Josh
Founder & Editor, The Pickle Picker
I had no interest in racket sports as a kid. I only had eyes for soccer and basketball.
The only paddle sport I ever liked was table tennis, and I wasn't bad — I was junior high champion, thanks in large part to a spin serve that was absolutely illegal. Nobody called it. I have no regrets.
A soccer buddy twisted my arm to try pickleball. We played a lot of singles. Then I went to Fairmont Park, started playing doubles, and that was it. Hooked.
The paddle journey
I started with my buddy's paddle from a $40 set. Then I bought a Ben Johns Hyperion JOOLA, because of course I did. After a few months with that I switched to an elongated SLK Era Power and I've been playing with it for a year. Just changed the grip for the first time in a year, which was much needed. I pulled the original grip off because I didn't like the thicker feel, but everything I read says thicker is better for technique. So I might be talking myself back into it.
The body
I've had hip and lower back issues the entire time I've played. I've tried insoles, stretching, massage. All of it helps a little. The thing that actually works is doing a lot of squats every day with some stretching. My back feels better than it has in ages. Make of that what you will.
The backhand
I've been a member at Picklr since December. I hit with the ball machine a lot. When I started I didn't have a backhand at all. Now, after way too many hours with that machine, my backhand cross-court dink is one of my best shots. Which tells you everything about how this sport works: you get out what you put in, and the thing you're worst at becomes the thing you drill.
Why this site exists
When I was paddle shopping, I did what everyone does: I went down the research hole. And I was lost. Swing weight, dwell time, grit ratings, thermoforming. Every review threw twenty specs at me and I had no idea which ones actually mattered. Half of them contradicted each other. The other half were clearly just reading the brand's marketing page back to me.
So I built the thing I needed: someone to read all of it and tell me what the reviews actually agree on. Thousands of player reviews, coach breakdowns, gear-nerd deep dives. Boiled down to honest rankings, organized by price. No sponsored picks. No brand narratives.
I don't lab-test paddles. I synthesize what everyone else found, and I tell you which specs matter and which ones are noise. The scores are consensus, the takes are mine.
The method in one paragraph
Every ranking on this site is a consensus ranking. I collect player reviews, expert breakdowns, and community discussion from across the web, weight them by credibility and recency, and surface where reviewers agree. And where they don't. No test lab, no sponsored picks, no invented scores. The full protocol lives on thehow we rank page.
Disclosure
The Pickle Picker earns affiliate commissions when readers buy through links on the site. Commissions never affect rankings. Brands can't pay for placement, better scores, or buried competitors. More on the about page.
Contact
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Email: hello@thepicklepicker.com