Yesterday, USA Pickleball (USAPA) and the PPA Tour announced their partnership, which will allow for the 2023 USA Pickleball National Championships to better accommodate this year’s larger player pool and audience.
The National Championships have been some of the biggest events that pickleball has ever seen. Just a few years after the USAPA was created in 2005, the first-ever National Tournament was held in 2009 at the Sun City Festival in Buckeye, AZ.
This first major tournament had about 400 participants who competed on 20 pickleball courts, many of which were hand-built, converted tennis courts. Today, the 2023 USA Pickleball National Championships will now be hosted at the Brookhaven Country Club in Dallas, where more than 3,500 players will compete on 65 state-of-the-art pickleball courts.
USAPA decided to partner with the PPA Tour as its official presenter in order to enhance the tournament for both players and spectators alike due to the sport’s amplified growth this year. The USAPA anticipates a 50 percent increase in player capacity alone, and will likely see even greater growth in fan attendance, with an expected total of 25,000 attendees.
The National Championships were intended to be hosted at Indian Wells Tennis Garden in Indian Wells, CA where the tournament has been held since 2018. While Indian Wells has been a great venue for the tournament, the event has grown larger than the 45 pickleball courts it has to offer.
USAPA and PPA Tour are currently planning many additional amenities for the event at Brookhaven Country Club. The street outside of the club will be designated “Pickleball Boulevard” for the tournament and will offer a stage for live music, family-friendly activities, food and beverage vendors, and various other interactive events.
The PPA Tour will be running most of the event’s logistics and overall operations. Robert Quicksilver, Chairman of the USA Pickleball Board of Directors, believes that the PPA will bring a heightened level of professionalism to the event, making this year the best National Championships yet.
“We are thrilled to partner with the PPA Tour in our ongoing efforts to enhance the USA Pickleball National Championships and further cement its position as the premier pickleball tournament in the world. Given the PPA Tour’s proven track record of running exceptional pickleball tournaments … USA Pickleball is confident that the 2023 National Championships will be the best tournament ever for our amateur and professional players, as well as for our fans, sponsors, and media partners.”
Robert Quicksilver, Chairman of the USA Pickleball Board of Directors
In addition to the enhanced tournament experience, players can expect an improved prize purse. While 2023’s purse hasn’t been announced yet, players won $150,000 during last year’s event, the largest cash prize in USAPA history.
In addition to the PPA Tour’s new role with the National Championships, their partnership with USAPA will now make these three upcoming PPA Tour tournaments Golden Ticket qualifiers for the National Championships:
- The Selkirk Texas Open – May 31-June 4
- The Baird Seattle Open – July 27-30
- The Kansas City Open – August 24-27
Golden Tickets are offered to winners at USAPA National Championships Series (NCS) events, and serve as an automatic pre-registration to play in the USA Pickleball National Championships. This incentivizes player participation in these PPA Tour events, while also promoting other NCS events: a win-win for both the PPA Tour and USAPA.
Visit the USAPA’s website for more information about the 2023 USA Pickleball National Championships.
