Anna Leigh Waters was absent from the Fasenra Sacramento Open presented by Zimmer Biomet, which created an opportunity for some new gold medalists in several events. Eric Oncins, in a first time partnership with Tyra Black, took full advantage of Waters’ absence in mixed doubles, winning his first PPA gold medal in a thrilling five-game gold medal final.

 

 

Eric Oncins has been one of the fastest risers in the PPA rankings the last two years. As recently as 2024, Oncins was not seen as good enough to even be drafted by an MLP Premier Level team. Since that time, he has steadily moved up the rankings, but until this weekend, he had not won a gold medal. That all changed Sunday, as Oncins and Tyra Black won a five-game championship thriller over Jorja Johnson and JW Johnson, 11-7, 6-11, 3-11, 11-8, 11-8. Oncins and Black started as a #4 seed and faced solid competition the whole tournament, winning games in early round matches 12-10 and 11-9. In the semifinals, they faced their toughest challenge to date, #2 seed Parris Todd and Andrei Daescu. That one went the distance, with Oncins and Black winning 11-7 in the third game, to set up the final against the top-seeded Johnsons.

 

The final was a tough back-and-forth affair. Down 2-1 after three games, Oncins and Black gutted out back-to-back 11-8 wins to grab the gold. Black has long been a top five player on the women’s side. Oncins has cracked the top 10 on the men’s side and is now challenging for a top five spot. Expect to see more of Oncins on Championship Sundays in the future.

 

 

 

Anna Bright skipped Sacramento, so with the Waters/Bright team out of the draw, the women’s doubles event was as open as it ever gets. The final did feature the top two seeds, #2 seed Rachel Rohrabacher and Parris Todd against #1 seed Tyra Black and Jorja Johnson. In the final, the two teams traded fairly easy wins in the first two games. But after that, it was all Rohrabacher and Todd as they closed out a gold-medal victory 11-5, 6-11, 11-4, 11-6. With Waters and Bright dominating the top spot so far in 2026, this win by Rohrabacher and Todd sets up a battle going forward for the second spot. Expect to see several more matches in 2026 between Rohrabacher/Todd and Black/Johnson as they fight for the #2 ranking.

 

 

Also worth noting is the bronze medal going to first-time partners Tina Pisnik and Cailyn Campbell. That marks Campbell’s first PPA medal. In my Sacramento preview, I had picked Pisnik and Campbell for the silver, so their performance was no surprise to me. Pisnik is always steady, and Campbell is finally getting some results that match her rising talent. Campbell is one to watch on the women’s side as someone likely to challenge for a top 10 ranking in the not too distant future.

 

 

Kate Fahey has been the #2 women’s singles player for awhile, and she confirmed her status on Sunday by wiping out Kaitlyn Christian easily 11-3, 11-0. Fahey’s toughest test turned out to be the semifinal, where rising teenage singles star Kiora Kunimoto gave her a test, with Fahey prevailing 11-5, 11-9. Other than Kunimoto, Fahey’s three opponents could only muster a total of seven points in six games.

 

Fahey is solidly #2 in women’s singles, but Kunimoto showed she is definitely in the top 10 and it will not be long before we see her on the medal stand.

 

4. Johns and Tardio win another gold

 

In men’s doubles, Ben Johns and Gabe Tardio remained undefeated in 2026, taking down CJ Klinger and JW Johnson in the final in four games. Johns and Tardio were pushed, losing a game in the quarters, semis, and finals, but as usual were at their toughest when pushed.

 

In the final, Johns and Tardio took a page from brother Collin Johns’ playbook, focusing on Klinger and generally staying away from Johnson. In Newport Beach earlier this year, Collin and Len Yang scored one of the biggest upsets on 2026, defeating Klinger and Johnson. They did so by playing virtually every shot to Klinger and giving Johnson no opportunities to employ his wicked backhand. The surprise since that time is that no teams facing Klinger and Johnson have tried to employ Collin’s successful strategy. But you can bet that Collin and Ben conferred on that one, and the post-match interview confirmed that Ben, along with Collin, remain the two most strategic players on tour. Ben Johns has excellent skills, but he is #1 because of his discipline and thoughtful approach to the game. Up and coming players would be well-served to copy Ben’s focus on discipline and strategy and not just ball striking.

Next up on the PPA Tour is the Veolia Atlanta Pickleball Championships beginning April 27. 2,000 points will be up for grabs in the last tournament before the PPA Finals. Several spots in the Finals are still open, so expect to see everyone there making a final push for ranking points. The tournament will be on Pickleballtv all week.

 

Follow me on X @pickleball_jim for updates.