Genie’s Rise, Ben’s Return, and a Little Drama

Hey everybody!

This week, I was in Las Vegas, and before the tournament, Christia, Zoeya, Ryan, Lee, and I stopped by the HLTH conference for a corporate event run by PickleballPros.com!

It reminded me a bit of the old corporate Deloitte days. What also reminded me of the Deloitte days was working late into the night, because on Monday, we also launched the Transition Zone, and I was up late sending personal messages to everybody who had joined!

Vegas Precap

I played all three events in Vegas:

Singles - Defeated Eric Roddy, then got my butt kicked by Jaume. Some people throw in the towel; I threw in the paddle. 

Mixed Doubles - Mya and I lost a tough 3-setter to Mo and LingweiMen's Doubles - Teamed up with Zane Ford, and we had a good 3-set win over the Johnsons before falling to JW and Dylan

Jenny & My Travels

From Vegas, I travelled back to Wisconsin to celebrate my father-in-law Al's 60th birthday!It was nice to have a little bit of family time before flying back to Austin to record the recap video, which I'll tell you more about down below! Speaking of which, catch my full recap from Vegas.

If you don't have time to watch the video, Key Highlights are right below.

PPA Vegas Recap

Anna Leigh Waters: Still UnstoppableLet’s start with the obvious.Anna Leigh extended her unreal win streak to 511 days, 84 matches, and 18 tournaments. That’s not a typo. She’s now just one win shy of tying Ben Johns’ all-time titles record — and probably would’ve done it if Ben hadn’t clutched up in men’s doubles.You can’t make this stuff up.Also, in case you haven't been paying attention, Genie Bouchard has become a pickleball force!

Tuesday: Ben’s Back and Tyra + Christian Go Nuclear

The main draw kicked off with a few surprises.Ben Johns returned to singles with an unusual #7 seed next to his name. Yeah, you read that right. Meanwhile, Tyra and Christian came out swinging, delivering a double pickle victory that had everyone talking.Add in a few brand-new mixed doubles partnerships (right before Worlds, no less), and Tuesday set the tone for a wild week.

Midweek Mayhem

Wednesday kept the chaos rolling. Unexpected wins, funky matchups, and Roscoe Bellamy turning heads with one of his most determined runs yet.And then Thursday hit… and things really got spicy.We saw tight finishes, a few questionable calls, and a whole lot of noise around rule enforcement — especially in that Dekel/Jackie match. Let’s just say the refs had their hands full.

Weekend Highlights

By Friday and Saturday, it was all about the tennis converts.Jack Sock and Genie Bouchard stole the spotlight — both showing that they’re not just “tennis players trying pickleball.” They can actually hang.And if you missed Ben and Anna Leigh vs. Andrei and Rachel, do yourself a favor and catch the replay. That might’ve been one of the best mixed doubles matches we’ve seen all year. I break it all down in this week’s YouTube recap (you won’t want to miss it).Also, the Men's Doubles Final may have been the greatest of all time.

What's Next

Up next: Major League Pickleball in Dallas.

Big names, high stakes, and plenty more storylines to unpack. I’ll be breaking it all down in the next YouTube video — subscribe if you haven’t yet, so you don’t miss the chaos.

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