We are exactly one-third of the way through the 2024 PPA Tour season, with eight events down and 16 to go before the CIBC PPA Finals to close out the year.
At each tour stop, players earn PPA Tour points, attempting to qualify for the finals. The top eight players in singles and top 16 players in doubles qualify for the year-end event.
How the PPA Tour Points System Works
Each tournament has a different amount of PPA Tour points up for grabs, depending on the level of the tournament. There are three levels of tournaments on the PPA Tour:
- Slam - Slams are the largest tournaments on the PPA Tour and the winner(s) earn 2,000 PPA Points.
- There are four Slams on tour in 2024 - The Masters, Vizzy Atlanta Slam (May), CIBC Atlanta Slam (September), and the United Pickleball Championships (November)
- Cup - Cups are big tournaments on the PPA Tour, with the winner(s) earning 1,500 PPA Points.
- There are five Cups on tour in 2025 - Mesa Arizona Cup, North Carolina Cup, Orange County Cup (June), Seattle Cup (July), and Virginia Beach Cup (October)
- Open - Open events are the smallest amount of points are available, with the winner(s) earning 1,000 PPA Points.
- The remaining 15 tour stops are all Open events
Here is a breakdown of the points earned in each of the different events:
There are two purposes for the PPA Tour points system: seeding at tournaments and qualification for the CIBC Finals. Let's review the terms and facts about the seeding portion.
PPA Tour Points and Seeding: The Terms You Need to Know
The terms to know for seeding purposes are Rank and Overall Points. Each player's rank is the summation of their points in the last 52 weeks. Seeding is extremely important on the PPA Tour, as it can determine whether you get a favorable first or second round draw or a really tough matchup.
An example of this is Hunter Johnson in men's singles. Hunter played on the APP Tour last year, so he hasn't earned many PPA Tour points. He was the best player on the APP Tour in 2023, but in the men's singles draw this weekend at the PPA Red Rock Open, he is the No. 30 seed.
If seeding was based on a subjective skill level, Hunter should be seeded somewhere between 10-20 and possibly get a first-round bye. Instead, based on points, he had to play another player seeded in the 30s before losing to Quang Duong, the No. 8 seed.
With Hunter's loss in the Round of 32 to Quang Duong at PPA Red Rock Open, he earned himself 50 PPA points, which will continue to help him climb in the player rankings, earning him a better seed.
PPA Tour Points and CIBC Finals Qualification
Next, we will review the way points affect the qualification for the CIBC Finals in December.
The big term to know in terms of finals qualification is Race Points. Race Points are very different from Overall Points. Race Points is the summation of PPA Tour points earned during the 2024 calendar year.
To put it another way, at the beginning of the 2024 season, players started the year with the summation of their entire 2023 season as their Overall Points and every player started with zero Race Points.
Rundown of PPA Tour Points Race in 2024
Let's take a look at player Race Points rankings this year, now that we are one-third of the way through the season. Again, the Race Points determine who qualifies for the CIBC Finals in December.
A quick note: If you want to see the entire Points Race or Overall Player Rankings, visit the PPA Website. There is a cool new feature on the site so you can choose to sort by Overall Points or by Race Points.
Women’s singles
It is not a surprise to see the best women's singles player in the world on top by a wide margin, despite only playing four events (winning all four). The top eight ladies will qualify for the CIBC Finals, so Lauren Stratman is on the outside looking in after her deep run at the LA Open.
The CBS Sports broadcast of the CIBC Atlanta Slam gave fans a close look at how dominant the women's field has become, with top seeds rolling through the bracket on the strength of their accumulated PPA Tour points advantage throughout the season.
Men’s Singles
Federico Staksrud has been ridiculously good at singles this year — either earning a silver or gold medal in all eight events. The gap between No. 8 Jaume Martinez Vich (2,150 Race Points) and Jay Devilliers (1,650) is fairly large, but there are quite a few players who are not qualified for the finals right now who could eventually sneak in.
As pro pickleball's record-breaking 2024 season continued to attract national attention, Staksrud's men's singles dominance became one of the defining narratives of the PPA Tour points race — and one of the sport's most compelling storylines for fans tuning in across FOX, CBS, and ESPN.
Women's Doubles PPA Tour Points Standings
The top 16 women's doubles players at the end of the year will make the CIBC Finals. Having the most points is crucial, because the No. 1 seed gets to pick their partner. Then the next highest seed gets to pick their partner, and so on.
So if the season ended today, since Anna Bright has the most points, she could pick Anna Leigh to be her partner and then Catherine Parenteau would then have to pick a partner.
Understanding how the doubles partner selection process works at the CIBC Finals makes the PPA Tour points standings even more meaningful. Every point earned in the regular season directly shapes who you play with — and who you play against — at the most important event of the year.
Men's Doubles PPA Tour Points Standings
With Fed and Pablo Tellez breaking up for the foreseeable future, it seems like Thomas Wilson is going to stay at that No. 3 spot for a long time. It will be interesting to watch as the year develops if he can maintain it — and who he would pick as his men's partner in the CIBC Finals.
For a full look at how doubles partner dynamics are reshaping the PPA Tour's competitive doubles landscape, the points standings tell a story beyond just who's winning tournaments.
Mixed Doubles Women — PPA Tour Points Standings
Mixed doubles is where the qualification for the CIBC Finals gets super tight, as there are only eight spots available in each gender. To showcase how good the pro doubles game is on the PPA Tour, if the season ended today, Catherine Parenteau, Jorja Johnson, and all the other names that aren't highlighted would miss out on the mixed doubles finals.
The PPA Tour's mixed doubles format rewards consistency across a long season. Players who treat every Open event like a Slam — maximizing their PPA Tour points haul at every stop — are the ones who find themselves inside the qualification bubble when it matters most.
Mixed Doubles Men — PPA Tour Points Standings
On the men's side of mixed doubles, the gap between Nos. 20 and 8 is less than 1,000 points. I expect this race to stay tight with those last four or five spots up for grabs until the last tournament or two.
The reason is because obviously Ben and Thomas are doing well and making finals and winning, so it's become a weekly musical chairs act as to who will make it to the semis or quarterfinals.
This kind of late-season volatility in the PPA Tour points race is exactly why pickleball fans should track the standings closely. Every tournament result — from Slams to Opens — carries real weight in determining who earns a seat at the table in December. Whether you are following your favorite player's ranking or just learning how professional pickleball qualification works, the points structure is what makes each tour stop feel like it truly matters.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are PPA Tour points and why do they matter?
PPA Tour points are ranking credits earned at each tournament stop on the Carvana PPA Tour. They serve two critical functions: determining a player's seeding at tournaments and deciding who qualifies for the CIBC Finals at the end of the year.
What is the difference between Overall Points and Race Points in the PPA Tour points system?
Overall Points are the summation of all PPA Tour points a player has earned in the last 52 weeks, used for seeding purposes at each event. Race Points only count points earned during the current calendar year, and they are what determine CIBC Finals qualification.
How many players qualify for the CIBC Finals using the PPA Tour points race?
The top eight players in singles and the top 16 players in doubles qualify for the CIBC Finals based on their Race Points totals accumulated over the season. For mixed doubles, only the top eight players in each gender earn a spot.
How does tournament level affect the number of PPA Tour points awarded?
Slam events award the most points — up to 2,000 for a winner. Cup events sit in the middle at 1,500 points for a champion, while Open events offer up to 1,000 points to the winner. The more prestigious the event, the higher the point value on the line.
Why does seeding matter so much in the PPA Tour points structure?
Seeding determines your bracket position — a higher seed often means favorable early-round matchups and possible byes, while a lower seed can mean facing top competition right away. As the Hunter Johnson example shows, even the best players in the world can face a tough road if their PPA Tour points total does not reflect their true skill level yet.
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