Heartland Pickleball
Midwest pickleball, covered like a beat
Selkirk's Boomstik ST goes on sale Nov. 10 — USAP-listed in two shapes, price still unpublished.
The S1 wouldn't crack, but it went out of round in 15–20 points. The S2 is Selkirk's direct answer — injection-molded true-round, with the warranty extended to cover going out of round. Our editor was one of the first at his club to play it.
The S1 wouldn't crack, but it went out of round in 15–20 points. The S2 is Selkirk's direct answer — injection-molded true-round, with the warranty extended to cover going out of round. Our editor was one of the first at his club to play it: eight games outdoors, and the early report on pace, roundness, spin, and visibility.
Fourteen months after the $333 Boomstik reset the power market, its successor has a date, two shapes, and a USAP pass — and no published price or spec sheet. We separated what's confirmed from what's merely being said.
The region's big clubs all want a monthly commitment — only some will tell you in public what it costs. We checked the published numbers at 13 major clubs and chains so the math is in one place.
What's already open, what's under construction, and what's still on paper across our ten states — plus the closings and cancellations, labeled exactly as the sources support them.
Every league night runs on it: one team can't miss, the other can't buy a point. Forty years of research, pickleball's own scoring math, and what a 0–2 hole actually costs.
The kitchen volley, the wrong score, the drop serve, the line call — every league-night argument has a written answer in the 2026 USA Pickleball rulebook. The rulings, the rule numbers, and what changed this year.
Five balls are fighting for your club's basket — and the tours have already picked sides. Specs, the one independent lab, and our own courts on the LT Pro 48, the HC-40, the X-40, and Selkirk's Pro S1 and new Pro S2.
We counted every court in our verified directory: 1,022 courts at 82 facilities across 10 states. Ohio alone holds 281 — more than Indiana and Illinois combined — and 83% of facilities can host play in January.
Since July 2025, DUPR grades every match against an expected score — win 11–8 when you were supposed to win 11–3 and your rating can fall. How the new algorithm works, and why the reviews are split.
Bangers win points. Dinkers win matches. The soft game — grip pressure, shoulder swing, patience at the kitchen line — broken down the way USA Pickleball teaches it.
First frost ends the park-court era for the year. How the Heartland moves inside — league nights, ladder play, and the etiquette of the wait-list bench.
Every Monday morning: the weekend's results, registration deadlines before they sneak up on you, and one drill worth your Tuesday. Free, Midwest-only, no noise.
Six balls you can buy today are fighting for your club's courts — and the tours have already picked sides. Here's what the specs, the one independent lab, and our own courts actually say.
Updated November 1, 2026: Selkirk's Pro S2 is out — and we've played it. The S2 takes the fifth column in the comparison below, and the Editor's View now includes our first eight outdoor games on it. The full first-play story is its own piece: Selkirk's Pro S2 Is Out — and It Answers the S1's Biggest Complaint.
Above: the four at the center of the argument — the LT Pro 48, the HC-40, the X-44 and the Pro S2 — with the lab numbers and our verdicts on one card. The X-40 and the Pro S1 stay in the table and the Editor's View below. (Heartland graphic)
Spend ten minutes at any club in the Midwest right now and you'll hear it: the ball argument. It used to be background noise. Then the tours turned it into a split — the PPA Tour and Major League Pickleball play the Life Time LT Pro 48, DUPR-sanctioned events switched to the JOOLA HC-40 on September 1, and the US Open and APP Tour still run the Franklin X-40. The ball in the basket depends on which logo is on the event.
So which one belongs in your basket? We lined up the six balls you can actually buy today — the LT Pro 48, the HC-40, the X-44, Selkirk's Pro S1 and new Pro S2, and the X-40 — on specs, price, the only independent lab work we could find, and something the spec sheets can't give you: our own courts.
| LT Pro 48 | JOOLA HC-40 | Franklin X-44 | Selkirk Pro S1 | Selkirk Pro S2 | Franklin X-40 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Holes | 48, smaller, chamfered edges | 40, equidistant pattern | 44, precision-beveled | 38, patented pattern | 38, patented geodesic — three hole sizes (7.5 / 6.5 / 4 mm) | 40, machine-drilled |
| Build | Injection-molded, two-piece | Seamless one-piece blend | Two-piece injection-molded | Seamless rotomolded | Injection-molded, true-round — TPE, textured surface | Seamless, rotationally molded |
| Warranty | — | — | — | 1-year No-Crack | 1-year No-Crack + out-of-round | — |
| Official role | PPA Tour + MLP | DUPR-sanctioned events | — | None | APP Asia Tour | US Open + APP Tour |
| Price / ball | ~$4.33 | $2.00–$3.32 | From $14.99 | $2.50–$3.75 | $5.00 (3-pack) · $3.33 (12-pack) | $1.80–$2.92 |
The LT Pro 48 is the pro-tour ball: 26 grams, neon green only, and the priciest ball in the group. Its whole design brief is the truest, most consistent bounce. The HC-40 is JOOLA's league answer — USAP approved, the designated DUPR-events ball, and the value play of the six. The X-44 is Franklin's new entry: 44 precision-beveled holes, a two-piece injection-molded build, and a starting price of $14.99 at franklinsports.com — and Heartland has not played it yet. The Pro S1 is the durability pitch, and the only ball here carrying a warranty — one year, no cracks. The Pro S2 is that pitch, rebuilt: injection-molded instead of rotomolded, positioned harder and faster than the S1, and carrying the group's strongest warranty — one year against cracking and going out of round. The X-40 is the incumbent most clubs already own by the case; it's the control group for this entire debate, literally.
The S2's specs are published now — construction, hole pattern, and warranty terms, all in the table above — so it gets its column, as promised when this piece first ran. It had already passed independent deformation testing alongside the LT before it shipped; our own play notes are in the Editor's View below, and the full first play is here.
John Kew's cannon testing (KewCast) is the closest thing this debate has to a neutral referee. His fresh-ball measurements put the LT Pro 48 roughly 20% more powerful than the X-40 baseline. That is not a rounding error — the LT is a genuinely hotter ball, and it isn't close.
His second finding matters more to clubs: the hot balls fade about 18% over their first 100 hard impacts, with most of the change in the first 50. In plain terms, the LT you crack open on Monday is not the LT you're playing on Friday. Half the “this ball died already” complaints in pickleball are really just break-in.
His high-speed deformation filming adds one more data point: slammed at 70 MPH into a cinder block, the LT comes off still round — until recently the only widely adopted ball he'd tested that recovered its shape that way. Franklin's upcoming X-44 and Selkirk's Pro S2 did it too. And the HC-40? No comparable published lab run — but Pickleball.com, covering PPA Tour Asia's ball switch, notes it plays noticeably slower than the LT, which matches its softer, durability-first pitch.
Buy the HC-40 at JOOLA — $9.95 / 3-pack at joola.com — in stock at our November 1, 2026 check.
Gear Wire doesn't do hands-on verdicts unless we've actually played the thing. We've played all four of these, across league nights and open play. This part is ours.
The LT Pro 48 is hot. Genuinely hot, especially right out of the box. It settles a bit after a good long warmup or about half a game. But the major plus isn't the speed — it's the consistency and durability. It does not lose its shape, and the tenth game played with it is the same as the second. The only real challenge is scarcity: they can be hard to get, and if you bring them to open play, they tend to grow legs.
Buy the LT Pro 48 at Pickleball Central — In stock at Pickleball Central at our November 1, 2026 check.
The Pro S1 keeps its promise — mostly. It will not crack; Selkirk's warranty is real. But in our play it goes out of shape very quickly, and an out-of-round ball produces bad bounces. It's also definitely not as quick as the LT. A warranty against cracks doesn't help much when the ball is still in one piece and playing crooked.
Both are significant improvements over the X-40, which is very prone to cracking and is a far slower ball. The X-40's case was never performance — it's price, availability, and the fact that everybody already knows how it plays.
Buy the X-40 at Midwest Racquet Sports — $29.99 / 12-pack · $16.75 / 6-pack at Midwest Racquet Sports — checked November 1, 2026.
The Pro S2 is the S1's answer to itself (added Nov. 1, 2026). I was one of the first at our club to play it — eight games outdoors so far. On pace, it's very similar to a Lifetime — much hotter than the Franklin X-40 and the S1. On roundness, the S1's huge issue — after about 15 to 20 points you'd notice it going out of round, particularly with harder-hitting players — simply hasn't appeared: no issues at all in eight games. It's early, but based on the feel and what we've seen, it's definitely more consistent, with that harder feel as advertised. On spin, I get back a little of the spin the Lifetime takes away — not to the softer Franklin's degree, but there's more spin dynamic there, particularly on a slice or heavy topspin. And the color is a real difference: bright, bright yellow against the Lifetime's greenish tint — really good outside, at dusk, and under the lights; indoors, probably not a factor either way. Cracking is the one verdict eight games can't give. The full first play, in my own words, is here.
Franklin's X-44 is now available at franklinsports.com, starting at $14.99. It has 44 precision-beveled holes and a two-piece injection-molded construction, and Franklin says it was developed through 100+ iterations with feedback from Anna Leigh Waters. It is excluded from Franklin coupons and site promotions. Heartland has not played it yet — the editor's first-hand take will be added after he has played it.
Buy the X-44 at Franklin — From $14.99 at franklinsports.com — checked November 1, 2026; excluded from Franklin coupons and promotions.
Independent testers have put these balls on machines. Their numbers, not ours:
Pickleball Effect (Braydon Unsicker), published October 28, 2026 — measured power, pop, bounce and spin on broken-in balls: the Selkirk Pro S2 and LT Pro 48 tied on power (59.70 mph), the S2 led on pop (39.60 mph), and the Franklin X-40 trailed on every measure (57.67 mph power, 37.10 mph pop, 20.93 in bounce). The S2's bounce barely changed after break-in (a 0.06 in drop, vs 0.37 in for the LT and 1.15 in for the X-44). Spin was a wash — 2,089 to 2,126 RPM across all four balls — and the tester himself says he wouldn't choose among these balls on spin. His X-44 sample developed microcracks after about 3.5 sessions (roughly 7 hours).
John Kew's ball testing — a cannon test (500 hits at 50 mph) found the LT Pro 48 the fastest ball and never cracked; the X-40 never cracked either, it just slowed down gradually. His lab COR measures put the X-44 and LT Pro 48 within about 2% of each other out of the box, both roughly 20% more powerful than the X-40.
Pickleball Science's stiffness test — the X-40 softened faster than the Onix Dura Fast 40 but lasted about as long before cracking: roughly 30 games. (The cannon and stiffness results above are as summarized by Pickleball Union.)
Where the machines agree with our play: the S2's pace and pop, the LT's consistency, the X-40's slower, durable profile. Where they don't settle it: spin (a wash on the instruments), the Pro S1's roundness (no controlled test exists — only Selkirk's warranty and player reports), and the HC-40 (no independent measured test yet). We'll keep playing them.
And one thing you'll notice missing from this entire piece: an “indoor ball” recommendation. That's deliberate. Practically nobody plays a dedicated indoor ball — the same hardcourt balls in this comparison are what's used on indoor hardcourt surfaces all winter. The only exception is gym floors and other non-hardcourt surfaces, where softer gym balls still exist. Any buying guide that sorts these four by roof isn't describing the game you play.
Method note: Specs and prices are from the manufacturers and named retailers, checked October 11, 2026, and updated November 1, 2026 for the Selkirk Pro S2; lab figures are from John Kew / KewCast testing, small samples, cited as reported. The Editor's View is Heartland's own play experience, labeled as such — including eight outdoor games on the Pro S2. Heartland does not sell these balls and received no products or payment for this piece. This is an original Heartland work, synthesized from multiple sources — facts are not owned; the writing is ours. Sources: LT Shop and Pickleball Central (LT Pro 48); JOOLA HC-40 product page and the JOOLA/DUPR announcement via PR Newswire; Selkirk Sport and Pickleball Central (Pro S1); Selkirk Sport — Pro S2 product page (construction, warranty, pack prices, checked Nov. 1, 2026); Franklin X-40 listings at Dick's Sporting Goods and Pickleball Central, and Franklin Stories (APP Tour); KewCast Ep. 123 and John Kew's deformation testing; Pickleball.com (HC-40 pace).
The Heartland court directory — clubs, indoor facilities, and park courts where a visiting player can actually get a game. Every facility has its own page: open any card to get its address, directions, source, and what's coming up there. Filter by state, and always check the club's own schedule before you drive: open-play hours move with league seasons.
82 facilities across 10 states — every entry sourced, with its street address, court counts exactly as listed by its source, and a real photo of the facility wherever one could be verified. “Not stated” means the source didn’t publish a count — we don’t guess.
This directory is the dataset behind our annual count of the region — 1,022 courts in all. And for what is opening, closing, and still on paper this winter:
Every facility plotted from its published street address. Tap a pin for the address, court count, and directions — the pins follow the state and indoor/outdoor filters and the search above.
Every Heartland club runs on the same weekly heartbeat. Learn the rhythm once and you can drop into a game in any town in the region.
The drive-worthy weekends across the Heartland from mid-November through the end of the year — seven events in all: two APP Moneyball stops with guaranteed prize money, a fifth-annual regional in Noblesville, two Pickle Lodge weekends in West Chester including the ThanksPickle parent/child tournament and the year-end WinterMAX, and winter round robins indoors. Details verified against organizer listings on November 1, 2026; entry fees and deadlines change, so confirm on the official listing before you book a hotel.
Most Heartland events bracket by DUPR rating — divisions sorted by skill first, then age. If you don't have a rating yet, play one rated league night or round robin before you enter, so you're bracketed on evidence instead of a guess. The Toolbox has the full explainer.
The reference shelf: ratings, scoring, the shots that matter, and the unwritten rules that make you welcome back at any court in the region.
Pick the level that honestly sounds like you. We'll translate it into the bracket language tournament directors actually use.
The division guide above assumes you know your rating. If you don't have a DUPR yet, answer ten honest questions about your game — strokes, consistency, and, most of all, your results against players who do have ratings — and we'll estimate the range you're probably playing in.
How it works: one question at a time, four answers each, about two minutes. Be honest rather than flattering — the estimate is only useful if it's true, and the last question (your results against rated players) counts double, because results calibrate better than self-described strokes.
A pickleball court is 20 × 44 feet — badminton-sized — split by a net that stands 36 inches at the posts and 34 in the middle. Tap a zone to see what it decides.
The five calls that end league-night rallies in an argument — each one settled by the 2026 USA Pickleball Official Rulebook, with the rule number attached:
DUPR is the rating most Heartland tournaments and rated leagues report to. The plain-English version:
Traditional side-out scoring: only the serving team can score, and in doubles both partners serve before the ball changes hands — except the very first turn of the game. The call is three numbers:
Games usually run to 11, win by 2. Some leagues and pro team formats use rally scoring (every rally scores, games to 21) — ask at check-in which one you're playing before the first serve, not after the first dispute.
The soft shot that lands in the kitchen and can't be attacked. It's the most important shot in the sport, and "less is more" is the whole secret:
What seasoned Heartland players actually carry — tuned for a region where a October morning can start at 45° and finish at 75°.
Played here. Checked again.
Heartland tracks gear through real Midwest play and scheduled follow-ups — no rankings, no sponsored placements, no verdict on anything we haven’t played.
Pick a level and Gear Wire surfaces the files and stories that speak to your game — dimming the rest, not deleting them. Level notes use only judgments the Ball Debate and the Editor’s View have already published; where no level-specific content exists, the general file applies.
One living file per covered product: the evidence badge says how we know, the price carries its check date, and the finding is the latest word from published Heartland coverage. No star ratings, no rankings, no “best” labels.
Both packs were sold out at selkirk.com when checked Nov. 1.
Buy at Selkirk — $14.99 / 3-pack · $39.99 / 12-pack at selkirk.com — both sold out at our November 1 check; this page is where restocks land.
Latest finding: the editor has played eight outdoor games on it — no roundness issues, where the S1 went out of round in 15–20 points — and the pace sits near the LT Pro 48.
Buy the LT Pro 48 at Pickleball Central — In stock at Pickleball Central at our November 1, 2026 check.
Latest finding: hot out of the box, then settles — and it holds its shape. The catch is supply: scarce outside Life Time channels.
Buy the X-44 at Franklin — From $14.99 at franklinsports.com — checked November 1, 2026; excluded from Franklin coupons and promotions.
Status: now available at franklinsports.com. The editor has a set on order — first play will be added to this file when it happens. No date promised, and no verdict until it’s played.
Buy the HC-40 at JOOLA — $9.95 / 3-pack at joola.com — in stock at our November 1, 2026 check.
Status: the designated ball for DUPR-sanctioned events since September 1, 2026. Recorded ≠ sanctioned — a DUPR-recorded league night is not automatically a DUPR-sanctioned event, so check the event’s own ball rule. We have checked this ball; we have not played it, so there is no verdict here.
Buy the X-40 at Midwest Racquet Sports — $29.99 / 12-pack · $16.75 / 6-pack at Midwest Racquet Sports — checked November 1, 2026.
Latest finding: the slower, more forgiving ball in the group — and crack-prone over time. Its case was never performance: it’s price, availability, and that everybody already knows how it plays.
Buy the Boomstik at Selkirk — $333 at selkirk.com — sold out at our November 1, 2026 check; this page is where Selkirk sells the LABS line.
Latest finding: power unmatched, a sweet spot far more forgiving than the previous Selkirk, JOOLA, and CRBN TruFoam paddles the editor has played, and a learning curve to harness that power and get comfortable at the net. The editor’s current paddle, in league play now — the full first play is linked below. Its successor, the Boomstik ST, launches November 10.
Buy the Power FX at Midwest Racquet Sports — $179.95 at Midwest Racquet Sports — checked November 1, 2026.
Latest finding: first-play power rivals the Boomstik, spin is slightly better, and it plays a little softer — so control at the net is slightly better too. Initial impressions, logged Nov. 1, 2026; a continued-play recheck is on the board.
Status: price, specs, and core have not been published by Selkirk yet. Successor to the $333 LABS Project Boomstik — we’re watching for the launch, not reviewing a press release.
Scheduled checks, shown as upcoming. Nothing here is a result — when a check happens, the file above is what changes.
Five balls lined up on specs, the one independent lab in the debate, and the Editor’s View — the slower, forgiving X-40 against the hotter S2 and LT Pro 48. Start here if the question is which ball suits the game you play.
The first play: eight outdoor games. Pace very similar to the LT Pro 48, no roundness issues at all — and an honest note on what eight games can’t grade yet, like cracking.
JOOLA’s first full-foam-core paddle at $179.95, measured against the $333 Boomstik the editor plays now: power that rivals it, slightly better spin, and a slightly softer feel that helps at the net. Initial impressions, logged Nov. 1 — a continued-play recheck is on the board.
The $333 LABS Project paddle the editor plays now, in league play: power that is unmatched, a sweet spot far more forgiving than the previous Selkirk, JOOLA, and CRBN TruFoam paddles he has played — and a learning curve to harness that pop at the net. Editor’s View logged Nov. 1.
The $333 LABS Boomstik gets a successor. What’s confirmed is short and checkable — both shapes already sit on the USAP approved list — and everything else is labeled as what it is: not yet published.
“Approved” is no longer one universal label. The Facolos removal, the two paddles under investigation, and the current price wire — match your exact model and variant to your event’s standard before you enter.
“Approved” is no longer one universal label. Current retailer listings show paddles carrying USA Pickleball (USAP) approval, UPA-A approval, both, or only one of the two. The practical point is not that every paddle is suspect — it is that approval is model-specific and can change, so the governing body’s current list, not an old product page, is the final word for sanctioned play.
The 2026 XRZ2 line added black and white options for men and women in September 2026.
Manufacturer claims / terms — not a Heartland test: roomier toe box, lateral stability outriggers, 30-day performance guarantee, and six-month sole warranty, as described by SQAIRZ.
Maker specs — no Heartland test: Cordura upper, fit sleeve, protective toe cap, Qubit foam, and carbon-fiber shank. Maker lists the shoe at about 350 grams. No Heartland hands-on verdict — we have not tested it.
Standing rules: facts come from manufacturers, USA Pickleball, or named retailers, linked on the entry. Prices are the prices shown on the check date printed in each file — they can change. There is no hands-on verdict on anything we haven’t played.
Method note: Gear Wire is a news and reference section. Heartland does not sell the products listed, does not rank them, and did not receive products or payment for this coverage. Manufacturer performance language is identified as a claim, not a test finding. Verify price and approval on the source and the governing body’s current list before you buy or enter.
Five slots, every one earned. Sponsorship here is native to the content — never a wall of rented rectangles.
Heartland Pickleball is an independent newsroom and player's toolbox for the Midwest game — the region where pickleball isn't a coastal import but a Tuesday-night institution. We cover the tournaments worth driving to, keep the court directory honest, and publish the explainers we wish someone had handed us at our first open play. Heartland Pickleball launched at heartlandpb.com on November 1, 2026.
Coverage area:
Sponsorship here is deliberately restrained: a handful of partners, native to the content, never a wall of rented rectangles. Every partner passes one test — would a regular at open play recognize this as a genuine part of the local game? Regional clubs, paddle shops, and tournament organizers get first conversation.
One partner across the masthead, the tournament calendar, and The Kitchen Line email. The name players associate with the whole season.
Your club or brand attached to the winter calendar and registration-deadline coverage — the pages players check before every entry.
Present the ratings, scoring, and gear explainers — the reference pages new players bookmark and leagues send their rookies to.
Running a club, a tournament, or a shop in the Heartland and want the conversation? Write to us through The Kitchen Line signup on the front page and mention "partner" — we read everything.
