Kaitlyn Kerr, a prominent US pickleball player, has stressed the importance of a unified governing body in the sport. According to Kerr, currently, the lack of a centralised authority has led to several inconsistencies in rules, regulations, and equipment standards.
For example, in the United States, the sport is governed by multiple organisations, including USA Pickleball and the Professional Pickleball Association (PPA). This division has resulted in differing opinions on matters like scoring formats, paddle regulations, and tournament structures.
Kerr stressed the importance of a single governing body to establish clear guidelines and ensure fair play. "We need one governing body that is recognised by all the other countries as someone they can all look to for the rules and regulations," she told Pickleball Now in an exclusive chat.
"Until then, it's self-regulating," she added.
"One is saying okay to specific paddles, another is saying no to certain paddles, that same paddle. So that's a problem," she further added.
"But when it becomes an Olympic sport, everyone knows what set of guidelines to use. This is how big the court is. This is the type of scoring we play. These are the types of paddles we can use.
"Right now, as you see…, anybody can use any paddle. There is no testing. There are no guidelines. This can become a major controversy because paddles dramatically change a player's play," she explained.
The Paddle Debate: Standardization Needed
One of the most heated debates in pickleball currently involves paddles and their impact on gameplay. Kerr also shared her thoughts on the matter, which is one of the hottest topics in USA. Kerr stresses, "Even a 1% advantage is a massive advantage at the pro level." This gap in paddle technology creates disparities, as some governing bodies may permit a certain paddle while others do not.
"In the United States, this is the hottest topic. Because if anybody has a choice today, they are going to play with a YOLO paddle. They're going to play with the MOD or the 3S because it is substantially better. In the US, the margins at the pro level are so thin. The problem is that you can't have new governing bodies come in.
Clear guidelines are paramount as players, paddle companies, and governing bodies are left in a regulatory grey area.
"The paddle companies don't know what to produce. They have their production lined out. They can't just go to their facilities and say, you know, all of this backlog of paddles are now going to be illegal. The governing bodies need to give these paddle companies leeway. They need to say, in one year and a half, these are the guidelines. So they can sell all the inventory that they've built up.
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"The governing bodies are dealing with companies that are supporting the industry right now. Let's say a Joola, a Selkirk, a Franklin. All these companies are the biggest companies in the sport. They have a backlog of paddles that go out for a year plus.
"They can't just cut all production and inventory and say they are no longer eligible to participate in tournaments because no one will buy them. No one will understand. So, they have to give them time to start changing their processes and to know what they are able to manufacture and sell to the marketplace.
"So they need to start understanding it better. They didn't have good testing for the last year. They're just starting to get really, really good testing. I'm saying that there hasn't been enough good testing to understand deflection.
Building Consistency Through Testing
One challenge with paddle regulation lies in the testing methods themselves. Historically, testing has been limited, but Kerr reveals that improved protocols are being developed to assess paddle "hotness" (how fast a ball bounces off a paddle). Paddle performance also changes with wear, leading to a phenomenon called "delamination," where the core crushes, increasing power. "Testing not only needs to happen at the start of a match but throughout, as delamination affects performance," she adds.
"They need to understand. So when a ball hits a paddle, there is a difference between the ball coming off a paddle, you know, hot or not hot, essentially, like very quick or even quicker. The other thing that happens to paddles is their core crush.
"So when they core crush inside, they are what's called delaminated, and they become even hotter. So you not only need to have testing from the start of a match, but it is also like delaminates in a match. So, having testing that you can also travel with to these types of tournaments is going to be huge.
"So the two things that they need are better testing, which they're developing, and then a better set of guidelines for paddle companies to follow. Right now, it's the Wild West. People are just trying to make the best paddles for players," she concluded.
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