{"id":4482,"date":"2026-07-28T00:30:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-27T15:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pickle-times.com\/?post_type=news&p=4482"},"modified":"2026-10-12T14:01:33","modified_gmt":"2026-10-12T05:01:33","slug":"dupr-official-ball","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/pickle-times.com\/en\/news\/dupr-official-ball\/","title":{"rendered":"DUPR\u516c\u8a8d\u30a4\u30d9\u30f3\u30c8\u306e\u4f7f\u7528\u7403\u304cJOOLA\u306eHC-40\u306b\u4e00\u672c\u5316\u30019\u67081\u65e5\u304b\u3089\u9069\u7528"},"content":{"rendered":"

DUPR, the rating platform for pickleball, will standardize on JOOLA's HC-40 as the ball at its sanctioned events from September 1, 2026. It follows a multi-year agreement JOOLA announced on July 23, covering The Dink Minor League Pickleball (MiLP), the College World Championship, The Nationals and the DUPR College Pickleball Tour, as well as DUPR-sanctioned tournaments run by third parties. The move aligns, worldwide, not the rating formula but the physical conditions under which those numbers are produced. It also comes down to a decision in your own hands: whether to switch the ball you practice with before September.<\/p>\n\n

\"\u4e00\u3064\u306e\u516c\u5f0f\u7403\u304c\u8907\u6570\u306e\u516c\u8a8d\u5927\u4f1a\u3092\u3064\u306a\u3050\u4ed5\u7d44\u307f\u306e\u7de8\u96c6\u56f3\"<\/figure>\n\n

A multi-year deal fixes the ball at DUPR-sanctioned events<\/h2>\n

According to JOOLA's announcement, the HC-40 becomes the designated ball at every DUPR-sanctioned event from September 1. The scope runs from MiLP, the amateur team competition that feeds into MLP, through college and high school tournaments, to events run by third parties under DUPR sanctioning. The agreement is described as multi-year, and its length has not been disclosed.<\/p>\n

DUPR says it has more than two million registered users across 183 countries and will support 350 DUPR-sanctioned events this year. It expresses ability on a continuous scale from 2.000 to 8.000, and the number moves whenever a score is submitted, from club practice matches to international events. Putting every match on the same footing, wherever it is played, was DUPR's selling point from the start.<\/p>\n

JOOLA president and CEO Richard Lee said in the announcement that DUPR has built the standard for measuring ability, and that accuracy starts with the equipment on court. DUPR CEO Tito Machado explained that consistency is essential to fairness in the sport, and that consistency is what the partnership delivers. Taken at their word, this reads less as an equipment sponsorship than as a deal that sold something else:uniform measurement conditions<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n

What changes on court when the ball brand changes<\/h2>\n

Pickleballs differ clearly in flight depending on hole count, hardness and weight distribution. A harder ball bounces longer and sounds higher off the paddle, while a softer ball slows down sooner and keeps rallies going. The way a third-shot drop falls, the way a dink sits up, the sense of distance when judging a ball out - plenty of it feels different from the first day you switch brands. When the same player faces the same opponent, a different ball still creates swings in who wins. That is why the body that holds the ratings wants to specify the ball.<\/p>\n

HC-40\u306f\u76f4\u5f8474mm\u30fb\u91cd\u91cf26.2g\u30fb\u7a7440\u500b\u3067\u3001USA Pickleball\u306e\u627f\u8a8d\u3092\u53d7\u3051\u3066\u3044\u308b\u3002JOOLA\u306f\u7a74\u306e\u914d\u7f6e\u3092\u7b49\u9593\u9694\u306b\u7f6e\u304d\u76f4\u3057\u305f\u8a2d\u8a08\u3060\u3068\u3057\u3001\u98db\u884c\u306e\u5b89\u5b9a\u3068\u7d20\u76f4\u306a\u30d0\u30a6\u30f3\u30c9\u3092\u63b2\u3052\u3066\u3044\u308b\u3002\u7c73\u56fd\u306e\u30ec\u30d3\u30e5\u30fc\u30b5\u30a4\u30c8pickletip\u306f\u3001HC-40\u3092Dura\u3088\u308a\u67d4\u3089\u304b\u304fFranklin X-40\u306b\u8fd1\u3044\u30da\u30fc\u30b9\u306e\u4e2d\u901f\u7403\u3068\u8a55\u3057\u3001\u5f62\u72b6\u4fdd\u6301\u3068\u3072\u3073\u5272\u308c\u8010\u6027\u3092\u8a55\u4fa1\u3057\u3066\u3044\u308b\u3002\u30d7\u30ed\u306e\u6700\u4e0a\u4f4d\u304c\u597d\u3080\u786c\u7403\u3067\u306f\u306a\u304f\u3001\u30ea\u30fc\u30b0\u3084\u30af\u30e9\u30d6\u3067\u6570\u3092\u6253\u3064\u5c64\u306b\u5408\u308f\u305b\u305f\u6027\u683c\u3068\u3044\u3046\u4f4d\u7f6e\u3065\u3051\u306b\u306a\u308b\u3002<\/p>\n

Equipment standards being built into the foundations of the sport is not only a ball story. On the paddle side, a cap on spin takes effect in October, and manufacturers in Asia are scrambling to comply (A ceiling on spin: October's 2100 spin-rate limit shakes Asia's paddle factories<\/a>). This standardization of the ball sits on the same line.<\/p>\n\n

The official balls of the major tours are currently split three ways<\/h2>\n

There is no single official ball. Each body contracts with a different maker, and players switch balls from tournament to tournament. Here is what each organization has announced.<\/p>\n

Organization \/ tour<\/th>Official ball<\/th>Manufacturer<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
DUPR-sanctioned events (from September 1, 2026)<\/td>HC-40<\/td>JOOLA<\/td><\/tr>
PPA Tour \/ MLP<\/td>VPRO FLIGHT<\/td>Vulcan<\/td><\/tr>
The APP Tour<\/td>X-40<\/td>Franklin<\/td><\/tr>
USA Pickleball sanctioned tournaments and the US Open<\/td>X-40<\/td>Franklin<\/td><\/tr>
PPA Asia (from 2025)<\/td>HC-40<\/td>JOOLA<\/td><\/tr>
National Collegiate Pickleball Association (NCPA) tour<\/td>HC-40<\/td>JOOLA<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n

The point to read in the table is that DUPR alone specified a ball on the basis of ratings rather than of a promotion. What the PPA and the APP decide is the ball used in the matches they themselves run. DUPR's sanctioning network, by contrast, spans tournaments held by other bodies and by local organizers. The HC-40 does not sit inside a single promotion; it runs crosswise through events held by many different organizers. As territory for an equipment brand to claim, that is a shape the sport has not seen before.<\/p>\n\n

In Japan, the HC-40 has been rolling since spring<\/h2>\n

\u65e5\u672c\u306e\u8aad\u8005\u306b\u3068\u3063\u3066\u306f\u3001\u3053\u306e\u7403\u304c\u56fd\u5185\u3067\u307e\u3063\u305f\u304f\u306e\u521d\u7269\u3067\u306f\u306a\u3044\u3053\u3068\u304c\u91cd\u8981\u3060\u3002\u65e5\u672c\u8a9e\u30e1\u30c7\u30a3\u30a2\u300c\u30d4\u30c3\u30af\u30eb\u30dc\u30fc\u30eb\u30aa\u30f3\u30e9\u30a4\u30f3\u300d\u306f\u3001UTR Pickleball Japan Tour\u306e2026\u5e742\u670815\u65e5\u30fb3\u670822\u65e5\u30fb4\u670818\u65e5\u30fb5\u670816\u65e5\u306e\u5404\u5927\u4f1a\u3067\u3001HC-40\u304c\u4f7f\u7528\u7403\u3068\u3057\u3066\u6848\u5185\u3055\u308c\u305f\u3068\u4f1d\u3048\u3066\u3044\u308b\u3002\u540c\u30e1\u30c7\u30a3\u30a2\u306f2026\u5e747\u6708\u306b\u6771\u4eac\u3067\u958b\u304b\u308c\u305fPPA\u30a2\u30b8\u30a2\u306e\u5927\u4f1a\u3067\u3082HC-40\u304c\u4f7f\u308f\u308c\u308b\u3068\u3057\u3066\u304a\u308a\u3001\u3053\u308c\u306fJOOLA\u304c2025\u5e74\u304b\u3089PPA\u30a2\u30b8\u30a2\u306e\u516c\u5f0f\u7528\u5177\u30d1\u30fc\u30c8\u30ca\u30fc\u3068\u3057\u3066\u30dc\u30fc\u30eb\u30fb\u30cd\u30c3\u30c8\u30fb\u30d5\u30ed\u30a2\u3092\u4f9b\u7d66\u3057\u3066\u3044\u308b\u3068\u3044\u3046\u540c\u793e\u306e\u767a\u8868\u3068\u6574\u5408\u3059\u308b\u3002<\/p>\n

Competitive players in Japan, in other words, have already been hitting this ball at the main events from spring into summer. After the summer that brought the world's top tour to Tachikawa (The world's premier tour opens in Tachikawa \u2014 reading the event design of the Tokyo Open<\/a>), the same ball takes over DUPR-sanctioned events from September. In the United States this is news that the ball changes in September; in Japan the order was reversed, and a ball players had already picked up became the world standard. In a market where equipment supply and tournament operations are led from overseas, that reversal happens from time to time.<\/p>\n\n

What players and organizers need to settle before September<\/h2>\n
\"\u6307\u5b9a\u7403\u306e\u6253\u7403\u611f\u3068\u5728\u5eab\u3092\u78ba\u8a8d\u3059\u308b\u9078\u624b\u3068\u65bd\u8a2d\u30b9\u30bf\u30c3\u30d5\"<\/figure>\n\n

The call is simple for players. If you enter tournaments intending to leave a number on DUPR, it is worth moving your practice ball toward the HC-40. A medium-paced, softer ball feels frustrating at first to a body used to fast, hard balls. Drops float, dinks stay low, speed-ups do not quite finish the point - meeting that for the first time on match day is a waste. A pack of three costs 1,870 yen including tax at JOOLA's official Japanese store, about 620 yen a ball. For players who enter tournaments caring about tenths of a point on a 2.000 to 8.000 scale, that outlay is on the light side.<\/p>\n

It weighs more on organizers. Clubs and facilities running DUPR-sanctioned events will need to source the designated ball each time from September. At an event on 20 courts, neither wear nor volume is negligible, and stable supply and domestic stock feed straight into operating costs. At the same time, this gives Japanese organizers something to work with. Once the ball is the same everywhere, the explanation that our ball is different disappears when inviting overseas players. The argument that a win in Hanoi should weigh the same as a win in Los Angeles (A Win in Hanoi Now Counts the Same as One in LA \u2014 DUPR Lays a Global Standard in Vietnam<\/a>) gains another level of force once the physical conditions line up.<\/p>\n

There is one more point that matters for coaches and schools. Matching the ball used in lessons to the sanctioned ball narrows the gap students face when they enter a tournament. With tennis schools in Japan increasingly adding pickleball, which ball to stock for rentals is an unglamorous choice that pays off.<\/p>\n\n

The ripple through the equipment market, and who gets left behind<\/h2>\n

What JOOLA gained from this deal is not exposure but a route to repeat purchases. Balls are consumables; when they crack, you buy more. The ball used at sanctioned tournaments gets chosen for practice, and the ball chosen for practice leads to clubs buying it by the box. Unlike a paddle, which moves once every few years, balls turn over all year. Against 350 sanctioned events this year and two million registered users, a route into that is worth a good deal.<\/p>\n

Franklin and Vulcan are not the only ones facing a headwind. Unsanctioned, low-priced practice balls sold in Japan will also have their difference from the sanctioned ball made visible. It should not amount to a wholesale replacement, though. Indoor and outdoor balls with different hole counts and hardness exist side by side, and there is no need to stock sanctioned balls for grassroots events where no DUPR number is recorded. Municipal taster sessions and beginner clinics will go on choosing balls that are easy to handle. The dividing line is a single question: whether the event falls inside the sanctioning net.<\/p>\n

For Japanese manufacturers, this adds an item to the to-do list. On the paddle side, Asian brands have begun taking US approval, but getting a ball into the sanctioning network requires a contract with a governing body. Joining the supply side now takes relationship-building with tournament organizers as much as product performance.<\/p>\n\n

HC-40 specifications and where to buy it in Japan<\/h2>\n
Item<\/th>Details<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Application start<\/td>September 1, 2026<\/td><\/tr>
Events covered<\/td>All DUPR-sanctioned events (The Dink MiLP, the College World Championship, The Nationals, the DUPR College Pickleball Tour, college and high school tournaments, and DUPR-sanctioned events run by third parties)<\/td><\/tr>
Specification<\/td>74mm diameter \/ 26.2g \/ 40 holes<\/td><\/tr>
Certification<\/td>USA Pickleball approved ball<\/td><\/tr>
Contract type<\/td>Multi-year agreement (length not disclosed)<\/td><\/tr>
Availability in Japan<\/td>JOOLA's official Japanese online store (joola.co.jp) and pickleball specialty retailers<\/td><\/tr>
Reference price<\/td>Pack of three, 1,870 yen including tax (JOOLA official Japanese store)<\/td><\/tr>
Use in Japan to date<\/td>UTR Pickleball Japan Tour events from February to May 2026, and the PPA Asia Tokyo event in July 2026<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n

JOOLA positions this ball for use both indoors and outdoors, and it is used at the indoor-heavy PPA Asia events as well. Even so, it will not necessarily bounce the same as the ball you usually practice with, so it is worth measuring the difference yourself beforehand. If you plan to enter a DUPR-sanctioned tournament, checking the entry information for the listed ball is the sure way to do it. For events that straddle September 1, the announcement may still carry the old listing.<\/p>\n\n

9\u67081\u65e5\u524d\u306b\u78ba\u8a8d\u3068\u6e96\u5099\u3092\u3057\u3066\u304a\u304f<\/h2>\n

DUPR settling on one ball is part of the work of bringing a rating closer to meaning the same thing wherever it is earned. It is not a flashy story, but with more tournaments in Japan seeding by rating, the effect reaches all the way down.<\/p>\n

9\u67081\u65e5\u4ee5\u964d\u306bDUPR\u516c\u8a8d\u5927\u4f1a\u3078\u306e\u51fa\u5834\u3092\u4e88\u5b9a\u3057\u3066\u3044\u308b\u5834\u5408\u306f\u3001\u4e09\u3064\u306e\u6e96\u5099\u304c\u52b9\u679c\u7684\u3060\u3002\u307e\u305a\u3001\u79cb\u306e\u30a8\u30f3\u30c8\u30ea\u30fc\u8981\u9805\u3067\u4f7f\u7528\u7403\u306e\u8a18\u8f09\u3092\u78ba\u8a8d\u3059\u308b\u3002\u6b21\u306b\u3001\u7df4\u7fd2\u7403\u30923\u7403\u3067\u3044\u3044\u306e\u3067HC-40\u306b\u66ff\u3048\u3066\u3001\u30c9\u30ed\u30c3\u30d7\u3068\u30c7\u30a3\u30f3\u30af\u306e\u843d\u5dee\u3092\u4f53\u3067\u6e2c\u3063\u3066\u304a\u304f\u3002\u305d\u3057\u3066\u904b\u55b6\u3084\u30b9\u30af\u30fc\u30eb\u306b\u95a2\u308f\u3063\u3066\u3044\u308b\u306a\u3089\u3001\u79cb\u4ee5\u964d\u306e\u30ec\u30f3\u30bf\u30eb\u7403\u30fb\u6d88\u8017\u54c1\u306e\u4ed5\u5165\u308c\u8a08\u753b\u306b\u6307\u5b9a\u7403\u3092\u7e54\u308a\u8fbc\u3080\u3002\u7403\u304c\u5909\u308f\u308b\u65e5\u306f\u65e2\u306b\u6c7a\u307e\u3063\u3066\u3044\u308b\u3002<\/p>\n\n

Source:JOOLA<\/a>\uff0fPR Newswire<\/a>\uff0fJOOLA HC-40<\/a>\uff0fpickletip<\/a>\uff0fPickleball Online<\/a>\uff0fJOOLA official Japanese store<\/a>\uff0fPPA Tour Asia<\/a>\uff0fThe Dink Pickleball<\/a>\uff0fFranklin Sports<\/a><\/small><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From September 1, DUPR-sanctioned events will all use the JOOLA HC-40. We lay out why the body that holds the ratings is fixing the ball, and what players and organizers in Japan, where the UTR Japan Tour adopted it first, need to decide by September.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ssp_meta_description":"DUPR\u516c\u8a8d\u30a4\u30d9\u30f3\u30c8\u306e\u4f7f\u7528\u7403\u304c9\u67081\u65e5\u304b\u3089JOOLA HC-40\u306b\u7d71\u4e00\u3055\u308c\u308b\u3002\u30ec\u30fc\u30c6\u30a3\u30f3\u30b0\u3092\u9810\u304b\u308b\u5074\u304c\u7403\u3092\u56fa\u5b9a\u3059\u308b\u7406\u7531\u3068\u3001UTR\u30b8\u30e3\u30d1\u30f3\u30c4\u30a2\u30fc\u3067\u5148\u884c\u5c0e\u5165\u3057\u3066\u3044\u305f\u65e5\u672c\u306e\u30d7\u30ec\u30fc\u30e4\u30fc\u30fb\u904b\u55b6\u8005\u304c9\u6708\u307e\u3067\u306b\u6c7a\u3081\u308b\u3079\u304d\u3053\u3068\u3092\u6574\u7406\u3057\u305f\u3002","swell_btn_cv_data":"","pt_pr_sponsor":""},"categories":[93],"tags":[],"region":[],"class_list":["post-4482","news","type-news","status-publish","hentry","category-news"],"acf":{"summary":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pickle-times.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/4482","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pickle-times.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pickle-times.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pickle-times.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pickle-times.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4482"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pickle-times.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4482"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pickle-times.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4482"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pickle-times.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4482"},{"taxonomy":"region","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pickle-times.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/region?post=4482"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}