As I think about the explosion of pickleball — and pickleball prize money, specifically — over the last several years, I am reminded of the theme song lyrics from the hit television show, The Apprentice and The Celebrity Apprentice — you know, the lyrics that start out, “♫ ♫ Money money money money, money… ♫ ♫.”
Can you Make Money Playing Pickleball Tournaments?
As a pickleball addict — and, perhaps, someone quite “good” at pickleball — this is a question you may be exploring. While it’s currently doubtful in 2020 that few, if any, pickleball professionals are relying solely on pickleball prize money for their income, the prize money growth — including “incentive prize pools” from brands that sponsor their players is — indeed, starting to get interesting.
With two tours — the Pro Pickleball Association (PPA) and the Association of Pickleball Professionals (APP) — debuting in 2020, significant (this is a relative term) pickleball prize money payouts are becoming more common-place.
Pro Pickleball Association (PPA)
The PPA tour, debuting at the Mesa Grand Slam Qualifier in Mesa, AZ in February, 2020, consists of a series of qualifying tournaments where pickleball players compete and qualify for three Grand Slam Tournaments. Total purses for the each of the PPA stops range from $55,000 to $150,000! Here are the PPA Tour stops in 2020:
Mesa Grand Slam Qualifier
Thu 02/13/20 thru Sun 02/16/20
Mesa, AZ
Prize Money: $55,000
The Masters Grand Slam – Phoenix
Tue 05/12/20 thru Sun 05/17/20
Phoenix, AZ
Prize Money: $100,000
California Grand Slam Qualifier
Thu 06/11/20 thru Sun 06/14/20
Seal Beach , CA
Prize Money: $55.000
The Showcase Grand Slam
Tue 08/11/20 thru Sun 08/16/20
Newport Beach, CA
Prize Money: $100,000
PPA Championship
Tue 09/15/20 thru Sun 09/20/20
Las Vegas, NV
Prize Money: $150,000
Georgia Open at Life Time – Grand Slam Qualifier
Thu 09/17/20 thru Sun 09/20/20
Peachtree Corners, GA
Prize Money: $55,000
Dallas Grand Slam Qualifier
Thu 10/22/20 thru Sun 10/25/20
McKinney, TX
Prize Money: $55,000
Association of Pickleball Professionals (APP)
With a similar pickleball tour-type concept to the PPA, the APP is a competing “tour” for professionals and amateurs with the season ending championships played in Punta Gorda, Florida. Here are the APP Tour stops in 2020 and early 2021:
Owensboro Pickleball Open
Fri 05/08/20 thru Sun 05/10/20
Owensboro, KY
Prize Money: $25,000
Atlanta Open
Fri 05/29/20 thru Sun 05/31/20
Alpharetta, GA
Prize Money: $65,000
Cincinnati Pickleball Open
Thu 06/04/20 thru Sun 06/07/20
Middletown, OH
Prize Money: $25,000
So Cal Summer Classic Pickleball Open
Thu 06/25/20 thru Sun 06/28/20
Encinitas, CA
Prize Money: $25,000
Chicago Pickleball Open
Thu 07/23/20 thru Sun 07/26/20
Naperville, IL
Prize Money: $25,000
Pacific Northwest Classic
Wed 07/29/20 thru Sun 08/02/20
Bend, OR
Prize Money: $50,000
Indianapolis Pickleball Open
Fri 08/07/20 thru Sun 08/09/20
Plainfield, IN
Prize Money: $25,000
Tournament of Champions
Tue 08/18/20 thru Sun 08/23/20
Brigham City, UT
Prize Money: $75,000
Milwaukee Pickleball Open
Thu 09/03/20 thru Mon 09/07/20
Waukesha, WI
Prize Money: $25,000
Las Vegas Pickleball Open
September 22-26, 2020
Las Vegas, NV
Prize Money: $25,000
Nashville Pickleball Open
Thu 10/08/20 thru Sun 10/11/20
Nashville, TN
Prize Money: $25,000
Hilton Head Pickleball Open
Thu 10/22/20 thru Sun 10/25/20
Hilton Head, SC
Prize Money: $25,000
APP Masters – Punta Gorda
Wed 01/06/21 thru Sun 01/10/21
Punta Gorda, FL
Prize Money: $40,000
Prize Money at The U.S. Open Pickleball Championships and the USA Pickleball National Championships
Most pickleball addicts agree that — up until this point — the two marquee events on the pickleball calendar have been the U.S. Open Pickleball Championships in Naples, Florida and the USA Pickleball National Championships at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in California.
Prize Money Earned at the 2019 U.S. Open Pickleball Championships
Although it wasn’t played in 2020 because of COVID-19, total pickleball prize money available for the previous U.S. Open (2019 U.S. Open) totaled $54,000. This prize pool was split with men’s and women’s pro singles medalists pocketing $2,000, $1,000 and $500 — and the men’s, women’s and mixed pros medalists (by team) pocketing $4,800, $2,800 and $1,800.
Senior pro medalists were awarded slightly less with senior men’s and senior women’s singles medalists earning $1,200, $600 and $350 — and the senior men’s, women’s and mixed pro medalists (by team) tallying $2,000, $1,000 and $500.
Additionally, any triple crown winner was entitled to a $1,000 bonus at the 209 U.S. Open Pickleball Championships.
U.S. Open Tennis Championships — A Comparison to U.S. Open Pickleball
Certainly, a total pickleball purse of $54,000 is nothing to sneeze at. But how does that total prize purse compare to that of the U.S. Open Tennis Championships?
Glad you asked! At the 2019 U.S. Open Tennis Championships the total purse exceeded $57,000,000 with the men’s and women’s singles champion pocketing $3,850,000 and the men’s and women’s doubles champion pocketing $740,000 (per team). The Mixed Double Championship team earned a paltry $160,000 (per team).
It is worth noting, however, that, just 52 years ago (in 1968) the total prize purse for the U.S. Open Tennis Championships was $100,000 — very similar to today’s pickleball prize purse!
Prize Money Earned at the 2019 USA Pickleball National Championships
The total prize purse for the 2019 USA Pickleball National Championships was $80,000. Both the open and senior-open pro divisions were paid the same — and both men’s and women’s pro divisions were also paid the same. Pro singles medalists earned $2,500, $1,500 and $1,000 while pro doubles medalists earned (per team) $5,000, $3,000 and $2,000.
Prize Money at the 2019 World Pickleball Championships
From December 27-30, 2019, professional pickleball players competed in the first-ever “World Pickleball Championship” at the PicklePlex® in Punta Gorda, Florida. The total prize purse for this pickleball tournament was $100,000 — the highest pickleball tournament payout to date.
Other Tournaments with Purses of $20,000 or More
In addition to the U.S. Open, Nationals, the World Pickleball Championships and the PPA and APP Tour stops, here are the additional tournaments that are offering $20,000 or more in total pickleball prize money:
Hawaii Open Pickleball Championships
Wed 01/22/20 thru Sat 01/25/20
Kona, HI
Prize Money: $20,000
Florida Grand Slam
Bonita Springs, FL
Tue 02/25/20 thru Sun 03/01/20
Prize Money: $25,000
California Open
Fountain Valley, CA
Fri 03/06/20 thru Sun 03/08/20
Prize Money: $24,000
USA Pickleball National Indoor Championships
Tue 06/09/20 thru Sat 06/13/20
Hoover, AL
Prize Money: $25,000
Gamma Pickleball Classic
Fri 06/12/20 thru Sun 06/14/20
Pittsburgh, PA
Prize Money: $20,000
Grand Rapids Beer City Open Pickleball Championships
Thu 07/09/20 thru Sun 07/12/20
Grand Rapids, MI
Prize Money: $25,000
Pacific Northwest Classic
Wed 07/29/20 thru Sun 08/02/20
Bend, OR
Prize Money: $50,000
Rocky Mountain Pickleball Championships
Fri 07/31/20 thru Sun 08/02/20
Denver (Arvada), CO
Prize Money: $25,000
The Minnesota Pickleball Open
Fri 07/31/20 thru Sun 08/02/20
Lakeville, MN
Prize Money: $25,000
International Indoor Pickleball Championship
Wed 09/23/20 thru Sun 09/27/20
Centralia, WA
Prize Money: $20,000
The Selkirk Incentive Prize Pool
In addition to the burgeoning tournament prize money, Selkirk (and, likely, other pickleball brands) offers an appetizing incentive prize pool for all Selkirk sponsored players for many of the major pickleball tournaments including the U.S. Open, Nationals, Tournament of Champions and the Texas Open — to name just a few. In 2019, the Selkirk professional pickleball player incentive prize pool topped $300,000 — an approximate 50% jump from 2018.
Final Thoughts
It’s certainly getting exciting for up-and-coming “stars.” While pickleball prize money is lagging behind that of other sports, it is certainly narrowing the gap. Now get out there and drill!!! See you on the courts.
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