Pickleball Magazine 9-1 | Page 48

USA Pickleball News & Notes

The Scoop

USA Pickleball Unveils New Golden Ticket Format , Schedule

USA Pickleball recently unveiled the 2024 schedule and a new format for Golden Ticket tournaments , the only guaranteed path for amateur players to play in the 2024 Biofreeze USA Pickleball National Championships , the premier tournament in the sport of pickleball .

As featured tournaments where bracket winners earn pre-registration access to Nationals , Golden Ticket events offer participants an unrivaled player experience , exclusive gift bag at USA Pickleballoperated Golden Ticket tournaments , and the opportunity to compete at some of the best facilities around the country . Only at these tournaments will gold medal winners earn a “ Golden Ticket ” for the exclusive opportunity to pre-register for the USA Pickleball National Championships .

2024 Golden Ticket Tournament Schedule March 6-10 – APP Sacramento Open ( Sacramento , CA ) March 20-24 – APP Miami Open ( Miami , FL ) April 3-7 – USA Pickleball Golden Ticket at Mesa ( Mesa , AZ ) April 15-21 – USA Pickleball Golden Ticket at Las Vegas , driven by Fortune Tires ( Las Vegas , NV ) May 1-5 – USA Pickleball Golden Ticket at Rockwall ( Rockwall , TX ) May 7-12 – APP Cincinnati Open ( Cincinnati , OH ) May 22-26 – APP New York City Open ( New York , NY ) May 29-June 2 – UTR Sports Macon Open ( Macon , GA ) June 5-9 – USA Pickleball Golden Ticket at Virginia Beach ( Virginia Beach , VA ) July 3-7 – APP Newport Beach Open ( Newport Beach , CA ) July 10-14 – UTR Sports Denver Open ( Arvada , CO )

VP Announcement

USA Pickleball recently named Steve Wong its Vice President of Competition . In this role , Wong will oversee USA Pickleball ’ s competition department with an emphasis on

growing and streamlining all sanctioned tournament play , including National Championships , regional tournaments and general sanctioning . In 2005 , Wong was a charter board member and helped establish USA Pickleball .

Nearly 3,000 Matches Played at Diamond Amateur Championship

USA Pickleball hosted the second annual Diamond Amateur Championship , presented by Fortune Tires , Dec . 3-10 in Holly Hill , Florida . More than 1,000 players competed in nearly 3,000 matches at Pictona at Holly Hill during the week . Players took home about 675 medals , with more than 250 being gold medals that earned the winners a Golden Ticket and pre-registration to the 2024 Biofreeze USA Pickleball National Championships .

USA Pickleball Announces Official Coaching Education Partner

USA Pickleball announced Dec . 5 that Pickleball Coaching International ( PCI ) will be designated as an “ Official Coaching Education Partner .” PCI has met a strict set of protocols established by USA Pickleball that are required to ensure the highest standards for coach certification and education for the sport .

McEnroe , Brees Demo Quiet OWL Paddles

OWL Sport recently unveiled the first certified paddle under the USA Pickleball Quiet Category proven to reduce noise by 50 percent . In December , tennis legend John McEnroe and former NFL quarterback Drew Brees took to the court alongside USA Pickleball Chief Executive Officer Mike Nealy and pro players to showcase how quiet the OWL paddle technology is , while demonstrating the paddle ’ s elite performance capabilities .

The OWL is the first paddle on the market that delivers a hertz level below 600 and a decibel level below 80 . •

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