Power paddles have dominated the market for the last several years, but we’re starting to see more attention shift toward all-court paddles. Even many top pros are choosing more balanced setups over pure power.
That’s what makes the Selkirk Omni interesting. As one of the biggest brands in pickleball, Selkirk’s move into the all-court foam category will likely bring even more attention to a style of paddle I think many players should be considering. It also helps that the Omni is a very good all-court paddle.
In this review, I’ll cover:
Add a gift card to your purchase with code INF-BRAYDONU.
Affiliate disclosure: I was sent this paddle to test, but this review wasn’t paid for or approved by the brand. Everything here reflects my own testing and opinions. If you click the links on the page or use my discount codes, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you that supports my testing and reviews.
What stands out
How it plays
The Omni is an aggressive all-court paddle. It offers more pop and offense than most all-court options while maintaining the control and versatility players expect from the category. The crisp, lively feel is unique among all-court foam paddles, and its heavier build provides good plow-through and stability, though most players will benefit from customizing the weight setup to improve maneuverability.
Bottom line
Players who love the crisp response of stiff/hollow paddles have never had a foam core all-court option until now. At $300, it’s a steep price, but it checks every box for an aggressive all-court paddle while also giving you Selkirk’s limited lifetime warranty and strong customer support.
Add a gift card to your purchase with code INF-BRAYDONU.
Performance ratings are based on playtesting, paddle comparisons, and power, pop, and spin tests.
This paddle is available in two shapes. Both options are 16mm thick. Measurements are from my test units and may vary.
Higher swing weight and balance point which makes it less maneuverable but very stable and tunable.
I wouldn’t recommend playing it this way, but for reference, these are the base specs without the MOI weights installed.
High swing weight for a widebody, but an excellent sweet spot and highly tunable setup.
I wouldn’t recommend playing it this way, but for reference, these are the base specs without the MOI weights installed.
Updated Foam Core Design
The Omni uses the same foundational foam-core formula as the Boomstik, pairing an EPP foam core with an EVA perimeter ring.
The major change is an additional cut within the EPP structure that creates a secondary EPP ring between the EVA perimeter and the center portion of the core.
Similar core designs I’ve played from other brands have reduced offense and softened feel. The Omni does both slightly compared to the Boomstik, but it remains distinctly crisp and stiff/hollow for an all-court paddle.
Adjustable MOI System
One of the most requested features after the Boomstik launch was to make the MOI movable.
Selkirk listened.
The Omni’s MOI weights can be removed & repositioned, or removed entirely if you’d rather use a traditional weighted-tape setup. It’s a level of flexibility I’m a big fan of. If you don’t want to tinker, you can simply play it how it comes. But for players who enjoy dialing in weight, balance, and feel, there’s plenty of room to customize it.
Key Performance Traits
The Omni bridges the gap between traditional all-court paddles and modern foam power paddles. The result is a paddle that maintains all-court versatility while giving players a little extra offensive firepower.
Add a gift card to your purchase with code INF-BRAYDONU.
Power & Pop
The Omni sits on the aggressive side of the all-court category.
Where it really separates itself is pop. Compared to most all-court paddles, you’ll notice more put-away ability on counters, speed-ups, and punch volleys. It gives players just enough extra offense to stay dangerous while keeping more versatility than a power paddle when it comes to finding angles and controlling the pace of speed-ups.
Its power is also easy to access. You don’t have to swing big to find the power and pop. It’s not a dynamic power profile, but more of an always-available type of profile.
The paddle has a higher swing weight in stock form, which gives you good plow-through and stability, but at the expense of some hand speed. It’s not a fast paddle but can be tuned to be lighter and keep it’s offensive ability.
Control
For an aggressive all-court paddle, control remains very good, but it’s not best control rating in the all-court category.
You get an added layer of control and precision with the Omni compared to power paddles, but it’s not quite as forgiving from a control perspective as paddles like the Six Zero Coral or Honolulu J2NF.
The Omni’s extra pop, combined with its slightly springy feel, creates a livelier response that requires some precision from the player on resets and drops.
If maximum precision is your priority, there are more control-oriented all-court options available. If you’re looking for a balanced paddle with some offensive personality, the Omni is a good option.
Feel & Feedback
This is arguably the most unique aspect of the Omni.
Most all-court paddles fall into either the soft/dense or neutral feel categories. The Omni doesn’t.
It delivers a crisp, lively impact feel that lands in the stiff/hollow quadrant, reminiscent of the Boomstik, while feeling softer and more refined at the same time.
For players who love the responsiveness of paddles like the Boomstik but don’t necessarily want full power-paddle behavior, the Omni fills a gap that hasn’t existed until now.
Here’s a feel map charting the Omni, Boomstik, and other all-court paddle options for reference.
Spin & Surface
The Omni uses Selkirk’s InfiniGrit texture, which provides good spin performance out of the box and better durability than traditional raw carbon fiber surfaces.
Based on my testing, InfiniGrit retains 90% of its Ra roughness and 85% of its Rz roughness. While that doesn’t place it among the very best durable textures currently available, it outperforms traditional raw carbon fiber surfaces.
Anything that outlasts raw carbon is a positive in my book.
| Surface Type | Category | Ra Starting Value | Ra Retention | Rz Starting Value | Rz Retention |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Durable Grit Avg | 6 Surfaces | 7.05 | 95% | 36.35 | 89% |
Selkirk InfiniGrit | USAP | 5.7 | 90% | 30.93 | 85% |
Raw Carbon Avg | 6.9 | 80% | 33.45 | 81% |
Forgiveness & Sweet Spot
The Omni features a large sweet spot and excellent stability.
Its heavier stock build helps it resist twisting and maintain consistency on off-center contact.
The main tradeoff is maneuverability. Stock swing weights are above average, so the paddle doesn’t feel particularly quick in hand.
Fortunately, the adjustable MOI system gives players meaningful options for tuning the setup to their preferences. Here are my recommended customizations and why.
Add a gift card to your purchase with code INF-BRAYDONU.
The Omni has quickly earned a spot among what I consider the top all-court paddles on the market. The three paddles it competes most directly with are the Six Zero Coral Series, JOOLA Pro V, and Honolulu NF Series.
Six Zero Coral Series
The Coral is another aggressive all-court option though not quite as poppy. It has a softer, denser feel, less pop, and is generally easier to control. Both paddles offer durable surface textures and strong all-court performance.
JOOLA Pro V
The Pro V delivers a more dynamic power profile. It can generate higher top-end power and pop when activated by advanced players, but offers less offense than the Omni for beginner to intermediate players. It also relies on a traditional polymer core and lacks a durable grit texture.
Honolulu NF
The NF series is the most control-focused paddle of the group.
It’s softer, denser, lighter, and offers a stronger sweet-spot-to-maneuverability ratio than the Omni.
The Selkirk Omni fills a unique niche that has largely been missing from the market. It gives players who love the feel of stiff/hollow modern power paddles a legitimate all-court option without sacrificing the versatility and consistency that make all-court paddles so appealing.
This is a great fit for players who:
Less ideal if you:
Add a gift card to your purchase with code INF-BRAYDONU.
The biggest advantage of a power paddle (like the Selkirk Boomstik) is obvious: more offense. They can help you attack harder, finish points more easily, and create opportunities with ball speed.
The advantage of an all-court paddle is versatility. You gain more control, consistency, and freedom to shape shots, find angles, and vary your pace without feeling like you’re constantly managing excess power.
For most players below the 4.5 level, I generally think all-court paddles deserve more consideration than they get. Power can be fun and effective, but a balanced paddle often helps players develop a more complete game.
The Omni sits in an interesting middle ground. It offers more offense than most all-court paddles while maintaining the versatility that makes the category so appealing.
For a deeper dive, check out my full article on choosing between an all-court and power paddle.
Goal:
Swing weight and balance point are higher than ideal, so the goal is to bring them down for better maneuverability while maintaining a strong sweet spot.
What you’ll need:
Placement:
Why this placement:
The total MOI weight just needed to be redistributed to get what we wanted. The 5g Tuning Clamps replace the Selkirk MOI weights to keep that strong strike-zone forgiveness, while the 2g in the lower corners brings the balance point down and reinforces forgiveness lower on the paddle face.
The Result:
You maintain the same level of forgiveness and overall playability as the stock MOI setup, but with noticeably better maneuverability.
* The increase in stock weight is because of the overgrip I added.
| Metric | Stock | Setup | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Overall Weight
|
8.1 oz
|
8.16 oz
|
↑ 0.06 oz
|
|
Swing Weight
|
122
|
119
|
↓ 3
|
|
Twist Weight
|
6.87
|
6.65
|
↓ 0.22
|
|
Balance Point
|
246 mm
|
241 mm
|
↓ 5 mm
|
Goal:
Bring the swing weight down. The paddle is heavy for a widebody shape and has an extra large sweet spot, giving us room to improve maneuverability without sacrificing usable forgiveness.
What you’ll need:
Placement:
Why this placement:
We simply needed to remove weight to achieve the result we wanted. Reducing the weight in the sweet spot zone from 7.5g to 4g maintains the paddle’s core playability while improving maneuverability through lower static weight and swing weight. Twist weight remains relatively high, so you don’t give up any meaningful stability or forgiveness.
The Result:
Much better maneuverability while keeping the paddle’s core performance intact.
* Reducing twist weight may look like a step backward, but it was actually beneficial in this case. The stock twist weight was exceptionally high, and too much twist weight can hurt maneuverability, particularly on wrist-driven shots like flicks at the net. At 7.1, the paddle still offers excellent stability while feeling quicker and easier to maneuver.
| Metric | Stock | Setup | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
Overall Weight | 8.28 oz | 8.16 oz | ↓ 0.12 oz |
Swing Weight | 116 | 112 | ↓ 4 |
Twist Weight | 7.75 | 7.10 | ↓ 0.65 |
Balance Point | 240 mm | 235 mm | ↓ 5 mm |
While I preferred the custom setups above, you can also customize the paddle by simply repositioning the MOI clips. Selkirk includes alignment graphics along the side of the paddle, making it easy to experiment with different placements.
The numbers:
Moving the MOI clip a distance equal to its own length changes swing weight by roughly 3 points while twist weight remains unchanged.
My recommendation:
Keep the MOI clips in the general sweet spot zone. Because the clips are so concentrated with weight if they get too low on the paddle face, the balance starts to feel a bit off and the performance shifts in odd ways.
Reviewer Profile
Braydon Unsicker is the founder of Pickleball Effect and has been reviewing pickleball gear since 2020. He’s known for independent, data-backed paddle reviews and hands-on testing that help players cut through marketing claims and make smarter equipment decisions.
Affiliate disclosure: I was sent this paddle to test, but this review wasn’t paid for or approved by the brand. Everything here reflects my own testing and opinions. If you click the links on the page or use my discount codes, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you that supports my testing and reviews.