The Association of Pickleball Players (APP) completed a landmark weekend with one of the largest-ever pickleball tournaments in its history in front of a capacity crowd at the 2024 APP Sacramento Open. Not only that, Jorja Johnson, 17, became the youngest-ever player in APP Tour history to secure a Triple Crown with three gold medals on a thrilling Championship Sunday, broadcast nationally on ESPN2 and ESPN+.
Battling For Gold
Nearly 1,500 pickleball players of all ages and skill levels competed throughout the week at Johnson Ranch Pickleball Complex in Roseville, California. In addition to Johnson’s historic Triple Crown, pro gold medal winners included her older brother JW, Jillian Braverman, Andrei Daescu, Will Howells, and Gabriel Tardio.
Johnson’s historic run in Sacramento started under the lights on Saturday night with the women’s pro doubles gold medal match. Johnson and Braverman took on Milan Rane and Yana Newell, making their first Championship Sunday appearance as a duo.
Johnson and Braverman’s teamwork and chemistry were in evidence, leading them to 11-1 and 11-6 wins to take home the title.
“Jorja’s a great mover, and I felt like we moved really well together,” Braverman said after her first APP Tour gold medal of 2024. “It was super fun, and she makes it so easy.”
Susannah Barr and Megan Fudge won the women’s pro doubles bronze medals.
Daescu Still On Top
The Saturday championship matches continued with men’s pro doubles, featuring Daescu and Tardio against Howells and Johnson. Daescu and Tardio started strongly, cruising to an 11-3 win in game one. Howells and Johnson responded well, taking game two 11-5.
In the deciding game, Daescu proved he was still one of the best men’s doubles players in the sport. He and Tardio won 11-0 to secure their first golds of 2024.
“Gabriel goes for it without any doubt in his mind, and that’s the kind of competitive spirit that we needed,” said Daescu. “We made a great team and got our first golds together. Thank you to the people of Sacramento for coming out in large numbers today–especially to the Romanian community for supporting me.”
“I practice all the time with JW (Johnson), so I know all of his shots which definitely helped,” Tardio added. “But he knows my shots as well, so that made it tough. We both know each other’s games pretty well.”
John Cincola and Jack Munro earned the men’s pro doubles bronze in Sacramento.
Three Epic Games
Championship Sunday’s first match of the day did not disappoint, with Johnson taking on Megan Fudge for women’s pro singles gold. Three epic games ensued, starting with Johnson’s 15-12 win in the opening round. Johnson nearly secured the win in game two, leading 14-12, but Fudge dug deep and scored four straight points to steal the game 16-14. The two battled back and forth in the third game, but Johnson ultimately prevailed 15-13 for her second gold of the tournament.
“I tried to remind myself to just hit my shots and not worry about the score” Johnson commented following the comeback win.
Judit Castillo earned the women’s pro singles bronze.
A Nailbiter!
Another epic match followed, with Howells and Jack Foster battling for men’s pro singles gold. Game one was a nailbiter, 16-14 in favor of Howells, but Foster didn’t go down without a fight, rallying for a 15-10 win in game two.
Howells seized the momentum early in game three, holding on for a 15-10 win to secure his second APP Tour gold medal of 2024.
“Jack’s a great player. He puts on a lot of pressure with his serve and his forehand, and I tried to exploit the backhand,” Howells said following the win.
Chris Haworth took home the men’s pro singles bronze, marking his second APP Tour medal of 2024.
A Force To Be Reckoned With
Jorja Johnson wrapped up her historic tournament in the mixed pro doubles final alongside her brother JW. She matched up against Daria Walczak and Patrick Kawka, a duo that had advanced all the way from the qualifier rounds. The Johnson siblings were a force to be reckoned with, earning 11-5 and 11-2 victories to win the gold and secure Jorja’s third gold of the tournament.
“We played solid defense together,” said the elder JW. Part of it is being lucky, and the other part comes from drilling and practicing our defense a lot at home. I loved being out here with my team and my family,” Jorja added. I couldn’t have won the Triple Crown without them.”
Braverman and Tardio teamed up for mixed pro doubles bronze.
The Humana Cup
The 2024 APP Sacramento Open hosted the second round of the Humana Cup. This historic multi-event, team-based competition features pro players aged 50 and older battling all year long for their share of a $100,000 prize purse.
In the AARP Champions Division (50+), Lee Whitwell brought home two gold medals: one with Jaime Oncins in mixed doubles and the other alongside Lily Kordic in women’s doubles.
Scott Crandall and Dayne Gingrich earned men’s doubles gold, and Mattias Johansson won the men’s singles title.
Bill Munro And Kelly Ojeda
In the AARP Master’s Division (60+), Bill Muno and Kelly Ojeda won two golds apiece, Stacy Potter earned women’s doubles gold, and Brent Waiwaiole took home men’s doubles gold.
The APP returns to action in Miami on March 19-24 for the first Major tournament of 2024, the Chase APP Miami Pickleball Open, plus the inaugural Atlantic Cup competition featuring Team USA against Team Europe. The APP returns to California on July 3-7 for the APP Newport Beach Open.
More information about upcoming APP events—including APP Tour dates, player registration, and ticket information—is available on theapp.global.
APP Pro Winners
Pickleball enthusiasts can also stay in the know by following the app on Instagram, X, Facebook, TikTok, Threads, and LinkedIn.
All APP Pro winners are shown below, with full tournament results available here.
APP Pro Results
| Division | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| Women’s Singles | Jorja Johnson | Megan Fudge | Judit Castillo |
| Men’s Singles | Will Howells | Jack Foster | Chris Haworth |
| Mixed Doubles | Jorja Johnson JW Johnson | Daria Walczak Patrick Kawka | Jillian Braverman Gabriel Tardio |
| Women’s Doubles | Jillian BravermanJorja Johnson | Yana NewellMilan Rane | Susannah Barr Megan Fudge |
| Men’s Doubles | Andrei DaescuGabriel Tardio | Will Howells JW Johnson | John CincolaJack Munro |
AARP Champions Division (50+) Pro Results
| Division | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| Men’s Singles | Mattias Johansson | Brett Eberhardt | Vincent Van Patten |
| Women’s Doubles | Lily Kordic Lee Whitwell | Kelly OjedaStacy Potter | Nathalie Bagby Natalija Todorovic-Shaw |
| Men’s Doubles | Scott Crandall Dayne Gingrich | Jaime Oncins Rick Witsken | Stefan Andren Mircea Morariu |
| Mixed Doubles | Lee Whitwell Jaime Oncins | Anna Shirley Mircea Morariu | Lily Kordic Stefan Andren |
AARP Masters Division (60+) Pro Results
| Division | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| Women’s Doubles | Kelly Ojeda Stacy Potter | Tracy Houk Marilynn Kilgore | Leticia Brambila Raegan Ferguson |
| Men’s Doubles | Brent Waiwaiole Bill Muno | Douglas Koch Jeffrey Tanaka | Mark Malott Glen Peterson |
| Mixed Doubles | Kelly Ojeda Bill Muno | Raegan Ferguson Mike Pazourek | Leticia Brambila Jeffrey Tanaka |
