John Lucian Goins closed out Championship Sunday action at the Veolia Bristol Open by snagging his first career PPA title with a 13-11, 9-11, 11-2 victory over No. 15 seed Gabe Joseph.

There was a lot on the line for both players coming into the contest: a chance for Goins to earn his first gold and an opportunity for Joesph to clinch his first since the 2023 Takeya Showcase just over two years ago.

In the end, though, it was the 17-year-old who sprinted to victory in the decider, thanks to a combination of power and precision on his passing shots from the baseline.

Goins—who took silver at the PPA Flower City Challenger earlier this summer—spoke about what it took to gain the upper hand against an experienced opponent like Joseph.

“[Gabe] played awesome and really kept the pressure up the whole match. I felt like every return had to be almost perfectly in the corner, otherwise he was just gonna get it by me every time,” he explained. “I had to go big on my serve and especially my passes. I basically had to paint lines to get it past him.”

As difficult as all that sounds, Goins made it look easy on his way to gold.

The 5-star tennis recruit also acknowledged the fact that he couldn’t have gotten to this point without a lot of support.

“Thank you to my parents for supporting me. Anyone who trains with me and helps me in practice, I’d just like to give a big shoutout to all of them because I wouldn’t be here without them.”

As he continues to rise through the PPA singles rankings, Goins should certainly be a name to watch for years to come in pro pickleball.

In the bronze medal match, No. 7 seed Christian Alshon defeated No. 14 seed Noe Khlif by an 11-0, 11-1 score line.