
Alshon, Patriquin hungry for golden opportunity on Championship Sunday
Silver.
Silver.
Bronze.
That's been No. 2 seed Christian Alshon and Hayden Patriquin's medal haul together in men's doubles through three PPA tournaments thus far in 2026.
All that stands in the way of their first gold medal together now is a Championship Sunday matchup against the top-seeded tandem of Ben Johns and Gabe Tardio in Mesa.
Alshon and Patriquin advanced to the final with a relatively easy 11-7, 11-3 victory over No. 4 seed JW Johnson and CJ Klinger on Saturday.
Alshon and Patriquin exacted sweet revenge for a straight-games semifinal loss to Johnson and Klinger just last week at the Zimmer Biomet Cape Coral Open.
"I think we were losing a lot of the hands battles [in that last match against them] and kind of losing everything at the kitchen line, so Christian kind of watched everything over and gave me the notes to just drop better, play those longer rallies, and just counter well," explained Patriquin. "I think we did that really well. I think they were a little bit off their game, but I thought we played really well."
Alshon and Patriquin are obviously hungry to finally reach the top of the podium.
Solving Johns and Tardio won't be a walk in the park, of course, but the effort will certainly be there.
"[We want to win] really bad," stressed Patriquin. "We've been on a losing streak, so we're going to take this one home."
Johns and Tardio previously beat Alshon and Patriquin 11-9, 11-4, 11-5 in the final of the Carvana PPA Masters powered by Invited in January.
Related articles

What’s wrong with Ben Johns and Gabe Tardio?
Ben Johns is still the best player in the world. Gabe Tardio is still the best right-side player in the world. But, the next ten players are closing the gap.
23 hours ago
-Jim Kloss

Best dressed at the Opendoor Pickleball World Championships
The fashion game was fierce.
1 day ago
-Victoria Radnothy

Worlds was Tama Time! (oh, and another ALW Triple Crown)
Worlds lived up to its billing as the biggest and best pickleball tournament anywhere.
2 days ago
-Jim Kloss
.jpg?width=592&height=237&optimizer=image)
The Yips: how Connor Garnett overcame his biggest mental hurdle on the court
"Sports is one of the truest forms of who you are. When you have insecurites, it comes out in sports," said Connor Garnett.
2 days ago
-Victoria Radnothy