The biggest story to kick off the new pickleball year in 2026 is that Will Howells will now join the PPA Tour, with his first appearance at The Masters, beginning January 12 from Mission Hills Country Club.

Howells is a top 10 talent and the best player to join the PPA Tour since Andrei Daescu. Howells, like Daescu before him, has dominated the APP Tour. Granted that it is against much weaker competition, but Howells won just about everything on the APP Tour, finishing just last week with a double gold in his last tournament. Can Will bring such success over to the PPA Tour, now playing against the best in the world? Daescu has certainly shown the way, becoming a multi-gold winner and MLP champion.

I sat down with Will to discuss the transition to playing with and against the top players in the world.

First off, partners matter. Outside of singles, no one plays alone and success is often dependent on how good your partners are. Will revealed he will start the year playing men’s doubles with MLP teammate Noe Khlif and mixed doubles with Rachel Rohrabacher. Those are some good partners! Will and Rachel both live in Florida and will be getting in some practice time before The Masters. Noe and Will are well-acquainted with each other, being teammates on the New Jersey 5s.

In finding partners, Will did have the obstacle of not having any ranking points. We saw that effect with Chris Haworth when he joined the PPA Tour. Haworth is a top 5 singles player, but started out as a #55 seed, before working his way up to his current, correct status in the top 5. In talking with possible partners, Will said “some players were concerned about points, some players think I’m unproven to an extent, so they were hesitant to play with me.”

Despite the fact the lack of ranking points means Howells will get lower seeds than his talent may indicate, he has no problems with the system. “I think it’s good that they have a points system. I don’t think you want anything subjective. I think it’s good that it’s concrete and has to be earned.”  Because he will get a lower seed, it may mean he has to play a top team earlier. But, he’s not intimidated by playing top seeds. “I know that I’m capable of beating those top guys. I’m going to be in position where I have to play them earlier, but then they have to play me earlier.”

Living in Florida, Will is very familiar with all the top players. He regularly practices with and against Federico Staksrud, Dylan Frazier, Hayden Patriquin, Pablo Tellez, and the many other Florida PPA players. In addition, he has had great success at MLP. In 2025, he posted a 52-22 winning record. Of course, part of that was playing mixed with Anna Leigh Waters, but Howells went 13-7 in men’s doubles with Zane Navratil (before the Khlif trade), with wins over all the top teams. As Will correctly points out, he not only practices with many of the best players, but he “has had success against all those guys” and thus sees no reason he can’t have success on the PPA Tour.

For goals for 2026, Will is realistic and confident. “My goals when I step on the court are to win every tournament that I play, plain and simple.” As for now playing the much tougher PPA competition, “I know it’s going to be difficult. There are a lot of good players. I know I can beat any player. It’s not going to be perfect. Any time I step on the court, my goal is to win. I’m trying to win every tournament.” That really is Will’s mantra, his mindset: “I want to win tournaments.”

One adjustment for Will is the switch to the Life Time ball. He is now able to practice exclusively with the Life Time ball. Will finds that the ball “is a lot faster.” Does the switch help or hurt his game? “I think it’s better for me. I play a more aggressive style, so it fits me.” Will describes his game as a blend between “old school” dinking and “new school” aggressive speedups.

In 2026, Will is going to be back with his New Jersey 5s teammates, looking for that championship. He loves MLP; “I’m super excited. I’m looking forward to it. My team’s awesome. The ownership is awesome. My teammates are great.” How is it playing with ALW? “She’s a great teammate, very supportive.”

Will enters 2026 with a nice UPA contract and sponsors such as Franklin, Daps, and Pilla. Life is good, and he recognizes it: “I’m so lucky. This is a blessing to do this for a living. I’m sure there’s many people who wish they could do this. I never take it for granted. I’m super lucky.” Will looks forward to seeing the PPA fans and the much bigger crowds he will now be playing in front of. As for the fans, “I love them. They are the reason we are able to do this. It’s nice to see people so supportive.”

Finally, I asked Will if he gets butterflies at all before playing. He said no. But, he did admit that when it comes to The Masters, and his first PPA event, he is likely to be “super hyped.” How could he not be? Playing against Ben Johns, Anna Leigh Waters, Hayden Patriquin, Anna Bright, etc., in front of the biggest crowds for pickleball. How will Will Howells do against these top players in the world? It is going to be the biggest story starting out 2026. I don’t know about you, but I cannot wait to see how it plays out. Count me in for a courtside seat at Will’s first match at The Masters in January. See you there!

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