Miami, get ready for pickleball, and music! The 2024 APP Tour continues this week with a momentous event, the Chase APP Miami Pickleball Open on March 19-24 at the Miami Beach Convention Center. The event will be the APP’s first Major tournament of 2024—featuring enhanced prize pools and draws for pros—and is a USA Pickleball Golden Ticket event, in which gold medalists earn the right to pre-register for USAP National Championships in November.
Get Your Party On!
As well as bringing the world’s best pickleball to Miami, the APP is also hosting Grammy Award-winning reggae artist Shaggy and Miami music icon DJ Irie who are scheduled to perform at APP Pickleball Beats Presented by Chase, a first-of-its kind celebration of arts and pickleball held by the Association of Pickleball Players (APP) and Chase. Tickets are now available for the March 22 concert at 8 p.m. ET at Island Gardens in Miami, Fla.
While there’s plenty to celebrate off the court, there’s no shortage of excitement on the courts and plenty of stakes up for grabs. Let’s dive in.
Pickleball players from around the world will hit the courts this week in Miami, featuring amateurs of all ages, pickleball’s elite pros, and the AARP Champions (50+) and AARP Masters (60+) Divisions. Miami will host singles, doubles and mixed doubles competition throughout the week, with medals and prize money up for grabs.
Coinciding with the Chase APP Miami Pickleball Open is a historic international event, the inaugural APP Atlantic Cup. Team USA will battle against Team Europe in the first-ever international team competition in pickleball, featuring singles, doubles and mixed doubles competition. International pickleball supremacy and the title of Atlantic Cup champions is on the line during the three-day competition on March 20, 22 and 24.
The stage is set for world-class pickleball competition, as defending APP Tour gold medalists Andrei Daescu, Will Howells, Jorja Johnson, JW Johnson and Gabriel Tardio return to action.
APP Tour mainstays Susannah Barr, Shelby Bates, Judit Castillo, John Cincola, Andrei Daescu, Ryler DeHeart, Jack Foster, Megan Fudge, Simone Jardim, Hunter Johnson, Yates Johnson, Brendon Long, Chris Haworth, Mari Humberg, Bobbi Oshiro, Milan Rane, Will Sobek, Alix Truong, and members of the APP Next Gen National Team all return to action in the 305.
Jorja on our Minds
Jorja Johnson became the third woman, and youngest-ever player (17) to earn a Triple Crown after winning three gold medals at the APP Sacramento Open. Johnson will team up with her brother JW Johnson once again as defending mixed doubles champions, and with Rane in women’s doubles. Rane took home women’s doubles gold alongside Oshiro at the season-opening APP Punta Gorda Open.
Andrei & Co.
Andrei Daescu led all APP pros with 29 total medals and 20 gold medals in 2023, and has three medals thus far in 2024. The Romania native will play men’s doubles alongside Tardio, fresh off gold medals together in Sacramento. Daescu will play mixed pro doubles with Fudge, who led all APP women’s pros with 28 total medals in 2023.
Will the Thrill
Will Howells has burst onto the scene with two golds and four total medals so far in 2024. Howells took home the men’s singles title in Sacramento along with the silver in men’s doubles. The Boca Raton, FL native will join forces with DeHeart in men’s doubles, and Rane in mixed doubles.
¡Vamos, Judit!
Judit Castillo earned her first gold medal of the 2024 season in Punta Gorda and took home women’s singles bronze in Sacramento. The Valencia, Spain native will team up with Eva Radzikowska in women’s pro doubles.
Texas Twinning
Hunter Johnson returns to action as the number one seed in men’s pro singles in Miami. Hunter and Yates Johnson combined to win 11 out of 15 men’s pro singles gold medals on the 2023 APP Tour season. The twin brothers from New Braunfels, Texas are also the top seeds in the men’s pro doubles draw.
Raising the Barr
Susannah Barr earned 24 total medals–including 11 golds—in 2023, both the second-most among APP women’s pros. Team “Fudge-Barr” returns to action in women’s doubles in Miami after earning bronze in Sacramento, and Barr will team up with Hunter Johnson in mixed doubles.
Super Simone
Simone Jardim will compete in women’s doubles with Allison Harris as the number two seeds. The duo earned gold together in New Jersey in 2023.
Don’t Miss the Action
The 2024 Chase APP Miami Pickleball Open will be streamed live on ESPN+ on Friday, March 22; Saturday, March 23; and Sunday, March 24; plus two hours of live coverage on ESPN2 on Sunday, March 10, from 10 a.m.-12 p.m. ET. Fans can stay posted on all the action by following the APP’s social media pages: @OfficialAPPTour on Instagram, X, TikTok, and Threads and APP Tour on Facebook.
Venue:
Miami Beach Convention Center
1901 Convention Center Dr.
Miami Beach, Florida
Broadcast Info:
Friday, March 22| 12-6 p.m. ET | ESPN+
Saturday, March 23| 12-6 p.m. ET | ESPN+
Sunday, March 24| 10 a.m.-12 p.m. ET | ESPN2
Sunday, March 24| 12-4 p.m. ET | ESPN+
Ticket Info:
Tickets for the 2024 Chase APP Miami Beach Open are now available via SITickets.com for $15, and kids ages 12 and under are free. Tickets will also be sold at the venue, which opens at 8 a.m. local time each day of the tournament.
