Alex Zubarev
Founder & Primary Reviewer, Pickleball Lookup
Founder of PickleballHustle.com
Jacksonville, Florida
Playing pickleball since 2021
Playing since 2021 • Jacksonville, FL • Frequent recreational player • Paddle reviewer • Court contributor
YouTube channelAlex Zubarev is the founder and primary reviewer behind Pickleball Lookup.
After moving from New York to the Jacksonville, Florida area in 2021, Alex became deeply involved in pickleball and has played consistently ever since — often twice a day, seven days a week.
That amount of court time gives him firsthand experience with how different paddles perform in real recreational play.
Pickleball Lookup was created to turn that real-world experience into something more useful than another list of "best pickleball paddles."
What that court time covers
- Power and put-away speed
- Control and reset consistency
- Spin and shot shaping
- Forgiveness on off-center contact
- Hand speed at the kitchen
- Dinking feel and touch
- Doubles strategy and positioning
How reviews get built
Every paddle page combines:
- —Hands-on playing experience
- —Objective paddle specifications
- —Manufacturer data
- —Independent measurements where available
- —Player feedback
- —Paddle-to-paddle comparisons
- —Pricing and retailer information
Not every paddle in the database has been played personally, and we never pretend otherwise. Each review carries a label — Personally played, Research-based review or Community-data review — so you always know what the assessment rests on. The rules behind those labels are in the editorial policy.
Off the court
Alex's wife, Anna, joined the family's pickleball obsession in 2024, making pickleball a regular part of their life in Jacksonville. That local play is also why the court finder started in Northeast Florida — several of those courts are ones we have actually stood on.
Pickleball Lookup is built for players who want to understand why one paddle may fit their game better than another — not simply which paddle has the biggest marketing budget.
- Based in
- Jacksonville / St. Johns, Florida
- Playing since
- 2021
- Play frequency
- Approximately twice daily
- Primary role
- Founder & Primary Reviewer
- Coverage
- Paddle reviews + court verification
- Paddles in database
- 130
Courts personally visited
Court listings Alex has stood on and verified in person. Every field on these pages was checked on site, not scraped.
Guides reviewed by Alex
- What Pickleball Paddle Weight Should I Use? (2026 Guide)
- Pickleball Paddle Grip Size Chart — How to Measure
- 16mm vs 14mm Pickleball Paddle — Which Core Is Right?
- Elongated vs Widebody Pickleball Paddle — Shape Guide
- What Is a Thermoformed Pickleball Paddle?
- How to Choose a Pickleball Paddle — 5-Step Guide (2026)
- Best Pickleball Paddle Setup for Tennis Players
- When to Replace Your Pickleball Paddle — 6 Signs
- Kevlar vs Carbon Fiber Pickleball Paddles — Which Face?
- Foam Core vs Polymer Core Pickleball Paddles
- Gen 4 vs Gen 3 Pickleball Paddles — What Changed?
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