The Association of Pickleball Players (APP) showcased its world-class pickleball talent in front of a packed stadium crowd on CBS Sports Network on a thrilling Championship Sunday at the 2024 APP Vlasic Classic in Delray Beach.
Hundreds of pickleball players of all ages and skill levels took the courts over five days at the venerable Delray Beach Tennis Center, with the sport’s elite pros battling for gold and their share of a $100,000 prize pool. Boynton Beach residents and brother-sister duo JW Johnson and Jorja Johnson each won gold in their hometown tournament, with fellow Florida residents Megan Fudge (Belleair) and Gabriel Tardio (Jupiter) also winning gold. Judit Castillo won her second women’s singles title of 2024, and Chris Haworth earned his own second gold of the season in men’s singles. Jill Braverman and Dylan Frazier rounded out the group of champions.
The championship matches kicked off on Saturday evening under the lights, live on CBS Sports Network. First up was women’s pro doubles, featuring Braverman and Fudge against Jorja Johnson and Milan Rane. Johnson and Rane started strong with an 11-7 game one win before Braverman and Fudge retaliated in game two, 11-5. Game three was neck-and-neck throughout, with Fudge and Braverman ultimately prevailing, 11-9.
“The trust we developed was huge,” Fudge said following the win. “We kept reassuring each other that we could do it and that we were going to win the dogfight. We showed up and got it done. I had fun out there, and it’s nice that it all came together.”
“Our energy was really important,” Braverman followed. “Huge kudos to Megan for her high pickle IQ and just being the most positive partner a girl could ask for.”
Allison Harris and Simone Jardim won the women’s pro doubles bronze medals.
Men’s pro doubles followed, pitting JW Johnson and Dylan Frazier against Andrei Daescu and Gabriel Tardio. An epic three-game thriller ensued, taking more than 90 minutes and was back-and-forth throughout. The opening game went to Daescu and Tardio, 13-11. Johnson and Frazier battled back from there, taking game two 11-6 and game three 11-8 to secure the golds.
“We had to be careful because they have great hands and like to play aggressive,” commented Johnson. “Once we started playing more aggressive on our side, we played better and got the win.”
“Andrei and Gabriel are such great competitors – they gave us no breathing room, and we know they are going to fight until the very end,” Frazier added. “Thank you to Ken [Herrmann] and the APP for putting on another great tournament.”
Ryler DeHeart and Michael Loyd took home the men’s pro doubles bronze.
The championship action continued Sunday at the Delray Beach Tennis Center, with continued coverage on CBS Sports Network. Judit Castillo and Megan Fudge faced off in the women’s pro singles final, a rematch of the season-opening APP Punta Gorda Open. Castillo came out firing and never looked back, winning 15-8 and 15-6 to claim her second APP Tour gold medal of 2024.
“It’s been amazing here in Florida”, said Castillo. “I got my first medal this year in Punta Gorda, and the weather helps my game a little bit more. The hard part is consistently getting results and getting back to the top. There’s a lot of sacrifice, travel, and hard work, so it means a lot to get this gold.”
Yana Newell earned women’s pro singles bronze.
Next up on championship court was the mixed pro doubles final featuring Jill Braverman and Andrei Daescu against Jorja Johnson and Gabriel Tardio. The youthful duo of Johnson and Tardio jumped out to a fast start, taking game one 11-5. Braverman and Daescu’s veteran experience powered them to respond 11-9 in game two. The deciding third game came down to the wire, with Johnson and Tardio persevering, 11-7.
“We’ve practiced a lot together and really trust our shots,” commented Johnson. “Even though we’re both young, we’ve played in a ton of tournaments and it definitely helps to have that experience. We’ve gotten bronze in the past few tournaments together, so we’re really thankful to upgrade to a different color this time.”
“It was a very tight match all three games, and we were able to get lucky on a couple of balls,” added Tardio. “We just kept rolling each game until we got to 11.”
Boca Raton resident Milan Rane and JW Johnson teamed up for mixed pro doubles bronze.
Men’s pro singles concluded the Championship Sunday slate, with Chris Haworth taking on JW Johnson. The opening frame went the distance, with Haworth sneaking past Johnson 17-15. Haworth’s momentum carried him into game two, winning 15-11 to secure his second APP Tour gold medal of 2024.
“I’m super happy with how I’m fighting right now. Obviously winning is a huge accomplishment, but there are many more tournaments to go and the year is still young and a lot to work on.”
Boca Raton resident Will Howells took home men’s singles bronze.
AARP Champions and Masters Pro Action
In AARP Champions Division (50+) action in Delray Beach, Lee Whitwell and Jaime Oncins each won two golds, Marcello Jardim earned men’s singles gold, and Karin Ptaszek-Kochis took home women’s singles gold.
In AARP Masters Division (60+) competition, Moira Roush and Chuck Feinstein won mixed doubles gold, Scott Moore and David Spearman secured men’s doubles gold, and Cynthia Dardis and Jenny Reifeis teamed up for women’s doubles gold.
The 2024 APP Vlasic Classic in Delray Beach also featured the latest round of the Humana Cup, a season-long team competition for pickleball pros aged 50 and above. Full competition results can be found at theapp.global
