Worlds is a 3,000-point PPA Major. The tour lists $1,648,641 in total payouts, a figure that includes appearance fees and is not prize money alone.

The schedule

• Monday, Nov. 2: Pro qualifying, free on the PPA Tour YouTube channel.
• Tuesday to Saturday: The main draw, from the round of 64 through the semifinals. Doubles quarterfinals and semifinals are Friday and Saturday evenings.
• Thursday, Nov. 5: The Challenger Showdown begins, with eight 2027 tour contracts at stake, and the celebrity pro-am with Mark Wahlberg airs at 8 p.m. ET on Tennis Channel.
• Sunday, Nov. 8: Championship Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET on PickleballTV.

Five storylines

Anna Leigh Waters, at 200 and counting. Waters won her 200th career PPA title with a triple crown at the Chicago Cup on Oct. 11. The PPA says she is 55-0 in singles finals since June 2022, and 14-0 against Kate Fahey in finals.

Hunter Johnson's fall. Four singles golds since September: Nationals in Cary, the Las Vegas Open (where he beat Ben Johns 11-1, 11-3), Brisbane and the Hong Kong Slam. He is the form player in the men's draw. Our breakdown.

Men's doubles is a three-team race. Johns and Gabe Tardio won Nationals. Christian Alshon and Andrei Daescu won Las Vegas. Then Hayden Patriquin and Federico Staksrud won Chicago and Hong Kong, beating Johns and Tardio 11-6, 11-8 in the Hong Kong final.

The mixed doubles rivalry. Anna Bright and Patriquin beat top seeds Johns and Waters in the Las Vegas final. Johns and Waters answered with golds in Chicago and Hong Kong, the second an 11-4, 11-3 final over Bright and Patriquin. Read more.

The next wave. Kiora Kunimoto, 18, reached the Las Vegas singles final after upsetting top seed Kate Fahey. Roscoe Bellamy won Chicago singles over top seed Christopher Haworth. And eight Challenger Showdown players leave Dallas with tour offers.

Tickets start at $25 a day before fees. Every court streams on PickleballTV.

Start in Cary, North Carolina, at the season-opening National Championships in September. Johnson beat No. 1 seed Chris Haworth 11-9, 11-1 in the semifinals, then came back from a game down to beat Federico Staksrud 7-11, 11-3, 11-0. The Kitchen reported it was his ninth career singles title, third all-time behind Ben Johns and Staksrud.

The Vegas statement

Then Las Vegas. Seeded third, Johnson met Johns in the final and beat him 11-1, 11-3, one of the most lopsided finals of the event.

Back to back in Asia-Pacific

Two weeks later in Brisbane, the top seed won every match in straight games until the final, where he beat Christian Alshon 11-8, 5-11, 11-8. He led 7-0 in the third before Alshon pulled to 8-7, Pickleball.com reported. "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! I've always wanted to do that," Johnson told the crowd.

A week after that he won the Hong Kong Slam, beating Tama Shimabukuro 11-4, 6-11, 11-7. That makes four singles golds since September.

Why it matters at Worlds

• He closes. The 11-0 third game against Staksrud and the 11-1 opener against Johns are not matches that slipped away from his opponents. He took them.
• He wins tight ones too. Alshon and Shimabukuro both forced third games. Johnson finished both.
• The field is deep. Staksrud, Johns, Alshon and Haworth have all reached late rounds this fall, and Shimabukuro is on the rise.

The case against

Singles is volatile. At the Chicago Cup on Oct. 11, Roscoe Bellamy beat top seed Haworth 11-4, 11-5 for the title, Haworth's loss coming after four straight final appearances, per the PPA. One bad day at a Major ends a run.

A note on rankings: Johnson is No. 14 in the PPA's overall World Pickleball Rankings, which weight doubles and mixed far more than singles. In singles alone, he is the player to beat.

Our view: Johnson is the favorite, not a lock. If he reaches Sunday, the field will have to beat the best version of him we have seen.

The breakthrough

Bright and Patriquin were 0-6 against Johns and Waters before February's Mesa Cup, The Kitchen reported, including a semifinal at last year's Worlds and finals at the January Masters and the Cape Coral Open. In Mesa they finally won, 11-8, 11-9, 11-3, their first gold together. Johns and Waters were 59-3 in finals as a pair going in.

The fall

At September's National Championships, Johns and Waters lost in the semifinals to JW and Jorja Johnson, their first loss since Mesa. Bright and Patriquin beat the Johnsons 11-9, 11-3, 11-7 for the title and took the No. 2 ranking.

Then the Las Vegas final, Oct. 4: Bright and Patriquin beat the top seeds 11-9, 11-7. "It's really exciting to see a lot of the things that you've been working on translate into a big match," Bright told Pickleball.com. "It feels amazing, especially to do it in Vegas," Patriquin said.

The answer

Johns and Waters responded the way champions do. They won Chicago on Oct. 11, beating the Johnsons 11-4, 11-4, and then won Hong Kong on Oct. 25, beating Bright and Patriquin 11-4, 11-3 in the final.

What to watch at Worlds

Johns and Waters remain the top seeds and the standard. Bright and Patriquin are the one team that has beaten them in a final this year, twice. The Johnsons are the third team in the conversation; they beat Johns and Waters in Cary and reached the Chicago final.

Our view: the Hong Kong result resets the edge to Johns and Waters, but a fourth final between these teams this year is the most likely ending on Championship Sunday.

1. Watch the feet after the third shot

Pick one player and ignore the ball. After their team hits the third shot, where do they go? Pros don't sprint to the kitchen line on every third. They move forward when the shot earns it, and they split-step, a small hop that sets their weight, as the opponent makes contact. That pause is the difference between a reset and a ball at your feet.

Steal it: In your next game, say "split" in your head every time your opponent hits. Be still and balanced when they make contact.

2. Count how often they speed up

Watch a long dink rally and count the attackable balls that pros don't attack. You'll be surprised. The best players wait for a ball that's high enough, and when they speed up, they usually aim at the body or the hip of the paddle side, not the open court.

Steal it: Only speed up a ball above net height. Aim at the right hip of a right-hander.

3. Notice where they stand to return serve

Pros return deep and then get to the line. A deep return gives them time. A short return gives the serving team a free walk forward.

Steal it: Aim your returns at the back third of the court, with height. Then move up behind it.

Make it your own

None of this means copying a pro's game. You bring your own history, instincts and abilities to the court. Use the pros to see patterns, then decide which ones fit how you play.

Step Harmon is the founder of Pickleballer.world, an advanced player and PIPR-certified trainer. More about Step.

Every morning you'll find a new front page: the results that matter, the stories behind them and a short list of everything else worth knowing, called the Daily Dink. You'll find analysis in The Breakdown, gear in Gear Lab, the money in The Business, and the sport around the world in Global Game.

How it's made

Overnight, our desk reads results and reporting from across the sport and files the day's stories, each one linked to its sources. I set the standards and the voice, and I write The Kitchen, where we take what the pros do and bring it to your game. You can read our standards here.

Who I am

I'm a player first. I've spent a lifetime in sport, from tennis and racquetball to martial arts and baseball, and I play in Southern California and on the Central Coast. I believe the foundation matters, but so do your unique talents. That goes for how we cover the game, too.

Thanks for reading. See you on the court, and back here tomorrow morning.

Step Harmon, Founder

The American roster read like a pro tour seeding sheet: Anna Bright, Kate Fahey, Tyra "Hurricane" Black, Ben Johns, CJ Klinger and Will Howells, captained by Johnny Goldberg. They went undefeated through group play and the semifinals, and won four of their five matches in regulation.

How they got there

Eight regional teams and 48 players opened with round-robin pools on Friday and Saturday. Team USA and Asia Domestic advanced from Group A; Europe-East and Latin America came through Group B. In Sunday's semifinals the U.S. beat Europe-East 3-1, and Latin America beat Asia Domestic 3-1.

The only real scare came in group play, when Asia Domestic pushed Team USA to the tournament's only DreamBreaker before losing 21-18, The Dink reported. Europe-East also took a game off the Americans in the semifinal, winning a mixed game 14-12, while playing without Tina Pisnik, who Forbes' Todd Boss reported was out with food poisoning.

Latin America's run was the weekend's quiet story. Mari Humberg, Alexa Schull, Charlie Treviño, Eric Oncins, Nico Acevedo and Rafa Lenhard lost their opening match on Friday to Europe-East, then won their way into the final. Schull went 6-2 in her games, per The Dink. "Eric Oncins turned the Latin American team from one that got swept on Friday to one that made the final on Sunday," Boss wrote.

It feels absolutely incredible.

Anna Bright, as reported by The Kitchen

Bright told The Kitchen that the U.S. chants in the stands made the team feel like it was playing for more than itself. Goldberg said the squad came together in about 24 hours. "(Our players) are definitely all patriots," he said.

What it means

A first edition of anything is a test. This one proved two things: national-team pickleball draws a crowd, and the U.S. depth gap is real. The sweep in the final, including an 11-1 second game, is the scoreline the rest of the world will be chasing next year.

The stage doesn't change. The Nations Cup opened the 2026 Pickleball World Championships, and the PPA World Championships main draw starts this week at the same venue in Farmers Branch, Texas, with coverage on PickleballTV.

The finals

• Men's singles: Hunter Johnson def. Tama Shimabukuro, 11-4, 6-11, 11-7
• Women's singles: Andie Dikosavljevic def. Judit Castillo, 11-1, 11-5
• Men's doubles: Hayden Patriquin/Federico Staksrud def. Ben Johns/Gabe Tardio, 11-6, 11-8
• Women's doubles: Anna Leigh Waters/Anna Bright def. Tyra Black/Jorja Johnson, 11-4, 11-6
• Mixed doubles: Ben Johns/Anna Leigh Waters def. Anna Bright/Hayden Patriquin, 11-4, 11-3

What stood out

Johnson's fourth. His fourth singles gold since September, and his second in a row after Brisbane. Shimabukuro took a game off him but not the title.

Dikosavljevic again. The Brisbane-based Australian followed her home title with a dominant final against Castillo, the same opponent she beat in Brisbane.

A new men's doubles power. Patriquin and Staksrud followed their Chicago title with a straight-games win over Johns and Tardio.

Waters and Johns reassert. The mixed final was a statement: 11-4, 11-3 over the team that beat them in Las Vegas.

The finals

• Men's singles: Hunter Johnson def. Christian Alshon, 11-8, 5-11, 11-8
• Women's singles: Andie Dikosavljevic def. Judit Castillo, 11-6, 11-6
• Men's doubles: Gabe Tardio/Hayden Patriquin def. Tama Shimabukuro/JW Johnson, 3-11, 11-6, 11-7
• Women's doubles: Jorja Johnson/Tyra Black def. Parris Todd/Danni-Elle Townsend, 11-5, 11-6
• Mixed doubles: Tyra Black/Gabe Tardio def. Parris Todd/Christian Alshon, 7-11, 11-6, 11-7

The stories

Tardio and Black, twice each. With Ben Johns absent, Tardio partnered Patriquin in men's doubles and came back from a game down in the final. He and Black then won mixed, also from a game down.

A home champion. Dikosavljevic, who is based in Brisbane, won women's singles in straight games. Her semifinal against Sahra Dennehy went to 12-10 in the third.

Johnson rolls on. The top seed won every match in straight games until Alshon forced a third in the final. Johnson led 7-0 in the third before Alshon pulled to 8-7, Pickleball.com reported. "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! I've always wanted to do that," Johnson said. "This is one of the best crowds I've ever played in front of." Alshon left with two silvers.

Australian depth. The Dink highlighted runs by Dennehy, Townsend and Harrison Brown as signs of growing strength outside the U.S. Liam Lamb also upset Dylan Frazier 11-8, 11-4 in men's singles.

The finals

• Women's singles: (1) Anna Leigh Waters def. (2) Kate Fahey, 11-1, 11-7
• Men's singles: (4) Roscoe Bellamy def. (1) Christopher Haworth, 11-4, 11-5
• Men's doubles: (1) Hayden Patriquin/Federico Staksrud def. (14) Nick Acevedo/Jaume Martinez Vich, 11-1, 11-6
• Women's doubles: (1) Anna Bright/Anna Leigh Waters def. (2) Tyra Black/Catherine Parenteau, 2-11, 11-3, 11-4
• Mixed doubles: (1) Anna Leigh Waters/Ben Johns def. (3) Jorja Johnson/JW Johnson, 11-4, 11-4

The numbers

• Waters is 14-0 against Fahey in finals, and 55-0 in singles finals since June 2022, per the PPA.
• Bellamy, listed at 6-foot-5, became the tallest gold medalist in PPA Tour history. It was his second career title.
• Haworth's loss came after four straight final appearances.
• Patriquin and Staksrud won their fifth title together.
• The longest rally of the finals, 45 shots, came in mixed.

The filing is a reorganization, not a shutdown. The company said its clubs remain open and that no locations will close directly because of the filing, though some contraction is expected.

What went wrong

The company traced the filing partly to guarantees it signed on facility leases for early franchisees, covering about 40 locations.

We signed, unfortunately, too many corporate guarantees that landed on the holding company, and that’s on us. I own it.

Founder and CEO Jorge Barragan, to Fox Business

Per its franchise disclosure document, The Picklr posted a 2025 net loss of $4.4 million on $10.3 million in revenue.

The lifeline

An investor group led by franchisee Tom Neale committed $4.5 million in financing, subject to court approval. Sports Business Journal reported the figure as $4.8 million.

The bigger picture

Founded in 2021, The Picklr has more than 70 U.S. locations plus facilities in Australia, Canada and Japan. Its filing is a reminder that a booming sport and a profitable facility business are not the same thing, especially when the parent company is on the hook for the leases.

The finals

• Men's singles: Hunter Johnson (3) def. Ben Johns (19), 11-1, 11-3
• Women's singles: Kaitlyn Christian (2) def. Kiora Kunimoto, 11-8, 2-11, 11-4
• Men's doubles: Christian Alshon/Andrei Daescu (2) def. Ben Johns/Gabe Tardio, 11-6, 11-8
• Women's doubles: Anna Leigh Waters/Anna Bright def. Catherine Parenteau/Tyra Black, 11-8, 10-12, 11-5
• Mixed doubles: Anna Bright/Hayden Patriquin (2) def. Ben Johns/Anna Leigh Waters (1), 11-9, 11-7

What stood out

Revenge in men's doubles. Alshon and Daescu beat the team that won their 2025 final here in five games. The Dink reported it was their second straight men's doubles title to open the season, after the Arizona Open.

An 18-year-old in the final. Kunimoto upset top seed Kate Fahey to reach the women's singles final before losing to Christian in three.

Bright's week. She was the only player to win two titles. "The satisfaction is definitely really high," she told Pickleball.com after the mixed final.

Waters' 200th, delayed. The mixed loss kept Waters at 199 career titles. She got No. 200 a week later with a triple crown at the Chicago Cup.

Upsets early. Luc Pham beat top seed Christopher Haworth in the round of 16. Parenteau and Black became the first team to take a game off Waters and Bright.

• Bread & Butter x Selkirk Loco 2. The first joint release from the two brands, with a durable grit surface.
• RPM Jade. RPM's first MPP paddle, also with a durable grit face.
• Enhance MPP Turbo. An ArmorGrit surface at around $100, the most budget-friendly paddle on the list.
• Gearbox Pressure X. Described as the most technically advanced paddle of the group.
• Holbrook Fuze VantaGrit. A new grit surface aimed at control.
• JOOLA POWER FX. JOOLA's first full-foam paddle.

Gear Lab's take

We haven't tested these yet, so this isn't a verdict. But the direction is clear. Brands are competing on how a paddle feels over months, not just out of the wrapper. Grit that wears smooth is the most common complaint among club players, and foam cores are being pitched as more consistent than traditional honeycomb.

If you're shopping, demo before you buy. Weight, grip size and handle length matter more to your game than the surface technology on the box. And Gear Lab never accepts payment for coverage.

The details

• First stop: September 2026 at the Gijón Sports Marina in Gijón, Spain.
• 2026 events: At least four, with Gijón, Zaragoza, Ciudad Real, Almería and Lisbon named.
• From 2027: More events across the Iberian Peninsula and the rest of Europe, with a growing presence in Latin America later.
• Players: Amateurs and pros compete.
• Ratings: A ranking and scoring system developed with DUPR, the same rating system used at APP events.
• Partners: Picklebull and Nox.

The organizers did not announce prize money.

Why it matters

Tours give players a reason to travel and a ladder to climb. For European players, APP points without a transatlantic flight are a real step. Spain is also padel country, and the racket-sport crossover is exactly the audience pickleball needs.