The Report
Castillo completes the Barcelona triple crown
Good morning, pickleballers.
Judit Castillo left Barcelona with all three professional titles she entered. She and Zane Navratil won mixed doubles on Sunday, closing the first PPA Tour Europe stop with a triple crown for Castillo and a gold for a partner who had missed the earlier finals.
We also have £5,970 awarded across Amber Valley’s seven graded competitions, the Charlotte Challenger’s five pro draws, and the start of the Rate Las Vegas Open.
Castillo completes the three-title sweep.
Castillo and Navratil beat Tom Protzek and Katie Morris 11–2, 11–2 for mixed gold. She had already beaten Hannah Blatt for singles gold, then partnered her to win women’s doubles. Her three titles came with three different competitive demands.
For Navratil, the mixed result changed the ending to a week in which his singles and men’s doubles runs had both stopped before the final. Players representing Spain featured in all five professional gold-medal results.
Read the full Barcelona reportGraded players shared £5,970 in prize money.
Amber Valley awarded £5,970 across seven separate 3.5 and 4.0 competitions at Derby Arena. William Cheer won men’s 4.0 with Adrian Henley and mixed 4.0 with Sarah Mitchell. Khayra Hazly also won twice, taking women’s 4.0 with Nikki Kelana Chia and mixed 3.5 with Ian Lim.
The prize total gives the second weekend a wider point: this club event put money behind graded competition as well as its Open draws. The men’s 3.5 final was the closest gold match, with Harry Mounsey and George Raiswell beating Adam Gross and James Gavuzzi 11–10, 11–9.
Read the Derby roundupFive titles, new chances in Charlotte.
The Charlotte PPA Challenger ran five professional draws across singles, gendered doubles and mixed doubles from 25 to 27 September. Its completed brackets give a separate look at the players competing below the main PPA Tour spotlight.
WPM’s results roundup follows the winners and the paths that mattered across the five draws.
Read the Charlotte results roundupCan Mesa’s challengers do it again?
Gabe Tardio, Anna Bright and Hayden Patriquin return this week, bringing several leading doubles partnerships back together. Nico Acevedo and Yuta Funemizu came within one point, on seven occasions, of taking Mesa’s men’s doubles final from Christian Alshon and Andrei Daescu.
Acevedo now plays with Jaume Martinez Vich, while Ben Johns reunites with Tardio and Alshon and Daescu continue in their revised court positions. Las Vegas will test whether the players who broke through in Arizona can sustain those results against a restored field.
Read the Las Vegas previewThree numbers to keep in mind.
3 Barcelona golds for Castillo across singles, women’s doubles and mixed doubles.
£5,970 awarded across seven graded Amber Valley competitions.
198 career PPA Tour titles for Anna Leigh Waters as play begins in Las Vegas.
More than the daily headlines
The September edition of World Pickleball Magazine goes deeper into the people, technology, culture and structures shaping the sport around the world. Read it online or download the issue free.
Read Issue #20 freeMake your next tournament easier to follow
World Pickleball Studio adds commentary, graphics and studio presentation to live tournament coverage, giving viewers a clearer sense of the players, stories and matches in front of them.
Visit World Pickleball StudioKnow someone following the global game?
Forward them today’s Report. Five minutes each morning is enough to stay with the stories shaping pickleball around the world.
Join the World Pickleball Report