Volleypong Official Rules

Overview

Volleypong is a game inspired by combining ping-pong with volleyball.  The game flow progresses like classic ping-pong, with an exciting twist: instead of immediately returning the ball, one has the option to set it to their teammate who can then spike it, like in volleyball. Because frequent spikes are common, the game is best played with lots of people.  In fact, there is no limit to the number of people that can play at once!

Players

Volleypong is played with a minimum of 2 players per team, but can be played with any number greater than that, as long as each player has a paddle.  Players can specialize in certain positions - like being a server, spiker, or long-ball saver.

Equipment

A standard regulation ping-pong table, ping-pong ball, and ping-pong paddles are used. Each player must have their own paddle.  Players may optionally hold two paddles, one in each hand.

Positions

The typical starting position for a 5v5 game is shown below.  Green team is serving the ball. One green player (server) holds the ball in the center, ready to serve.  Two green players (spikers) flank the net on either side.  The final two green players (savers) play deep behind the table, ready to recover and save any powerful spikes.

The orange team starts with a similar set of positions.

Ultimately though, teams need only start with all their players on their side of the net in any position they choose based on their strategy.

Basic Gameplay

  1. Who goes first?
  1. The loser of the previous match serves first. For the first match, the team with the oldest player serves first.
  1. Serving
  1. One team member starts by serving. A serve follows official table tennis rules.  The player must stand behind the table, toss the ball straight up, and then hit it with their racket such that the ball first bounces off the near side of the table and up before crossing over the net.
  1. You must throw the ball up straight, from a flat palm, at least 6 inches
  2. Your toss and service contact must be behind the table surface (not over or on the side)
  3. You must hit the ball before it bounces on the table (no bouncing the ball on the table and then hitting it over - except some teams may agree up front to allow children to serve like this)
  4. You must hit the ball so that it bounces off your side of the table before going over the net
  5. If the ball hits the net during service and still goes over and otherwise would have been a successful serve, it is a let and the point is replayed. There is no limit or point deductions for let serves. On the other hand, if the ball hits the net but does not successfully go over and hit the other player’s side, then the receiving team earns the point and no replay occurs.
  6. There is no requirement that the ball must cross quadrants of the table like in doubles ping-pong.
  1. If the serve goes over the net but misses the other side of the table, then the serve is complete and the opposing team earns a point.
  2. If the serve goes over the net and hits the other side of the table, then the serve is complete and the opposite team must then return it. No points are earned yet, proceed to the “Returning” section below.
  1. Returning
  1. After the ball hits their side of the table on a serve, the returning team now can hit the ball directly back over or set it to one of their teammates.
  1. The returning team must not hit the ball off of a serve until the ball has hit their side of the table off the first serve.  If returning off of a previous return, then this rule does not apply and the player can hit it out of the air.
  2. The returning team gets up to three hits, but no player can hit the ball twice in a row.  This does mean that it is legal for a player to hit it first and third: For example, Player A could set it to Player B, who sets it back to Player A, who hits it over.
  1. The play is immediately over and the other team (the non-returning team) earns a point if any of the following occur:
  1. The returning team misses the ball and it hits the floor
  2. The ball bounces twice on the returning team’s side of the table
  3. The returning team hits the ball and it hits their own side of the table
  4. The returning team hits the ball and it doesn’t go over the net and hits the floor
  5. The returning team hits the ball over the net but it misses the table on the other side and it hits the floor without the other team touching it with their paddle
  6. The returning team hits the ball more than 3 times, or without alternating (two hits by one player in a row)
  7. The returning team hits the net with their paddle or any part of their body
  1. The returning team must keep their feet on their team’s side of the net when directly returning the ball, but is allowed to reach over the net when hitting so long as they do not make contact with the net at any point.
  2. The returning team is allowed to travel onto the other team’s side but cannot hit the ball directly onto the opposing team’s side of the table while their feet are over the net line.  Instead, they must hit it back to their teammate on their proper side of the table.  This comes into play when a wild set has occurred on the first hit, and a teammate chases it across the net line and hits it back to another teammate who hits it over the net on the third hit to successfully and legally return it.
  3. If the above rules were followed, and the ball is hit by the returning team, from the returning team’s side of the net, and successfully hits the other side of the table, then the return is successful.
  1. If the ball hits the net and does go over and hits the table, then the return is still successful.  Hitting the net and going over only forces a let on the original serve.
  1. Important notes:
  1. Because the returning team can reach over the net with their feet planted on their side of the table,
  1. it is possible for them to hit the ball and bounce it off the opposing team’s side in any direction, including back towards the returning team’s side of the table. This is allowed and requires the new returning team to run onto the other side of the table and try to set it back across to a teammate similar to when a wild initial set occurs.
  2. The opposing team may try to hit the ball at the same time as the returning team as they are allowed to hit the ball out of the air after the first serve.  This is common if a set is done directly over the net - then both the returning team and the opposite team may both go for that set as either can legally hit it.
  1. This means that a receiving team who tries to set the ball too close to the net may end up effectively setting it to the opposing team who unexpectedly spikes it back at them. This is legal because a receiving team can play the ball out of the air after the first serve is complete.
  2. In the case where both teams go for the same ball, the player who first swung towards the ball, on either team, has the right of way and any collision caused that impedes the successful delivery of the swing or outcome is an interference foul and demands a replay of the point.  A second interference during the replay by the same team (even if a different member of that team) immediately leads to a point scored for the non-interfering team.
  1. Any contact not caused by a valid swing attempt, or overly aggressive swing intended to cause harm, is considered a flagrant foul and that player is immediately ejected from the game without replacement (their team must play down one player).
  1. The ball is only out when it hits the floor, bounces twice on the same side of the table, or comes to rest.  Walls, ceiling, and furniture are all in play and count as if the ball never hit them.  Both saving and returning off of back and side walls are common.  The same goes for ceiling shots in low ceiling rooms.  Depending on the room’s furniture, the ball may bounce or roll along any furniture or object like a counter or bookshelf and be hit off of it, as long as it hasn’t come to rest first.  Carpet, rugs, and other floor coverings are considered part of the floor.
  2. Similarly, play the ball off of body shots as if the body shot never occurred.  The one exception is that any deliberate attempt to hit or control the ball with your body (such as swinging your arm, trying to head the ball as in soccer, or trying to catch the ball in your shirt), leads to an interference foul and the opposite team earns a point.
  1. Returning the Return
  1. After a successful first return, the original server team becomes the returning team and play continues back and forth following the Returning rules. Each team gets up to three hits to legally return the ball.  Play continues until one team fails to return it.
  1. Alternating Serves
  1. One team serves for 5 points, at which time the serve alternates to the other team for their chance to serve 5 points.  Points are scored as noted regardless of which team served (meaning, you can score no matter if you served or received).
  2. The same server must serve all 5 points in a row, but can switch up between serve sets (Player A serves the first 5, and the next time they get to serve, Player B serves those 5).
  1. Winning the Game
  1. The first team to reach or exceed 21 points AND lead by at least two points wins.  The game can be won either by serving or returning the ball.  For example, if the score is tied 20-20, and one team reaches 21, the game is not over as that team does not lead by at least two points. They would have to score again and reach 22-20 to win.

Common Plays

Table bounce denoted by:      Racket hit denoted by:

Legal Serve

Green server tosses the ball up 6 inches, then hits it on the way down with their paddle.  The ball hits first the server’s side of the table, next the receiving team’s side of the table, and then flies into the air and is ready for the Orange team to attempt a return.

Illegal Serve

The server hits it immediately across the table instead of first on their side, making it an illegal serve.

Simple Set Return

Green team legally serves it.  Orange team center player sets it in the air to the right front Orange player, who spikes it onto the Green team’s side where it contacts the table and bounces, turning the Green team into the receiving team.

Full 3 Hit Return

Green team legally serves it.  Orange team center player sets it in the air to the right front Orange player, who sets it across the table to the left front Orange player, who spikes it onto the opposing team’s side where it bounces and turns the Green team into the receiving team.

Light Double Bounce Trick Play

Here, the Orange team sets it twice and instead of a hard spike, reaches over the net and lightly hits it onto the Green team’s side such that it bounces twice on their side, ending the play and earning Orange the point.

Reverse Spike

This play is the same as the last, but instead of lightly hitting it, the left front Orange player reaches over the net and spikes it backwards such that it legally hits the Green team’s side, but sends it in the direction of the Orange team’s side.  At this point, the Green team can only try to run to the Orange team’s side to save it before it hits the floor.

Saving a Reverse Spike

Here the front Green player crosses the net and hits the ball out of the air backwards to another Green player who rushed forward to support.  This Green player can now legally hit it onto the Orange team’s side, or choose to set it once more before doing so.  Note that the Green player who rushed forward cannot hit it directly onto the Orange team’s table because their feet have crossed the plane of the net.

Typical Saver Play

Commonly, after a nice Set and Spike, the receiving team will have to save a long ball.  Here we see that Orange had a nice set and spike, followed by the ball bouncing deep to a saver who was positioned much further back from the table.  This Green player tries their best to lob the ball up in the air towards a forward Green player, who can better aim for a shot at Orange’s side of the table.

Origins

Volleypong was invented in 2012 by Andrew Frenz along with his co-workers at MTS Systems in Minnesota.  The team had recently acquired a ping-pong table in their scrum open area at work.  Inspired by Olympic Beach Volleyball that summer, the idea of setting the ball to a teammate for them to massively spike it was born.  Who doesn’t love huge spikes!?  The large room was set up perfectly with walls on either side, which made it possible and common for a large spike to bounce off the wall and back into play.  Thus the rules about playing off of everything but double bounces and the floor was born.  Over the course of months, they developed and codified the rules as new strategies were developed and situations uncovered. It was common to get 6 or more on a team playing at once, and the games became quite competitive as the co-workers honed their setting and spiking abilities.