Yesterday was Championship Sunday for the ninth stop on the 2023 PPA Tour. The PPA returned to Charlotte, NC for the second year of the OS1st North Carolina Open held at Life Time Charlotte.
Championship Sunday saw a good mix of new and familiar faces. From the stellar debut performances by Jack Sock to the return of pickleball all-star Anna Leigh Waters, the North Carolina Open, there’s a lot to discuss – let’s jump right in!
Men’s Singles – Federico Staksrud (1) vs. Tyson McGuffin (3)
The first match of the day was a big one: Federico Staksrud vs. Tyson McGuffin, and the journey to that match was a wild one. Men’s singles saw a huge pool of 55 qualifiers, which led to some very interesting matchups within the playoff bracket.
25-seed Ross Whittaker won against the 8-seed Julian Arnold in the first round, marking a huge upset. Whittaker progressed to the quarterfinals where lost to Staksrud who was then able to coast into the finals after a decisive 11-4, 11-3 win against Jake Kusmider in the semifinals.
The same thing happened in Tyson’s bracket, where 27-seed Jhonnatan Medina Alvarez was able to take down the 6-seed Ryan Sherry and 11-seed Pablo Tellez to make it to the quarterfinals. Alvarez played incredibly well against McGuffin in two close games, but McGuffin came out on top, 11-9, 12-10.
Fed and Tyson was bound to be an exciting matchup. Both players have been crushing it in the PPA this season in men’s singles going into the match, Staksrud having one gold medal and three silvers, and McGuffin coming off of a big gold medal finish at PPA Red Rock.
The two competitors had only faced off against each other twice previously, with Staksrud having won both times. Staksrud retained his undefeated record against McGuffin, winning in two games, 11-7, 11-5, earning his second gold medal in men’s singles this year.
Women’s Doubles – Parenteau/Waters (1) vs. Grechkina/Stratman (7)
Anna Leigh Waters partnered back up with Catherine Parenteau to take on the 7-seed Yana Grechkina and Lauren Stratman. This was Grechkina and Stratman’s second time partnering up and they made it all the way to the finals by upsetting the PPA Newport Beach champs Callie Smith and Lucy Kovalova.
Parenteau went into this match undefeated in women’s doubles, and with Anna Leigh Waters at her side the two didn’t drop a game the entire tournament. Waters has won every single women’s doubles PPA event that she’s participated in this season, and PPA North Carolina was no different.
From the very start of the match, it was evident that Parenteau and Waters would be in control. They won game one decisively, 11-3, and were able to repeat that feat 11-4 in game two.
In game three, CP and Waters put on an absolute clinic, not dropping a single point in a remarkable 11-0 win. This win was the first of three for Waters, who earned yet another Triple Crown.
Men’s Doubles – Wright/Newman (1) vs. Johnson/Frazier (2)
Men’s doubles saw the rematch we’ve all been waiting for! JW Johnson and Dylan Frazier took down Matt Wright and Riley Newman at the Newport Beach Doubles Shootout by winning all three of their games in the finals match.
Frazier and Johnson have been one of the PPA’s top men’s teams this season, earning a podium finish at every event this season, with four bronze and two gold medals. Newman and Wright are a veteran team in pickleball, having won multiple tournaments together.
Both teams didn’t drop a game all tournament, and they brought that energy to the finals. Newman and Wright took control in game one, winning 11-3. Frazier and Johnson were able to take an early 8-2 lead in game two, but Newman and Wright locked them out after that, coming back to win 11-8.
Game three saw a lot of back and forth in the first half, with both teams tying it all up at 5-5. Newman and Wright once again shut it down after that, winning 11-6, and taking home the gold medal.
Women’s Singles – Anna Leigh Waters (1) vs. Lea Jansen (3)
Everyone was excited not only for Anna Leigh to return to women’s singles after nearly two months away, but also for the fact that her first finals match back would be up against none other than Lea Jansen. The two always put on quite the show when playing against one another, and Waters has come out on top in the last 16 of their matches.
On the way to the finals, both players had some hard fought matches. Waters took down the 4-seed Salome Devidze, and Jansen was able to take down 6-seed Lauren Stratman and 7-seed Brooke Buckner. Anna Leigh didn’t drop a single game and Jansen only lost one along the way.
In the finals matchup, we saw very similar results to their previous meetings. Waters took game one quickly, 11-1, and kept that momentum into game two, winning 11-3, marking her second of three gold medals for PPA North Carolina.
Mixed Doubles – Waters/Sock (6) vs. Newman/Jones (4)
All eyes were on Jack Sock, the former tennis star who made his pro pickleball debut at the North Carolina Open, and on the return of his mixed pro partner and pickleball’s top player, Anna Leigh Waters. This was the first time the two paired up together, and they were able to drop just one game leading up to the finals match against the 4-seed team of Riley Newman and Allyce Jones.
The Jones and Newman duo were unstoppable on the way to the finals taking down the number 1 seeded team of Catherine Parenteau and Tyson McGuffin, as well as defeating the Newport Beach defending champs, JW and Jorja Johnson. Sock and Waters also made quite a run through the brackets, taking down Anna Bright and James Ignatowich who recently won their first gold at Red Rock.
Aired on ESPN2 due to the PPA’s recent broadcast deal with ESPN, the finals match was an absolute shootout. Jones and Newman started strong, taking game one 11-3. However, Sock and Waters were able to talk things through between games and find their footing again.
With these adjustments, they won the next two games swiftly, 11-2, 11-3, winning the gold medal. The win locked in Anna Leigh’s Triple Crown and was Sock’s first ever pro pickleball gold medal finish.
In a post-game interview, Sock explained that he needed to adapt in games two and three to flip the script on Riley Newman. Sock left his first tournament with a gold medal and says he’ll be back for more.
“I’ve just been so stoked for this weekend for a long time, obviously I’ve been a fan of the sport for awhile now … PPA’s been all that I was hoping for and I definitely will be around the scene more at some point in the future.”
Jack Sock on his first pro pickleball gold medal
