The PPA Masters and CBS Just Delivered the Most-Watched Pickleball Broadcast Ever

"The future is extremely bright, and this momentum is only the beginning." – PPA Tour Founder & CEO Connor Pardo

The PPA Masters, held earlier this month at the Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, California, was a marquee pickleball tournament by nearly every conceivable standard.

• Anna Leigh Waters earned her 40th career Triple Crown in her first event repping new sponsors Franklin and Nike
• Chris Haworth continued his singles dominance, earning his fourth gold medal since signing exclusively with the PPA
• Ben Johns and Gabe Tario took home their first men's doubles gold of 2026

Speaking of Ben and Gabe, their gold-medal doubles match Sunday against Christian Alshon and Hayden Patriquin was aired exclusively on CBS.

And my oh my did it deliver.

According to the PPA Tour, that two-hour slot on national television "delivered the most-watched pickleball broadcast ever, averaging 791,000 viewers and peaking at 1.05 million - outperforming NBA, Premier League, and top college basketball broadcasts in its time slot."

"A historic day for the PPA Tour"

It was, by all accounts, a huge event for pro pickleball.

It's average of 791,000 viewers eclipsed some notable weekend events including Big 10 Men's Basketball (719,000) on NBC, an NBA game on Amazon Prime (528,000) and the USA Network's Premier League (451,000)

This also shows significant growth for pro pickleball compared to previously televised events.

• 2024 PPA Mesa on Fox: 501,000 average viewers
• 2025 MLP Finals on CBS: 499,000 average viewers
• 2026 PPA Masters on CBS: 791,000 average viewers

"This was the largest pickleball broadcast of all time, showing real, sustained growth," PPA Tour Founder and CEO Connor Pardoe said on X.

"The future is extremely bright, and this momentum is only the beginning."

If you want to learn more about the 2026 PPA Masters event, check out our full recap below:

Waters Earns 40th Triple Crown in 1st Event Repping Nike & Franklin - The PPA Masters Recap

The Mission Hills Country Club hosted the PPA Masters powered by Invited in Rancho Mirage, California, from January 12–18, 2026. Anna Leigh Waters earned a triple crown while Ben Johns earned two golds and Chris Haworth won men’s singles.

The Dink PickleballErik Tice

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