New Pairings, New Winners Likely in Utah at the Red Rock Open

The fourth of four straight PPA Tour tournaments in April takes place this weekend in St. George, Utah. The PPA Red Rock Open kicks off Wednesday at the Little Valley Sports Complex. 

Due to the quick turnaround times of the tournaments in April, there are quite a few players not attending this tour stop. Some of the players missing are:

• Anna Leigh Waters
• Catherine Parenteau
• Riley Newman
• Thomas Wilson
• Matt Wright
• Rachel Rohrabacher
• Lucy Kovalova
• Brooke Buckner
• Parris Todd

How To Watch the PPA Red Rock Open

All times are EST

Thursday, April 25th - Singles

• 1-9pm - Championship Court - PickleballTV/Prime Video
• 1-7pm - Grandstand Court - PPA YouTube 

Friday, April 26th - Mixed Doubles

• 1-9pm - Championship Court - PickleballTV/Prime Video
• 1-7pm - Grandstand Court - PPA YouTube 

Saturday, April 27th - Gender Doubles

• 1-9pm - Championship Court - PickleballTV/Prime Video
• 1-7pm - Grandstand Court - PPA YouTube 

Sunday, April 28st - Championship Sunday

• 1-7pm - Championship Court - PickleballTV/Prime Video
• Noon-4pm - Bronze Grandstand Court - PPA YouTube 

Women’s Singles

Storylines

• Mary Brascia is the No. 1 seed for the third time in a row - can she make it to Championship Sunday?
• Can No. 18 seed Alix Truong follow up her 6th-place finish at PPA Houston with another deep run?
• With Brooke Buckner not playing this event, we will not see a back-to-back winner on Sunday.

Players to watch

• The field is really small, so even the players who may have to play a qualifier in a bigger tournament are seeded in the teens at this one.
• (22) Layne Sleeth could make some more rumblings after a sixth-place finish last week in LA.

• (20) Angie Walker - I really like her as a No. 20 seed, but she is going up against (13) Christine Maddox in the first round, and I don’t like that matchup for her.

Predictions

• Semifinalists: (7) Liz Truluck, (2) Lea Jansen, (3) Judit Castillo, and (6) Kaitlyn Christian
• Gold: Kaitlyn Christian beats Lea Jansen in the finals to earn her first gold medal on the PPA Tour

Men’s Singles

Storylines

• While he is playing men’s doubles and mixed doubles, Ben Johns is not playing singles.
• The No. 1 seed is Federico Staksrud and the No. 2 seed is Connor Garnett, which could lead to a rematch of the finals of the PPA LA Open.
• Federico has now made it to Championship Sunday eight times in eight attempts thus far in 2024 - I am predicting this is the tournament he fails to make Championship Sunday in singles.
• Even in a slightly weakened field, this men’s singles bracket is insanely competitive.

Players to watch

• (21) Roscoe Bellamy made a great run in PPA LA, making his way to a fourth-place finish. Can he do it again? The odds aren’t great because he will likely face off against Rafa Hewitt, Federico Staksrud, and Jaume Martinez Vich - what a gauntlet.
• (30) Hunter Johnson is still vastly underseeded and will have to show up against Quang Duong in order to make it into the Round of 16.
• (33) Zane Navratil is playing singles, which he does rarely. He is probably playing to get ready for MLP action in a couple of weeks. If he can make it past Patrick Kawka (no easy task), he will have to play JW Johnson.

Predictions

• Semifinalists: (7) Jaume Martinez Vich, (2) Connor Garnett, (4) Christian Alshon, and (3) Tyson McGuffin
• Gold: Christian Alshon beats Jaume Martinez Vich in the finals to win his first singles title in 2024

Women’s Doubles

Storylines 

• With Rachel Rohrabacher and Lucy Kovalova not playing, Anna Bright is playing with Callie Smith for the first time. They're the No. 1 seed.
• Hurricane Tyra Black is teaming up with Allyce Jones for the first time. They are the No. 3 seed.
• With a bunch of new pairings at the top, Etta Wright and Meghan Dizon are the No. 2 seed, playing in their home state. Look for them to do very well.

Players to watch

• (28) Riley Bohnert and Emilia Schmidt are a really fun, young team to watch out for, but they have to play the Brascia sisters early.
• (16) Alli Phillips and Brooke Revuelta are a team that could make some noise if they can get past their first round matchup.

Predictions

• Semifinalists (Straight Chalk): (1) Callie Smith/Anna Bright, (2) Meghan Dizon/Etta Wright, (3) Hurricane Tyra Black/Allyce Jones, and (4) Lea Jansen/Tina Pisnik
• Gold: Meghan Dizon and Etta Wright beat Anna Bright and Callie Smith to claim gold in their home state.

Men’s Doubles

Storylines

• This is the last time Pablo Tellez and Federico Staksrud are going to be paired together for the foreseeable future.

• James Ignatowich is playing with Johnny Goldberg, which is a really fun duo from Florida - let’s see how James is feeling in Utah.
• Ben and Collin Johns have won three PPA tournaments in a row - can they make it four straight?

Players to watch

• (32) Rio Newcombe and Jackson Ayotte could make a run. If they can get past their first round matchup, they have a tough test in Alshon/Garnett.
• (17) Michael Loyd and Martin Emmrich are going to bring some firepower - look for a great match against Augie Ge and AJ Koller to get to the Round of 16.
• (31) Roscoe Bellamy and Eric Oncins make for a ridiculously athletic and powerful team. They are going to give Tyson and Dekel everything they can handle in their first match.

Predictions

• Semifinalists: (1) Ben Johns/Collin Johns, (10) Tyler Loong/Jaume Martinez Vich, (4) Tyson McGuffin/Dekel Bar, and (5) Connor Garnett/Christian Alshon
• Gold: Connor Garnett and Christian Alshon beat Ben and Collin in the semifinals, before beating McGuffin and Bar to win gold.

Mixed Doubles

Storylines

• After losing in the finals at PPA LA with Anna Bright, can Ben get another gold medal with Etta Wright?
• No. 11 seed Christian Alshon and Vivian Glozman are a new partnership - after a 4-5 month hiatus from pro pickleball, Glozman reminded us in LA that she is a great player in women’s doubles.
• James Ignatowich is back and playing with Anna Bright as the No. 2 seed. We will see if rest has helped with James’ injury issues.

• Since Catherine Parenteau isn’t playing this week, Jack Sock picked up native Utahn, Allyce Jones. Yes, I looked up the correct way to refer to someone from Utah - that word is correct.
• In an odd situation, JW Johnson is playing singles and men’s doubles, but not playing mixed doubles. Jorja Johnson is playing with Federico Staksrud instead.

Players to watch

• I know they get a bye, but (16) Connor Garnett and Alix Truong make for a really cool team to look out for.
• (37) Roscoe Bellamy and Kaitlyn Christian could make a serious run if they can get past No. 5 seed Bar and Pisnik.
• (29) Mari Humberg and Augie Ge are a fun partnership and could very well take down Jorja Johnson and Federico Staksrud with the guys facing up across from each other. I am giving the No. 29 seed the edge in hands battles.

Predictions

• Semifinalists: (1) Ben Johns/Etta Wright, (6) Hurricane Tyra Black/Dylan Frazier, (7) Lea Jansen/Hayden Patriquin, and (5) Dekel Bar/Tina Pisnik.
• Gold: Ben Johns and Etta Wright beat Dekel and Pisnik in three games to win gold.