The best bounce for your buck. Our 2020 paddle ball review.
Let's face it, not many of us shop around for paddle balls. On a good day, we play with whatever our partners bring. On a bad day, it's whatever the club pro is selling us. But let's say you get a chance to buy the ball of your choice. Here's our TPG Feature on the best one for you.
T-1st – Xenon Platform Tennis Balls
Xenon is a new entry into the ball market and their product has immediately made an impact. Let's get the ugly stuff out of the way first. The ball plays a little deader than it should, and can fly off the paddle a little funny, especially on spinny shots. However, it's easy to forgive their performance when you realize that these balls simply don't wear out. Our top testers played an intense two-setter in a steady rain, and the Xenon ball looked miles better than any other brand. Their performance in the dry is no less impressive. We were forced to redefine our durability ratings to accommodate the Xenon. For a ball that goes the distance, Xenon is the only choice.
Performance: A-
Dry weather durability: A+
Wet weather durability: A+
Price: $10.99/2-pack
T-1st – Viking Extra Duty
Viking has long been the gold standard for balls and their reputation is well deserved. Their balls fly consistently off the paddle and feel soft and forgiving, even when the temperature drops below zero. Their balls bite into the deck and spin well off the paddle. However, they do have an unfortunate tendency to lose their flocking if the word "water" is mentioned. They're the "#1 Selling Ball Since 1999", partly because they're the best performing ball on the market, but also because you'll need about 6 of them to get through a rainy match.
Performance: A+
Dry weather durability: B
Wet weather durability: C
Price: $16.99/3-pack
N.B. – Viking sells pink and orange versions of the Extra Duty, but these don't perform nearly as well as the yellow version.
2nd – Wilson EXD
Forever playing second fiddle in the minds of paddle players, Wilson has stepped up their game in a major way with their EXD ball. It's a big improvement over their original offering, and our testers reported the EXD feels much softer and better off the paddle. However, the ball doesn't warm up very well, and can feel a bit dead in colder weather. A (perhaps unintended) benefit of this is that the EXD is still playable even when the weather gets unseasonably warm. The ball wears much less in the wet than any other ball on the market, and doesn't fare too badly in the dry either.
Performance: A-
Dry weather durability: B
Wet weather durability: A-
Price: $11.99/2-pack
3rd – Master Platform Tennis Balls
As good as they are with paddles, Master seems to have slightly missed the mark with their balls. They aren't quite as nice to hit as the Viking or Wilson balls, and their flocking, while very resilient, doesn't lend itself to spin as much as the others. We noticed that the Master balls do seem to react rapidly to high or low temperatures. They lasted the longest in the dry of the balls that we tested, but our testers agreed they just didn't perform up to scratch.
Performance: B
Dry weather durability: A-
Wet weather durability: B+
Price: $10.99/2-pack
Author's Note – We intend to test balls from PT Pro and The Paddle Company when possible. However their balls were not readily in stock at the time of the test. When we get a chance to test these ball in the future, the rankings will be updated.