The Fasenra Sacramento Open presented by Zimmer Biomet starts Monday, April 13 at Life Time Arden in Sacramento, CA, and the professional draws for all five divisions of play have been released.

Live broadcast coverage begins with the Round of 16 on Thursday, April 16 at 1:00 p.m. ET on Pickleballtv.

Here are the draws:

Men's Singles

Women's Singles

Men's Doubles

Women's Doubles

Mixed Doubles

Pickleball is a global phenomenon volleying into the mainstream at a speed no one predicted, and it’s getting younger and more competitive by the year.

Now, for the first time, PARTNERS pulls viewers courtside for the fervor, feuds and fallout of professional pickleball. The six-part reality and sports crossover docuseries premieres May 5 on Prime Video in the U.S. at no additional cost with a Prime membership, the PPA Tour YouTube Channel and Pickleballtv, with all episodes dropping at once. 

In pickleball, “love” isn’t even a score. In PARTNERS, it seems to be in short supply, and relationships are as volatile as a heated rally at the net. With insider access to the sport’s biggest threats and most fearless underdogs, the series pulls back the curtain on a tour often described as a traveling high school: Players train together, party together, date each other and show up at the same hotel the morning after a loss or a breakup. Everyone knows everyone’s business. Then they step onto the court, and it’s war. They play to destroy.

At the center of the season is 19-year-old Anna Leigh Waters, the undisputed queen of the court who’s outearning anyone in the WNBA. With just one phone call, she dismantles the most dominant women’s doubles team on tour. Choosing a doubles partner is one of the most consequential decisions a professional pickleball player makes, and on the PPA Tour it is handled almost entirely through rumors, back-channel conversations and social maneuvering. Anna Leigh’s story is just the beginning:

- Chasing Anna Leigh’s spotlight is Anna Bright, fierce enough to dissolve one of the tour’s most beloved doubles pairings just to close the gap and candid enough to admit she wants to steal her sparkle.

- Catherine Parenteau and Rachel Rohrabacher, both left without a partner after Anna Leigh’s phone call, find each other, and nobody sees them coming.

- Ben Johns, the sport’s most decorated man, walks away from a winning partnership with his own brother to bet everything on 19-year-old Bolivian star Gabe Tardio. 

- After navigating a very public breakup, former sweethearts Parris Todd and Hunter Johnson each channel their heartbreak into the performance of their lives.

- Federico Staksrud writes on a piece of paper every day that he is the best player in the world. At the World Championships in Dallas, he and partner Hayden Patriquin get their chance to prove it.

- Matt Wright, 48, plays with a bad back, but paired with Spanish charmer Jaume Martinez-Vich, they’re the last duo anyone wants to face across the net.

- A competitor so intense she divides the crowd, Kate Fahey is warm and funny off the court and a different person entirely when the ball is in play. She opens up about the mental toll of competing at the highest level.

- Christian Alshon plays with loud, unfiltered aggression and has beaten Ben enough times to back it up. He and partner Andrei Daescu are pushing men’s pickleball into its most competitive era yet.

- “Hurricane” Tyra Black and partner Jorja Johnson have just one thing on their minds: taking down the queen.

“People underestimate what these athletes sacrifice,” said PPA CEO Connor Pardoe. “Pickleball is everything to them – large parts of their identities, social lives, not to mention their livelihoods. When you embed cameras in an environment like this, you get something you could never script.”

Filmed across the PPA Tour's most defining season, PARTNERS follows a league less than five years old, racing to build notoriety, win over top players and prove just how relentlessly competitive professional pickleball has become.

PARTNERS is produced by Shutterstock Studios in association with Wavelength Productions LLC. Executive producers include Mark Infante, Michele Gauthier, Aiden Darné and Jon Weidman.

The PPA Challenger Series is really starting to rival the pros when it comes to pickleball fashion.

While pro-level style has stepped up significantly in recent years, it’s exciting to see that same energy and creativity making its way into the Challenger scene.

The latest PPA Challenger in Newport Beach might have showcased the best looks yet, so here are some of the standout moments:

Connor Mogle and Audrey Brown were definite standouts for me. Brown looked incredible in a vibrant turquoise tennis dress, paired with a retro pink plastic visor that added such a fun, nostalgic touch. Mogle complemented her perfectly, wearing a matching blue t-shirt with butter yellow shorts, crisp white shoes, and even pink socks to tie in her visor. That level of coordination is seriously impressive. I love the attention to detail from this duo.

Alli Phillips turned heads in a full PB5Star look while competing in mixed with her younger brother, Danny. Her hot pink collared top perfectly matched her pink paddle—an absolutely flawless display of color coordination.

Leave it to Ella Yeh and Jace Morris, already staples on the Best Dressed List, to show up in Newport Beach looking effortlessly chic. Yeh kept it clean and polished in a sleek white tank, a baby blue wrap tennis skirt, and crisp white accessories. Morris matched her aesthetic perfectly with a white t-shirt, light blue shorts, and a coordinating light blue hat. This is exactly how you dress for success on the mixed doubles court.

Katie Diaz gave a nod to Jorja Johnson with her oversized hair bow, and I’m obsessed with the choice. She stepped onto the court in a baby pink tennis dress, paired with a matching pink bow and white sneakers. The whole look feels polished, playful, and totally star-worthy.

And of course, Jalina Ingram delivered in a head-to-toe pink look that perfectly matched the pink in her hair. She really knows how to curate a complete vibe from top to bottom. The mesh long sleeve top and skirt combo felt both playful and practical for high-level play. I only wish her mixed partner, Rio Newcombe, had fully committed too. Imagine if he’d shown up with pink hair to match.

You can never go wrong with keeping it simple alongside your doubles partner. Abbigal Hatton and Andrew Caldarella proved that on mixed day with a sleek black-and-white pairing that looked incredibly sharp. Hatton opted for a fitted black dress with white shoes and a white visor, while Caldarella mirrored the palette in a black t-shirt, white shorts, and matching white accessories. Clean, crisp, and effortlessly put together.

Sarah Beeston made her tournament debut at a PPA Challenger. Talk about jumping right in, and she did it in style. Even before stepping on the court, she was already serving looks, sharing some adorable outfit options leading up to the event.

But her final pick was such a standout. She wore a Varley checkerboard skirt with a square-neck black top and a gray New Balance visor. If this is what she’s bringing to her very first tournament, I’d love to see her back at another Challenger soon.

What was your favorite look from the tournament? Let us know on Instagram, and click here to find a PPA Challenger Series event near you.

The PPA Tour is leveling up its broadcast experience again during the upcoming Fasenra Sacramento Open presented by Zimmer Biomet with PPA FireFight Zone, an innovative live whiparound show designed to bring fans closer to the action than ever before.

PPA FireFight Zone captures matches happening simultaneously during tournaments. Instead of following just one match from start to finish, it jumps between courts to showcase the most exciting moments happening in real time across the host venue.

PPA FireFight Zone during the Sacramento event will be available on PPA Streamed Courts (YouTube) and the Pickleballtv app on Tuesday, April 14 (10:00 a.m. PDT - 4:30 p.m. PDT) and Wednesday, April 15 (10:00 a.m. PDT - 5:30 p.m. PDT).

The broadcast will keep viewers fully immersed in the tournament without needing to switch between streams or miss key points unfolding elsewhere.

It mirrors the experience of attending a live PPA event where fans can walk from court to court and catch thrilling moments from the best players on the planet. Viewers no longer have to choose a single match or worry about missing standout rallies elsewhere in the draw.

The program features a rotating lineup of commentators and personalities from across the pickleball world, adding insight and energy to the fast-moving format. Past contributors included Chris Cali, Graham DiMico, Johnny 5.0, Nico the Lefty, Zane Navratil, John Kew, Jim Kloss, Jimmy Miller, Camila Zilveti, Ava Ignatowich, and Kyle Trenga.

Behind the scenes, an offsite producer from Cracked Rackets monitors courts across the venue, selecting the most compelling action as it happens. The broadcast adapts dynamically, using a variety of production techniques to maximize excitement and coverage, including:

- Full-screen switches when a rally or critical moment builds
- Split-screen views featuring two or three matches at once
- Quick cut-ins to match points or momentum-shifting rallies
- Live score overlays to keep viewers informed
- Real-time commentary reacting to the action across courts

This flexible format allows the production team to move rapidly between matches or display multiple courts depending on where the most drama is unfolding.

PPA FireFight Zone was also available during the Carvana Mesa Cup presented by Cal-Am Resorts, the SXY Newport Beach Open presented by JOOLA, and the Veolia Texas Open presented by Proton.

Christian Alshon is known for the tweener, JW Johnson for his backhand flick, and Connor Garnett for the twoey. Now, Camila Zilveti has made a case for her own signature move: the Nasty Nelson.

The Nasty Nelson happens when a player serves the ball and intentionally hits the opposing player who isn’t returning the serve. Because it targets an unprepared opponent, it’s widely viewed as unsportsmanlike—hence the name.

Zane Navratil has also been associated with the shot, but recently Zilveti has been executing it more frequently. She’s even been seen practicing it on recreational courts.

“I always wanted to have a signature shot, and I wanted it to be a shot that I could go for once per game. To me, it’s fair game. I’m trying to make Nasty Nelsons fun. They’re not nasty, they’re just silly. It’s more of a check and see if my opponent is paying attention,” explained Zilveti.

“The Nasty Nelson isn’t known for being the most sportsmanlike shot, and while I agree with it, I also think that if everyone knows you’re going for it, then it becomes something that’s embarrassing for the opponent because they got hit and they knew it was coming.” 

Zilveti went on to describe a recent instance at the Greater Zion Cup where she used the shot in competition.

“For example, I played against Gio Morelli and Rafael Lenhard and they said they had been practicing dodging the Nasty Nelson since they saw me doing it last tournament so they were ready. Then, Gio wasn’t paying attention and I got her. She was so embarrassed,” recounted Zilveti.

“When you hit a Nasty Nelson, you get in people’s heads rent free for three shots after. When I hit one in Mesa against Chris Haworth, he missed the next return because he was so flustered. I’m not saying I can’t win without those mind tricks, but it doesn’t hurt. Given my ranking, I have room to be more creative with my shots.”

In fact, she’s even been practicing Nasty Nelsons during recreational play. 

“I put bounties on my friends, my husband, even myself,” she mentioned. “I’ve said that if you can hit me, you get a dollar. I’ve gotten most of my friends doing it now, especially in rec.”

If you’re looking to execute a Nasty Nelson as effectively as Zilveti, she recommends a few key strategies.

“Go for it when your opponents are switching sides because they’re more concerned about the switch and not that you might hit a Nasty Nelson,” said Zilveti. “I aim for about 70% of their body on the side away from the court because naturally when people dodge, they dodge away from the court. And it’s all about timing. You don’t want to make eye contact with them because then they know what you’re doing, so you have to use your peripheral vision and aim for that 70%.”

And if you want a full deep dive on how to hit a Nasty Nelson, check out this video from Ava Ignatowich:

To keep up to date on all things pro pickleball, follow us on Instagram. 

Even with all the color, Ingram keeps her hair looking remarkably healthy.

“I had to chop it off a couple of times, but I’m still surprised it’s surviving my horrible decisions. I do a lot of hair masks and I only wash my hair maybe once or twice a week,” she said. “If you wash it too much, it dries out your scalp and strips all the good oils out, so especially with the bleach and the dye, it’s how I’m keeping it healthy.”

But I had to ask. Ingram is out there training and competing in the blazing sun, sweating through intense singles matches, so how does she manage to avoid washing her hair?

“I usually will wet my hair down when I take a shower and just comb it through. Then, I’ll put it into French braids or Dutch braids, and I’m good,” she mentioned. “Then, I flat iron my hair because my hair is naturally super curly, and usually if you wash curly hair too much, then it’s really bad. But, I’ve never had any major problems with it.”

Ingram started dying her hair when she was 12 years old. 

“I asked my mom if I could have a streak in my hair and she said yes,” she shared. “Ever since then, I got hooked and I’ve never stopped.” 

Given how often she’s colored her hair, Ingram admits a few mishaps along the way were inevitable.

“I almost bleached the front of my hair off and overprocessed it,” she revealed. “I also accidentally dyed my whole tub blue and I somehow got it on the walls, too. I got it on my face and my fingers, and it wouldn’t come out. I looked like a smurf. My mom was so mad, but it was semi-permanent dye and it didn’t come out for a good two months. I was literally 16 when I did that.”

With her vibrant hair and bold fashion choices, Ingram is impossible to miss on the court.

She’s also deliberate about coordinating her current hair color with her competition outfits.

“I always try and coordinate my outfits to my hair,” she said. “I also love to coordinate my nails, too.”

But out of all the colors she’s experimented with, Ingram definitely has a favorite.

“As much as I love blue and green, I think I’ll always go back to red or pink,” she concluded. “It matches everything, and I just love it. I think I’ll stay with this pink for a while.”

Ingram is undeniably adding a burst of vibrancy to the pro circuit.

To keep up to date on all things pickleball, follow us on Instagram. 

The Texas Ranchers are bringing in BAiO as the organization’s performance intelligence partner, the team announced in a statement Wednesday morning.

The multi-year agreement carries a mid-six-figure value, making it the highest team-level-single-year deal in Major League Pickleball history.

The team will be using BAiO+, the organization’s own data platform that will give players daily recovery scores, individualized training load recommendations, off-the-court guidance to maintain peak performance, and real-time alerts when biometric data signals elevated injury risk.

"Coaches, physicians, performance scientists and trainers are brilliant at what they do—but they've been forced to operate on fragmented data and gut instinct. BAiO doesn't replace those experts. It empowers them—every signal, every lab result, every input—into one living intelligent command center that gives the people closest to the athlete the confidence to act decisively," explained Dr. Chirag Patel, Founder & President of BAiO.

Ranchers leadership is bullish on how this partnership will elevate the experience of all the team’s athletes.

"We’re gonna look back after this upcoming season and wonder how we ever confidently stepped on the court without BAiO," said Ranchers GM and Head Coach Caleb Garrard. "The difference this is going to make in our performance and how we approach each match is exciting, to say the least."

But the benefits of the program aren’t reserved for the team’s professional athletes; members of the Texas Ranchers Academy Program (TRAP) will also have access to BAiO’s insights.

"What excites me most about BAiO is how it will change the way our athletes understand themselves, not just as players, but as people. We’re taking the kind of insights typically reserved for professional players and putting them directly into the hands of our Ranchers Academy community. It will give our players a deeper awareness of their bodies, helping them train smarter, recover better, and grow into the athletes they’re capable of becoming," said Virginia Reyna, Texas Ranchers Head of Community.

The Ranchers will kick off their 2026 campaign alongside ten other teams at MLP Dallas, scheduled for May 22-25.

Parris Todd just adopted a new puppy named Prince, and it might be the cutest thing you’ll see all week.

She even staged a newborn-style photoshoot, complete with a throne.

“I picked him up when he was eight weeks old. He’s a miniature Dachshund, so he’s a long-haired dapple wiener dog,” shared Todd. “I’ve had two Dachshunds before, and I just really love their personalities. They’re super fun-loving and sweet, but they’re also a little sassy. They’re the kind of dogs where you can tell when they’re thinking by their faces, so I’ve always loved them.”

Todd found him through the Good Dog app, the same platform Anna Leigh Waters used to adopt her dog, Archer.

“I was looking through all the breeders on Good Dog, looking at reviews, and I was really looking for his specific type, too,” she explained. “I also needed him to be in Florida because I didn’t want to have the dog go on an airplane since he’s so little.”

Todd says she knew right away he was the one as soon as they met.

“I had so many names lined up, but when I saw him I got to see more of his personality. He’s kind of sassy and very spoiled because he’s the runt of the litter, so he was hand fed since his brothers and sisters would kick him off the mom because he’s so tiny,” she noted. “As soon as I met him, he got very attached to me, and because he is a little spoiled, the name Prince works so well.  I love Prince and Parris. PT and PT.”

This also marks Todd’s first experience as a dog mom, and her busy life on the road had kept her from finding the right companion... until now.

“We had family dogs growing up, but this is my first dog. My family just moved to Delray Beach, so that’s why I decided to get a dog now because I travel so much,” she said. “And when he’s still young, he can stay with my parents.”

Though he’s still just a puppy, Todd plans for her new companion to join her at pickleball tournaments once he’s old enough.

“I would love for him to travel. He still has to get his last rounds of shots, and then I have to take him to training so when I take him to the courts he’ll be comfortable,” mentioned Todd. “Wiener dogs are notorious for not behaving, so I want to make sure he’s going to be a good travel dog.”

Todd is also close friends with Pickleballtv broadcaster Michelle McMahon, who often brings her golden retriever, Maverick, on tour.

She’s hoping Prince will have a built-in friend and an experienced travel buddy to show him the ropes of tournament life.

“We’re going to introduce Prince and Maverick in the next few weeks,” confirmed Todd. “I’m hoping Maverick can show him the ropes because he is such a good dog. I hope he’ll rub off on Prince.”

Personally, I can’t wait to see Prince make his courtside debut.

To keep up to date on all things pro pickleball, follow us on Instagram. 

The End of the “New Paddle Advantage”

Spin that lasts is changing how paddles perform—and how often we replace them.

If 2025 was the year of foam cores, 2026 is shaping up to be the year of something just as important: spin that actually lasts.

For years, “raw carbon fiber” defined high-spin performance—but it came with a hidden tradeoff. The texture that generated elite spin on day one often faded far sooner than players expected.

Now, a new wave of surface technologies is changing that equation. Durable grit textures are delivering near-peak spin not just for a few sessions—but across weeks or months of play.

This shift has bigger implications than just performance—it changes how often we replace paddles, how we practice, and what “value” really means in this sport.

The Problem

In 2018, the paddle manufacturer Electrum launched their Electrum Pro paddle featuring the first “Raw Carbon Fiber” surface in pickleball. We didn’t know it at the time, but that surface texture would become the primary performance paddle spin texture until today.

What the industry calls “Raw Carbon Fiber” is actually a peel-ply epoxy texture—borrowed from other industries to create surface roughness for bonding. That texture outperformed and outlasted the other texture most often seen in the market at that time, “spray grit.”

“Raw Carbon Fiber” was more durable than spray grit, but as the game became harder and faster and players needed more spin, its dropoff in spin performance became a real problem.

The fact is, this epoxy peel ply was never designed to stand up to repeated impacts. While raw carbon fiber was and is a great spin texture, it's temporary.

For competitive players, this created an unspoken cycle:

Replace the paddle regularly—or accept the dropoff in performance.

Enter Durable Grit Technologies

At its core, spin comes down to friction—the ability of the paddle surface to grip the ball at contact.

Traditional raw carbon fiber achieves this through a molded-in epoxy micro-texture, but that texture gradually smooths out with repeated use.

Durable grit technologies take a different approach. Instead of relying on surface roughness that wears down, they introduce harder materials or engineered surface constructions designed to maintain that friction over time.

There isn’t just one way to build a durable surface—and that’s where things get interesting.

Some brands are embedding extremely hard materials directly into the face. Others are engineering layered textures designed to hold their structure over time.

The current wave of durable grit technologies reflects both approaches:

• Six Zero – Diamond Tough Texture (diamond dust embedded into peel ply)
• Selkirk – Infinigrit (ceramic-infused applied texture)
• Spartus – Permagrit (ceramic composite surface layer)
• 11Six24 – HexGrit (silicon carbide embedded surface)
  
  

While these are the early leaders in durable spin texture, the list will expand quickly as more brands recognize the importance of this technology.

Early raw carbon fiber found peak spin. Durable grit prioritized retaining that spin.

Testing from John Kew highlights just how important that distinction is.

In controlled testing, traditional raw carbon fiber showed clear spin degradation after repeated high-speed impacts in the same location, while newer durable textures maintained performance far longer. This clip on his podcast dives deeper into his methodology and results.

Spin Isn’t Just About Shape—It’s About Control

Most players think of spin as the ability to shape shots—to dip drives or roll passing shots at an opponent’s feet.

But one of the biggest advantages is more subtle: Friction gives you margin.

With more grip on the ball, players can close the paddle face and swing without the ball sliding or launching unpredictably.

That confidence opens up more aggressive placement and higher level shots throughout the life of the paddle—something previously only consistent with fresh paddles at the highest levels.

The biggest change isn’t higher spin—it’s more consistent spin over time. That shift fundamentally changes the player experience.

Biggest Benefits of Durable Grit Technology

1. Practice Like You Play
Your paddle performs the same in week four as it did in week one—meaning your training actually translates to competition.

2. Real Value (Beyond Upfront Price)
Players no longer need to replace paddles just because the surface wears out.
The lifespan of performance—not just the paddle—gets longer.

3. Less Reliance on the “New Paddle Advantage”
For years, there’s been an unspoken edge to using a fresh paddle.
Durable grit begins to level that playing field—reducing the advantage of constantly rotating in new gear.

4. A Quiet Sustainability Win
Paddles aren’t easily recyclable, and performance drop-off has historically accelerated replacement cycles.
Longer-lasting surfaces mean fewer paddles discarded—an incremental but meaningful step forward for the sport.

Not All Grit Is Created Equal

One important distinction: not all durable textures are approved across governing bodies.

The USAP uses surface roughness and coefficient of friction testing to limit spin, while the UPA-A tests in-lab spin performance with a ball cannon without directly limiting surface roughness.

This distinction generally allows for more aggressive surface textures under UPA-A approval. 

Though most amateur tournaments and leagues allow both UPA-A and USAP approved paddles for competition play, it’s important to check regulations to ensure your paddle will be allowed.

• USAP Only: Spartus P1
• USAP + UPA-A Approved: Selkirk Boomstik & LUXX 2, Six Zero Coral, Black Opal, Ruby Pro
• UPA-A Only: 11Six24 Power 2 Series, Honolulu Crystal Blue Endurance Series

Final Thoughts

Durable grit isn’t just a surface upgrade—it’s part of a broader shift toward longer-lasting performance across the entire paddle.

Foam cores extended the life of the structure.
Durable textures are extending the life of spin.

And together, they’re moving the sport away from short-term peak performance towards fairness, value, and sustainability. 

Portable technology from Go No-Go Enterprises introduces a new standard for fairness, safety, and real-time paddle compliance

Pickleball’s rapid growth has brought with it a new challenge: equipment consistency. While professional tours have relied on standardized paddle testing for years, the amateur game, where most players compete, has operated without the same safeguards.

The Go/No-Go (GNG) paddle testing machine, developed by Automated Design Corp. (ADC), is redefining how paddle compliance is enforced at every level of the sport. Originally built for professional competition, the system is now portable, fast, and accessible enough to be deployed at local tournaments, clubs, and events nationwide.

From Pro Tours to Local Tournaments

The GNG machine is currently used across the highest levels of the sport, including UPA-A sanctioned events and major professional tours, where consistent equipment standards are critical to competitive integrity. Now, that same standard is moving downstream.

Weighing just 14 pounds and delivering results in under a minute, the device allows tournament directors and clubs to test paddles on-site with a simple pass/fail output. What was once limited to controlled lab environments is now available courtside.

A Growing Problem in the Amateur Game

At the amateur level, enforcement has lagged behind innovation.

Core-crushed paddles, heavily broken-in surfaces, and out-of-spec builds have quietly become part of the competitive landscape, often without clear detection methods. The result is an uneven playing field where equipment can create a measurable advantage, and in some cases, a dangerous one.

As paddle power increases, so does ball speed. Without enforcement, players may unknowingly compete against paddles that exceed safe performance thresholds.

The GNG machine addresses that gap directly—giving tournament directors an objective, repeatable way to ensure compliance before matches begin.

Built for Speed—and Scale

Beyond tournaments, one of the most notable adopters of the technology has been paddle manufacturers themselves.

Using the GNG system, brands can now test prototypes in seconds rather than waiting weeks for lab-based validation. That speed is changing product development cycles, allowing for faster iteration and tighter alignment with performance standards.

The system operates on a $299/month rental model through Go No-Go Enterprises, making it accessible not only to pro tours, but also to clubs, tournament organizers, and even larger facilities looking to standardize play across events.

How It Works (And Why It Matters)

The GNG machine performs a deflection test, compressing the paddle by a fixed distance (1/16th of an inch) and measuring the force required to achieve that compression.

That number serves as a proxy for paddle power.

It’s important to note: deflection is not a perfect representation of on-court performance, but it is an extremely effective gatekeeper.

Much like a Starrett surface roughness meter limits excessive spin, deflection testing identifies paddles that fall outside normal performance ranges—particularly those that have been altered, over-broken-in, or manufactured beyond intended specifications.

The Bigger Picture

Amateur players invest heavily—time, travel, and hundreds of dollars in entry fees—to compete. The expectation is that outcomes are decided by skill, not by equipment that slips through the cracks.

As paddle technology continues to evolve—through foam cores, advanced materials, and increasingly durable spin surfaces—the need for reliable, accessible testing will only grow. The introduction of portable, real-time compliance tools like the Go/No-Go machine marks a turning point.

What’s Coming Next?

With PPL acting as a primary testing body for UPA-A certification, there’s an added layer of precision on the horizon.

Because lab-based CoR (Coefficient of Restitution) data exists for individual paddle models, there is potential for model-specific deflection thresholds in the future:

• If Paddle A is certified at peak performance with a deflection of 42 lbs, it remains legal at or above that number

• If Paddle B peaks at 38 lbs, exceeding that—even if still below a general limit—would indicate it is out of spec

This approach moves the industry closer to something more nuanced than a single universal limit: a paddle-by-paddle standard tied directly to real performance data.

If you’re interested in purchasing or learning more about the GNG Machine, visit usapaddletesting.com or contact Matthew Ricci, GNG Head of Business Development at Matt@USAPaddleTesting.com.

One of the most well-known and well-respected pickleball paddle reviewers, John Kew Pickleball is pushing spin testing forward in his own garage moving away from guesswork and toward data that actually lines up with what performance on court.

Until recently, how much a paddle can spin the ball hasn’t been quantified beyond how “gritty” the paddle face is. Everyone talks about it, and everyone knows it matters, but actually quantifying it in a meaningful way has always been a challenge.

Thanks to paddle testing pioneers like John Kew, that’s starting to change. His approach isn’t just a ball cannon and a camera, it’s specifically targeting the best testing parameters that correlate to on court performance and translating all of that for the average player. This publicly available data is leading to a market shift in how spin is understood. Less reliance on perceived dip and how easy it is for your paddle to file your nails, and more focus on what’s actually happening at the moment of contact.

How We Got Here

The first attempts at measuring spin were simple: look at surface roughness.

Rougher face = more spin.
Smoother face = less spin.

That worked to a point and is still a good gatekeeper for extremely gritty paddles, but it doesn’t hold up when accounting for variables outside of surface roughness that also impact spin potential. Two paddles could have a similar surface feel and still behave very differently when the ball actually hits the face.

Manual RPM testing came next from early paddle reviewers like Pickleball Studio, Pickleball Effect, and John Kew Pickleball. and it was a big step forward for the players in determining which paddles actually did what they said they did when it came to spin. Using serves or drives with radar guns or high-speed cameras gave us real numbers—but not fully reliable ones that could be used to confidently rank paddles’ performance against one another.

As far as the scientific method goes, this approach was an effective general tool at comparing paddles’ spin performance, but there were just too many variables to get an accurate representation of the data.

John Kew’s Approach

Kew’s biggest change is straightforward; he removes the player from the equation.

His controlled setup includes:

• A ball cannon delivering consistent shots

• A paddle fixed at roughly a 30° angle

• A high-speed camera measuring spin

• Multiple shots per paddle, with outliers removed

Precise, simple (though not easy, or cheap), and repeatable.

He hasn’t stopped there, he’s continuing to refine the process. John is testing different inbound speeds, comparing cannon results to real swings, and using regression analysis to see what actually reflects on-court performance.

One of the more interesting early findings:

Lower inbound speeds (around 40 mph) may correlate more closely to real play—but the methodology is still evolving

That’s important as this isn’t a finished system: It’s actually being built in real time.

Relation to UPA-A

There’s overlap between Kew’s testing and what UPA-A is working toward.

Both rely on:

• Controlled impacts

• Fixed paddle positioning

• Measured spin output

But the intent is different.

UPA-A is focused on limits and certification while Kew is focused on performance and comparison.

He isn’t locked into a single test condition, and he’s constantly checking results against real play. That flexibility makes the data more useful—even if it’s still evolving.

What the Early Results Are Showing

Even at this stage, the data is already separating paddles in a meaningful way.

The biggest theme: durability.

Some of the newer “durable grit” paddles—like the 11Six24 Vapor Power 2 and Honolulu J2CR with Blue Crystal Grit—are showing almost no measurable spin loss under testing.

Traditional raw carbon fiber paddles are still showing:

• ~300–400 RPM loss

• ~15–20% spin reduction

That gap isn’t theoretical anymore, it’s showing up consistently, and it reinforces something players have felt for a while:

Some paddles don’t just play differently—they age differently, and now regular players can ask not just “how much spin does it have”, but “how long does that spin performance last”.

What’s Actually Driving Spin (And Why It Matters)

One of the more important insights from Kew’s work is that spin isn’t just about “grit”—it’s about how the ball interacts with the face. 

The difference shows up clearly in high-speed footage:

• High-spin paddles: the ball barely slides on contact (often less than an inch)

• Lower-spin paddles: the ball can slide 2–4 inches across the face before releasing

That slippage differential significantly impacts total RPM and launch angle.

More grip → less slippage → more “arc” and spin
More slippage → less spin → flatter ball

Kew’s modeling showed that even a small difference in launch angle—around 6°—can translate to 20+ inches of additional net clearance on a baseline shot. It also explains why “launch angle” has become such a common talking point—and what’s actually driving it.

Where This Is Going

Kew is still refining speeds, angles, and how to best align controlled testing with real-world play. But even now it’s doing something the industry hasn’t really had before. 

It’s giving players a way to compare paddles that isn’t based purely on feel or first impressions but real science led by players, for players. 

It’s worth recognizing the work John is doing here. This kind of testing doesn’t just add data—it pushes the entire conversation forward. The more we understand how paddles actually perform over time, the better decisions players can make.

If you want to explore the data yourself, you can dig into his full paddle database and see how different models stack up. And if you’re not already following his work, his channel, John Kew Pickleball, is one of the best places to stay up to date as this side of the game continues to evolve.