ball and you are good to go.