Next up on the PPA Tour is the Veolia LA Open. It begins April 17, from Fountain Valley, California. This will be a traditional draw format.

Absent again will be Anna Leigh Waters, Catherine Parenteau, and Jack Sock. But, many other star players will be there.

 

Let’s look at each draw and try to predict a few winners, and maybe a longshot or two.

 

 

Ben Johns returns as the #1 seed, looking to return to his gold medal ways. He faces a usually difficult draw. Depending on the outcome of other matches, Ben could face Hayden Patriquin in the round of 16, Pablo Tellez in the quarters, and the winner of Jaume Martinez Vich/Connor Garnett in the semis. That’s a pretty tough road! Steady as ever, Federico Staksrud looks to follow up on his gold medal of last week, with his streak on the line of consecutive finals appearances. He has a little bit easier draw than Ben, although #8 Quang Duong potentially stands in his way. For a longshot, look at #29 seed Donald Young. Young is making good progress in mastering pickleball singles and is a threat to win any match.

 

 

 

Women’s singles is again wide open in the absence of ALW and CP. Mary Brascia returns as the #1 seed, although is not a strong favorite to win. Lea Jansen is again the #2 seed, and looks to make it two golds in a row. Lea is the likely favorite despite being the #2 seed. For a lower seed with a chance to win it, look at #8 Kaitlyn Christian.

 

 

 

The #1 seed is once again Ben and Collin Johns. They look to be a solid favorite to win another gold. They appear likely to face #3 seed Federico Staksrud and Pablo Tellez in the semis. Staksrud/Tellez were not much of a challenge for the Johns brothers last week, so they will look for revenge this week in LA. Up and comer Augie Ge is back this week, paired with Connor Garnett as the #7 seed. They will likely face Staksrud and Tellez in the quarters in what would be a very exciting matchup. In the other half of the draw, the #2 seed is the new pairing of Thomas Wilson and Matt Wright. It will be interesting to see if they (correctly) put Thomas on the left, or if they (incorrectly) play straight up. The bottom half of the draw is the weaker side; but it does have the potential for some smack-talking fireworks. If they can both win earlier matches, the round of 16 would feature a matchup of Brandon French/Collin Shick v. Julian Arnold/Wyatt Stone. For those who love a match with a lot of chirping, this would be a dream come true. One lower seed with a chance to make a run in the bottom half of the draw is the #9 seed, Travis Rettenmeier/Zane Navratil. Both players know how to take best advantage of the new paddle technology and the Vulcan ball. It would not be a surprise to see them advance far.

 

 

The #1 seed this week is again Anna Bright and Rachel Rohrabacher. They look to make it two golds in a row, and they have a reasonable draw to make it happen. Standing in their way may well be the #5 seed of Tina Pisnik/Jessie Irvine. Pisnik is playing as well as anyone; Irvine is capable of steady right-side play, which will allow Pisnik to play her preferred left side. In the bottom half of the draw, it is hard to see anything but a likely semifinal involving #2 seed Meghan Dizon/Etta Wright against #3 seed Lea Jansen/Lucy Kovalova. Jansen/Kovalova is a new pairing but one that makes sense. Jansen can play left and let Kovalova play defense/setup on the right side. They should be fine until they run into a pair that can overcome them with power. Look for a final of #1 v. #2 in this one.

 

 

The #1 seed this week is Ben Johns and Anna Bright. Ben looks to win a gold medal with a third different partner in mixed, and they are the favorites here. The #2 seed is Vivienne David/Thomas Wilson, who appear capable of beating any pair that does not include Ben Johns. They will be challenged this week in the round of 16 where they likely face #14 seed Tyra Black/Augie Ge. Tyra smartly returns to playing with a lefty, allowing her to play the left side, where she is much more effective. Up and coming pair Rachel Rohrabacher/Federico Staksrud move up to being the #6 seed this week, but have a difficult draw. If this is the week they finally break through to making a semifinal or further, they will really have to earn it. For a lower seed with a chance, watch out for #12 Etta Wright/Connor Garnett. Etta earned a gold medal last week, albeit with Ben Johns. Connor is capable of high level pickleball and they have a reasonable draw, so they could make a deep run.

 

The weather in the Los Angeles area is expected to be nice. The pickleball will obviously be top notch. If you are in Southern California, make your way to the facility and catch the action live. There is no substitute for watching the best play the best live and in person. But for those of us not in SoCal, catch the action on pickleballTV.

 

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