JOOLA still runs the show. More than half the players on this list swing a JOOLA paddle, and Ben Johns’ Perseus Pro IV remains the single most-used model in professional pickleball. But 2026 has shaken things up in ways nobody predicted.
Chris Haworth took over the men’s singles #1 spot and he’s playing a Luzz — a brand most people hadn’t heard of two years ago. Anna Leigh Waters left Paddletek for Franklin. Hunter Johnson signed with a startup co-founded by Tfue. And Federico Staksrud’s five-month detour to Adidas ended with him right back at JOOLA, now debuting his first signature paddle.
What follows is every paddle the top-ranked men’s and women’s singles players are actually competing with right now, ranked from #1 down, with links to the player’s profile on our site (where available), the manufacturer page, and Amazon if the paddle is sold there. Use the buttons at the bottom of each section to dig deeper.
Men
Christopher Haworth
World #1 · Men’s Singles · USA
Haworth went from Babolat’s first big pickleball signing to Luzz Pickleball, a newer brand that’s been turning heads. He plays the Luzz Pro Blade 2 in 14mm — a UPA-A approved paddle built with an MPP foam core and T700 carbon fiber face. It’s designed to absorb his massive swing speed without sending balls long, which is exactly the problem aggressive baseliners run into with high-powered paddles. Haworth won PPA Masters gold with it shortly after switching.
Player Profile: Christopher Haworth
Paddle Review: Luzz Pro Blade 2
Federico Staksrud
World #2 · Men’s Singles · Argentina
Staksrud has had one of the wildest paddle journeys in the sport. He left JOOLA for Adidas at the start of 2025, co-designed a signature paddle, then parted ways after roughly five months when the performance wasn’t there. Now he’s back with JOOLA and debuting the Kosmos Pro V in 16mm — a new hybrid shape that blends elements of the Perseus and Scorpeus lines. It’s his first signature paddle in the JOOLA lineup, built around his control-heavy, strategic singles game.
Player Profile: Federico Staksrud
Paddle Review : JOOLA Kosmos Pro V
Hunter Johnson
World #3 · Men’s Singles · USA
Johnson made a bold move by signing with HIT Pickleball, a brand co-founded by content creator Tfue and coach Anandan. He plays the HIT Hand Cannon, which features a 3D-printed carbon fiber handle designed to eliminate the durability issues pros typically face with conventional grips. He tested the prototype at a PPA event and went full-time with it almost immediately — which tells you how quickly he trusted it. The paddle is currently only available direct from HIT.
Player Profile: Hunter Johnson
Paddle Review: HIT Hand Cannon
Christian Alshon
World #4 · Men’s Singles · USA
At 25, Alshon is known for trick shots, tweeners, and an aggressive baseline game that’s hard to prepare for. He plays the Paddletek Bantam TKO-CX in 12.7mm — a raw T700 carbon fiber paddle he helped design. The extended 5.75-inch handle suits his two-handed backhand and gives him extra reach on both sides. If you’ve watched him play, you know he uses every inch of it.
Player Profile: Christian Alshon
Paddle Review: Paddletek Bantam TKO-CX
Connor Garnett
World #5 · Men’s Singles · USA
One of the most decorated players in the game with over 20 career medals, Garnett joined Team Paddletek after leaving ProXR. He plays the Paddletek Reserve Honeyfoam, which the company describes as Gen 4 technology — forgiving, balanced, and built for players who need soft hands and pop at the same time. Garnett’s background includes D1 tennis at Santa Clara and time as a hitting partner for Novak Djokovic.
Player Profile: Connor Garnett
Paddle Review: Paddletek Reserve Honeyfoam
Roscoe Bellamy
World #6 · Men’s Singles · USA
Former UCLA tennis pro who only switched to pickleball in early 2023 and has climbed the standings fast. He plays the ProXR Signature Jolt in 13mm, featuring a Toray T700 raw carbon face with a Shock Arrestor foam edge guard for vibration dampening and spin. Bellamy won his first PPA gold medal with this exact paddle — which says more about it than any spec sheet could.
Player Profile: Roscoe Bellamy
Paddle Review: ProXR Signature Jolt
John Lucian Goins
World #7 · Men’s Singles · USA
At 17, Goins is arguably the most exciting story in professional pickleball. He burst onto the scene in 2024, has already beaten Ben Johns, and signed with Team JOOLA in January 2025. He plays the JOOLA Collin Johns Scorpeus Pro IV in 16mm — a wider-face paddle designed for control-heavy players who need precision and a forgiving sweet spot. Watching a teenager compete at this level with that kind of composure is genuinely something else.
Player Profile: John Lucian Goins
Paddle Review: JOOLA Scorpeus Pro IV
Gabriel Joseph
World #8 · Men’s Singles · USA
Joseph signed with Six Zero, a brand known for precise engineering and carbon-heavy construction. He plays the Six Zero Double Black Diamond, and Six Zero describes him as one of the most dynamic players on the men’s side. We’ve reviewed this paddle on our site if you want a closer look at the specs.
Player Profile: Gabriel Joseph
Paddle Review: Six Zero Double Black Diamond
Jack Sock
World #9 · Men’s Singles · USA
Yes, that Jack Sock — four-time Grand Slam doubles champion and 2016 Olympic gold medalist. He’s now fully committed to professional pickleball with Selkirk and plays the LABS Boomstik, his signature paddle featuring Selkirk’s InfiniGrit surface and MOI Tuning System that pushes weight to the perimeter for a larger sweet spot. His tennis power game translates directly, and the Boomstik is built to match it.
Player Profile: Jack Sock
Paddle: Review Selkirk Boomstik
Jaume Martinez Vich
World #12 · Men’s Singles · Spain
The Spanish pro has been the face of Six Zero for years and plays the Black Diamond Power JMV Pro — his own signature paddle. It’s a 16mm edgeless design using unidirectional carbon for maximum pop across the face, with an interwoven surface layer for spin. This is one of the few signature paddles on tour that was genuinely built around a specific player’s game rather than just putting a name on an existing model.
Player Profile: Jaume Martinez Vich
Paddle Review: Six Zero Black Diamond Power
Ben Johns
World #13 · Men’s Singles · USA
Johns holds a lifetime deal with JOOLA and is still the consensus best overall player in the sport — he’s #1 in doubles and mixed, but has dropped in the singles rankings as the field has caught up. He currently plays the JOOLA Perseus Pro IV, though he was spotted debuting the new Pro V at the Cape Coral Open. The Perseus Pro IV remains the most-used paddle model in professional pickleball, and Johns’ fingerprints are all over its design.
Player Profile: Ben Johns
Paddle Review: JOOLA Perseus Pro IV
Women
Anna Leigh Waters
World #1 · Women’s Singles · USA
Waters made the biggest paddle news of 2026 by signing a long-term deal with Franklin Pickleball after years with Paddletek. Her new signature paddle is the Franklin C45 Aurelius, available in 12.7mm, 14mm, and 16mm thicknesses. The name is Latin for “golden.” It features a PowerFlex polymer core with a T700 raw carbon fiber face and Franklin’s double thermoformed unibody frame. It’s generating serious buzz across the tour and is currently only sold through Franklin directly.
Player Profile: Anna Leigh Waters
Paddle Review: Franklin C45 Aurelius
Kate Fahey
World #2 · Women’s Singles · USA
One of the most consistent performers on the women’s tour, Fahey ended her JOOLA partnership and signed with ProXR. She’s currently competing while her signature paddle gets finalized — which means you might be buying her first signature model in a matter of months. Keep an eye on ProXR’s lineup.
Player Profile: Kate Fahey
Paddle Review: ProXR Signature Jolt
Kaitlyn Christian
World #3 · Women’s Singles · USA
Christian surprised a lot of people by moving from Proton to Luzz Pickleball — and then immediately won her first PPA Women’s Singles title using the Luzz Pro2. That kind of instant performance with a brand-new paddle from a newer company is hard to ignore. She’s always played with thinner paddles to maximize quick hands at the kitchen line, and the Pro2 clearly fits that approach.
Player Profile: Kaitlyn Christian
Paddle Review: Luzz Pro2
Brooke Buckner
World #4 · Women’s Singles · USA
Buckner became the inaugural athlete of the Agassi x JOOLA line in 2025. She plays the JOOLA Andre Agassi Pro in 14mm — a paddle developed in collaboration with Andre Agassi and released at the Tucson Open. It’s a thinner, faster-feeling JOOLA paddle designed for quick response at the kitchen line. Her results with it have been consistent and hard to argue with.
Player Profile: Brooke Buckner
Paddle Review: JOOLA Andre Agassi Pro
Lea Jansen
World #5 · Women’s Singles · USA
A Type 1 diabetic who competes at the highest level, Jansen is a Team JOOLA athlete. She plays the JOOLA Anna Bright Scorpeus Pro IV in 14mm — the same family as the Perseus but optimized for control-oriented players who rely on placement and touch over raw power. Her game is built around consistency, and this paddle reflects that.
Player Profile: Lea Jansen
Paddle Review: JOOLA Scorpeus Pro IV
Catherine Parenteau
World #6 · Women’s Singles · Canada
Canadian pro who has been a top performer on the women’s tour for several years running. She’s on Team Selkirk with her contract extended into 2026, and she plays two different paddles depending on the format — the Selkirk Boomstik for doubles and the SLK Era for singles. That kind of deliberate paddle selection tells you she has an unusually precise understanding of what her game needs in each context.
Player Profile: Catherine Parenteau
Paddle Review: Selkirk Boomstik / SLK Era
Chao Yi Wang
World #7 · Women’s Singles · Taiwan
Wang is a Team JOOLA athlete competing out of Rockville, Maryland. She plays the JOOLA Ben Johns Perseus Pro IV in 16mm — the same paddle as Ben Johns and the most popular pro model in the sport. Her choice of 16mm is interesting since most women’s pros go thinner, suggesting her game leans toward progressive baseline power over quick-pop net exchanges.
Player Profile: Chao Yi Wang
Paddle Review: JOOLA Perseus Pro IV
Parris Todd
World #8 · Women’s Singles · USA
Todd switched from Selkirk to Franklin and now has her own signature paddle — the Franklin C45 Parris Todd in 13.25mm. It features a T700 raw carbon fiber face, a double thermoformed unibody frame for vibration reduction, and a 5.7-inch elongated handle she specifically requested for reach. She wanted something that balanced power, control, and maneuverability, and Franklin delivered.
Player Profile: Parris Todd
Paddle Review: Franklin C45 Parris Todd
Genie Bouchard
World #9 · Women’s Singles · Canada
Yes, that Genie Bouchard — the former Wimbledon finalist. She signed with Proton Sports in April 2025 and plays the Series Three Project Flamingo, the second most-used paddle model among MLP starters. It’s an elongated design built for control and spin, with a gritty surface that suits a player who spent her career developing topspin on a tennis court.
Player Profile: Genie Bouchard
Paddle Review: Proton Series Three
Jorja Johnson
World #15 · Women’s Singles · USA
Jorja Johnson turned pro at 15 with no tennis background and has been climbing ever since — APP Triple Crown at 17, MLP MVP in 2025 with the Dallas Flash. She previously played the Franklin C45 Raw Carbon in 14mm, but that partnership ended in January 2026. New paddle sponsor TBA.
Player Profile: Jorja Johnson
Paddle Review: Franklin C45 Raw Carbon
FAQs
Should I buy the same paddle a pro uses?
Not necessarily. Pro paddles can be expensive, and some are engineered for swing speeds and technique that intermediate players haven’t developed yet. That said, many pro paddles are genuinely excellent tools. Starting with a mid-range paddle and upgrading once you understand your playing style is usually the smarter approach.
What’s the most popular paddle among pros right now?
The JOOLA Perseus Pro IV is still the single most popular model in professional pickleball, used by 10 MLP starters. Among brands, JOOLA sponsors more professionals than any other company across both the men’s and women’s tours combined.
Why did Anna Leigh Waters leave Paddletek?
Waters signed a reported long-term, high-value deal with Franklin Pickleball in early 2026. She co-designed her signature paddle — the Franklin C45 Aurelius — and the move was positioned as a major new chapter in her career. It was one of the biggest sponsorship transitions in the sport’s history.
What paddle does the current world number one men’s player use?
The JOOLA Perseus Pro IV is still the single most popular model in professional pickleball, used by 10 MLP starters. Among brands, JOOLA sponsors more professionals than any other company across both the men’s and women’s tours combined.
Is Kaitlyn Christian still playing with Proton?
No. She signed with Luzz Pickleball in 2026 and quickly won her first PPA Women’s Singles title using the Luzz Pro2. It was one of the fastest impact stories of any sponsor change on the recent tour.
