Dekel Bar Leaves JOOLA for 11SIX24 | Pro Pickleball Shakeup
Dekel Bar Leaves JOOLA for 11SIX24: A Sponsor Move That Reshapes Pro Pickleball
I was watching a Youtube broadcast of a regional pro stop last year when Dekel Bar walked off court after a three-game grinder that felt more like controlled chaos than strategy. His serve was still a weapon, but what caught my attention was what he did between points. He kept tapping the paddle face with his thumb, testing the response, like he was asking it a question. That moment stuck with me, because elite players don’t obsess over power. They obsess over trust.
Picture this: January at PPA Masters. First televised rally. New logo on the paddle. Same violent serve motion. The ball jumps off the face, but instead of sailing long, it knifes down into the returner’s feet. That’s when people stop talking about sponsorships and start asking harder questions.
Dekel Bar has ended his sponsorship with JOOLA and signed with 11SIX24, becoming the brand’s first UPA-signed pro and debuting a new full-foam paddle at PPA Masters.
- Dekel Bar: Israeli-born professional pickleball player known for elite power, athleticism, and first-strike pressure.
- 11SIX24: A fast-growing pickleball paddle company emphasizing durability, full-foam construction, and sub-$200 pricing.
- JOOLA: A global paddle brand with deep pro rosters, premium pricing, and high-launch power designs.
- Vapor Power 2: 11SIX24’s first full-foam, UPA-A-approved paddle featuring HexGrit surface technology.
Why did Dekel Bar leave JOOLA?
Dekel Bar left JOOLA to gain earlier product influence, reduce volatility in his gear, and align with a brand built around durability and predictability rather than raw pop.
This Wasn’t a Breakup – It Was a Repositioning
Dekel Bar’s move reflects a broader pro trend of trading brand scale for control, influence, and competitive certainty.
Nothing about this felt emotional or abrupt. It felt timed.
At the highest level, sponsorships split into two realities. One is visibility: big logos, big checks, big rosters. The other is leverage: early access, design input, and fewer compromises. JOOLA dominates the first category. 11SIX24 is making a deliberate play for the second.
- Smaller rosters amplify athlete influence
- Earlier prototypes reduce mid-season adjustments
- Control beats exposure when margins are thin
This is where the nuance lives. When you’re one of many sponsored pros, feedback becomes noise. When you’re the first, feedback becomes direction. That distinction matters when matches hinge on two balls drifting long instead of dipping in.
PickleTip Insight: Elite players don’t leave brands because of money. They leave because of friction.
When an athlete gains first-pro status → product confidence increases faster than marketing reach.
Dekel Bar isn’t stepping down in stature. Dekel Bar is narrowing the variables that decide matches.
“At the top, the paddle isn’t equipment – it’s a tolerance for error.”
This Deal Happened Fast – And That’s the Point
Most paddle sponsorships feel like brand courtship. This one felt like a jailbreak.
Behind the announcement was a three-week sprint that started with a mutual Austin connection and ended with a problem that could’ve blown the entire debut: final paddle approval came down to the wire.
That matters because pros don’t switch gear like shirts. They calibrate timing, launch angle, resets, counter speed, and serve depth to a specific response profile. If Bar had to swap back to his old paddle a day before PPA Masters, it wouldn’t just look awkward, it would introduce a performance leak.
PickleTip Insight: Fast deals aren’t reckless when the product is already solving the exact pain point the player is trying to eliminate.
The Paddle Matters More Than the Press Release
The Vapor Power 2 trades high-launch volatility for predictable power through full-foam construction and perimeter stability.
This section is where the move actually earns its weight.
And here’s the part most people miss: this wasn’t a “paddle switch.” It was a trust switch under a deadline. The Vapor Power 2 was approved in time for the debut, which meant Bar didn’t have to walk onto court with a new sponsor and an old weapon.
JOOLA’s recent Gen 3 and Mod-TA era paddles are unapologetically explosive. High launch. Big rebound. For many players, that’s intoxicating. For someone like Bar, it can become a liability. When your serve is already violent, extra pop doesn’t help. It widens dispersion.
The full-foam core in the Vapor Power 2 dampens that spike. The ball still leaves hot, but the exit window tightens. That matters on third-shot drives, especially when transitioning forward. Predictability keeps the ball in play long enough for aggression to compound.
The Vapor Power 2 is on the UPA-A approved paddle list (added Jan 12, 2026), which is why Bar can compete with it immediately.
| Design Choice | Competitive Effect |
|---|---|
| Full-foam perimeter | Reduces mis-hits and lateral deflection |
| HexGrit surface | Maintains spin as pace increases |
| Thermoformed frame | Stabilizes response under heavy load |
This paddle isn’t built to add power – it’s built to aim it.
When power becomes predictable → aggressive servers gain margin instead of risk.
That’s why this isn’t cosmetic. That’s why Dekel Bar testing this paddle publicly matters.
Why 11SIX24 Took the Risk
Signing Dekel Bar compresses 11SIX24’s credibility timeline while challenging premium pricing norms.
And this wasn’t a casual sponsorship either. For a brand of this size, a pro deal isn’t just a signature, it’s inventory pressure, cash commitment, and a credibility bet that has to survive real match footage.
There’s no hiding after a move like this.
By attaching its identity to one elite player, 11SIX24 effectively puts its entire product thesis on court. Durability claims get stress-tested. Spin claims get televised. Price claims get compared – and this is where the disruption sharpens.
- Sub-$200 retail positioning creates a performance-per-dollar gap
- Tour-level validation without luxury-brand pricing
- Direct contrast with $280-plus competitors who sell power as prestige
This isn’t isolated either – we saw a similar shift earlier this month when Anna Leigh Waters signed a long-term deal with Franklin Sports, debuting the unreleased Aurelius C45 as the physical proof of that partnership. Anna Leigh Waters signing with Franklin Sports and debuting the Aurelius C45
PickleTip Insight: Market disruption doesn’t come from louder marketing. It comes from narrower promises that hold up under pressure.
When a smaller brand signs a top pro → the product must outperform its price, not merely justify it.
This is systematic disruption. It’s not about doing more; it’s about doing less, but doing it better.
11SIX24 Didn’t Start as a Brand – It Started as a Frustration
11SIX24 was built to solve durability and value failures in premium pickleball paddles, not to chase luxury branding.
This part matters, because it explains why the Dekel Bar partnership feels inevitable instead of opportunistic.
11SIX24 didn’t emerge from a venture-backed launch or a celebrity endorsement plan. It started with a broken paddle. Founder David Groechel paid over $200 for a premium paddle, played hard, and watched it crack within months. That wasn’t a performance issue. It was a trust issue.
Instead of buying another replacement, he questioned the premise of the market itself: why durability was treated as optional, why price inflation was disguised as innovation, and why players were expected to normalize failure at the top end.
- Durability over cosmetic upgrades
- Foam-forward construction before it was fashionable
- Sub-$200 pricing as a principle, not a promotion
PickleTip Insight: Brands that start with frustration tend to obsess over failure points. Brands that start with marketing tend to obscure them.
This philosophy shows up in 11SIX24’s design choices. Full-foam construction wasn’t adopted to follow trends – it was adopted to reduce breakdown, widen the sweet spot, and keep performance stable over time. HexGrit wasn’t added for spec-sheet flash – it was added because spin loss is one of the first signs of paddle decline.
11SIX24 isn’t trying to be premium. It’s trying to be reliable under abuse.
When a brand optimizes for durability first → performance consistency follows naturally.
This is why Dekel Bar fits. His game is violent but precise. His paddle needs to survive both.
“Trust isn’t built by how a paddle feels on day one – it’s built by how it holds up on day ninety.”
The Human Side of Leaving a Big Brand
Leaving a major sponsor introduces identity risk that only competitive clarity can justify.
I’ve seen this moment with players in many sports. The logos change. The routines change. The safety net disappears.
You don’t just leave a brand. You leave teammates, testers, and assumptions. What replaces them is ownership. That’s heavier than it looks.
Dekel Bar isn’t chasing novelty or nostalgia. He’s still sharpening. Still optimizing. Still choosing discomfort over comfort.
“Security is loud. Ownership is quiet – and heavier.”
What Fans Are Asking Right Now
Yes. Bar can use the UPA-A–approved version immediately on the PPA Tour, even if the USAP retail model trails by a few months.
The first public release is expected in early 2026, likely led by UPA-A models. If a USAP-approved version releases, expect it to use a different surface spec than the pro-level HexGrit.
This reflects roster dynamics, not brand collapse. JOOLA remains dominant in scale.
He announced the end of his JOOLA partnership in late 2025.
It makes Bar the first UPA-signed pro for 11SIX24 and validates their full-foam direction.
The 11SIX24 Vapor Power 2 with full-foam construction and HexGrit surface.
UPA-A approval is confirmed, which is why Bar can use it on tour. If a USAP-approved retail version releases, expect it to use a modified surface spec to meet USAP roughness limits.
Watch Bar’s first five matches with the new paddle and track serve depth and third-shot error rate – that’s where this partnership will reveal itself.
