On Sunday, November 17th, the PPA Tour ended one of the final events of the 2024 season. The Veolia PPA Milwaukee Open, Presented by Miller Lite, took place in the Baird Center, a convention center in downtown Milwaukee.
Many of the top PPA players chose to take this tournament off because it was an Open level event, with the winners earning 1,000 PPA Points.
Although some players skipped the event, the drama was high level. A few spots in the CIBC Finals were at stake during the event.
Top Storylines
The St. Louis Shock MLP Team Did Very Well in Milwaukee
The MLP Semifinals and Finals are this coming weekend, November 22nd through November 24th. Every team would love to be bringing momentum into the event.
The St. Louis Shock are doing just that, off the heels of the PPA Milwaukee Open.
- Anna Bright — 2x gold — 1 gold in women's doubles (Rachel Rohrabacher) and 1 gold in mixed doubles (Dylan Frazier).
- Gabe Tardio — 1x gold in men's doubles (Federico Staksrud), and 1x silver in mixed doubles (Jessie Irvine).
- Kate Fahey — Women's singles gold. Fahey would have to be considered the #2 women's singles player right now, by anyone doing power rankings. She also got a sneaky fifth place finish in women's doubles in Milwaukee, with Andrea Koop.
- Hayden Patriquin — 4th place (HTB) in mixed doubles and a quarterfinal finish in men's (Riley Newman). Don't forget Hayden and Riley just won World's, too.
When every single one of your players has earned at least one gold medal in the last two weeks on the PPA Tour, I would consider that MLP team HOT. Look out for St. Louis this weekend!
Adam Harvey Is the Latest Name in PPA Milwaukee Open Men's Singles to Make a Deep Run
Men's singles continues to be the most volatile event in pro pickleball in 2024. I have definitely heard of Adam Harvey's name prior to the PPA Milwaukee Open, but just barely. I believe his best finish on the PPA Tour this year was 27th, at the PPA Houston Open.
The 23-year-old from Minnesota usually has to play qualifiers to get into the main draw. Instead, he was given the 30 seed in Milwaukee, and he really took advantage of his opportunity. Here are the results of the run from Harvey, who was actually a high level hockey prospect throughout high school:
- Rd 64 - Win - (37) Max Wild - 11-4, 11-0
- Rd 32 - Win - (3) Dylan Frazier - 6-11, 11-9, 13-11
- Rd 16 - Win - (13) Blaine Hovenier - 11-4, 11-3
- QF - Win - (7) Rafa Hewett - 6-11, 13-11, 11-9
- Semis - Loss - (1) Federico Staksrud - 3-11, 9-11
- Bronze - Win - (5) Pablo Tellez - 11-5, 11-5
Be on the lookout for Harvey’s name in 2025.
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Kate Fahey and Hunter Johnson Both Win Another PPA Milwaukee Open Singles Gold
In June, I did a PPA Points update for 2024 and predicted who would make the CIBC Finals. Neither Fahey or Johnson were even listed in the top 16 in terms of race points for the finals.
Fast-forward to September 26th, and neither Fahey or Johnson were top 8 and poised to make the finals. Johnson was in 11th place, nearly 800 points behind 8th place Jaume Martinez Vich. Fahey was in a similar boat, except she had a tougher hill to climb. She was in 10th place, but was 2,400 points behind Mary Brascia, in that 8th and final spot.
Hunter beat Fed Staksrud in the Milwaukee finals, catapulting him to fourth place. So in the last four events, Hunter leapfrogged from 11th to 4th, jumping over Chris Haworth, Jack Sock, Quang Duong, Christian Alshon, Tyson McGuffin, and Dylan Frazier.
This kind of late-season surge is exactly the type of storyline that makes pro pickleball worth watching. As CBS Sports has covered CBS Sports, the PPA Tour has built an engaged national audience that tunes in precisely for moments like these.
Fahey, meanwhile, also won her second gold medal on the PPA Tour in Milwaukee. She defeated Zoey Wang for gold. With that win, Fahey jumped Judit Castillo, Mary Brascia, Parris Todd, Salome Devidze, and Kaitlyn Christian for fifth place in the race rankings.
Having only played approximately one quarter of the PPA Tour events in singles this year, Fahey earning fifth place is remarkable. Her run at the PPA Milwaukee Open is one of the great underdog stories of the 2024 season.
Certain Players Locked Up Their Spot in the CIBC Finals in San Clemente
Rachel Rohrabacher barely made it into the women's mixed doubles finals of the CIBC Finals. Even though Jessie Irvine got second place with Gabe Tardio, she fell just short of Rohrabacher for that last spot. Rohrabacher earned 5,700 PPA Points this year, while Irvine earned 5,500.
James Ignatowich locked up his spot in the finals in men's doubles, with his silver medal run with CJ Klinger. Ignatowich was in 17th, but Thomas Wilson was in 16th, and it is assumed he will not play in the CIBC Finals in San Clemente. Ignatowich earned enough points to remove any doubt — he is now in 16th place, with 5,800 points.
In the most heated contest to make the finals, Riley Newman locked up the eighth and final spot in men's mixed doubles. Here is a look at the 8th through 11th spots, in terms of points:
- 8th - Riley Newman - 4,450
- 9th - Gabe Tardio - 4,387.5
- 10th - Hayden Patriquin - 4,350
- 11th - Tyson McGuffin - 4,200
Because Thomas Wilson is top 8, and not playing in the finals, Riley and Gabe both qualified, while Hayden and Tyson just missed out.
Hayden will be especially bummed to miss out, as he lost to Anna/Dylan in the semis, 11-9, 4-11, 12-14. He also took the bronze medal match to three games, losing to Andrei and Meghan, 9-11, 11-9, 3-11.
If he had won either of those matches, he would likely be playing mixed doubles in San Clemente with Anna Bright. Instead, Gabe Tardio is playing with Anna in San Clemente. That's the razor-thin margin that defines the race to the CIBC Finals.
The race to qualify is a storyline that ESPN has highlighted as emblematic of how competitive and compelling professional pickleball has become in recent years.
Full Results
Women’s Singles
🥇Kate Fahey
🥈Zoey Wang
🥉Parris Todd
Men’s Singles
🥇Hunter Johnson
🥈Federico Staksrud
🥉Adam Harvey
Mixed Doubles
🥇Anna Bright/Dylan Frazier
🥈Jessie Irvine/Gabe Tardio
🥉Meghan Dizon/Andrei Daescu
Women’s Doubles
🥇Rachel Rohrabacher/Anna Bright
🥈Jade Kawamoto/Jackie Kawamoto
🥉Allyce Jones/Hurricane Tyra Black
Men’s Doubles
🥇Gabe Tardio/Federico Staksrud
🥈CJ Klinger/James Ignatowich
🥉Pablo Tellez/Andrei Daescu
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the PPA Milwaukee Open and why does it matter?
The PPA Milwaukee Open is a professional pickleball tournament held on the Carvana PPA Tour, typically late in the season when qualification for the CIBC Finals is on the line. Because it falls near the end of the competitive year, results at the PPA Milwaukee Open can dramatically reshape the standings and determine which players compete for a national title.
Who won the PPA Milwaukee Open in 2024?
Hunter Johnson won men's singles, and Kate Fahey claimed women's singles gold at the 2024 Veolia PPA Milwaukee Open Presented by Miller Lite. In doubles, Gabe Tardio and Federico Staksrud took men's doubles gold, while Rachel Rohrabacher and Anna Bright won women's doubles. Anna Bright and Dylan Frazier also won mixed doubles gold.
How did the PPA Milwaukee Open affect MLP playoff momentum?
The St. Louis Shock entered the MLP Semifinals with significant momentum after their players dominated the PPA Milwaukee Open results. Anna Bright, Kate Fahey, Gabe Tardio, and Hayden Patriquin all earned medals, making the Shock one of the hottest teams heading into the team playoffs the following weekend.
What is the CIBC Finals and how do players qualify?
The CIBC Finals is the season-ending championship event on the PPA Tour, where the top-ranked players in each discipline compete for the title of year-end champion. Players qualify by accumulating PPA Points across tour events throughout the season, with the final spots often decided by just a few hundred points at late-season tournaments like the PPA Milwaukee Open.
Who is Adam Harvey and why is he a player to watch?
Adam Harvey is a 23-year-old men's singles player from Minnesota who burst onto the scene at the PPA Milwaukee Open, advancing all the way to the semifinals and defeating third-seeded Dylan Frazier in the round of 32. Previously best known as a high-level hockey prospect, Harvey's deep run at the Milwaukee Open established him as one of the most exciting emerging names in professional pickleball heading into 2025.
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