NAPLES, Fla. — The U.S. Open Pickleball Championships kicked off in Naples, drawing competitors from all 50 states and 40 countries for what organizers call the biggest pickleball event in the world.
The games, held at East Naples Community Park, began Saturday and will run through May 3. Now in its ninth year, the tournament is expected to attract more than 50,000 spectators.
Fox 4 Naples Community Correspondent, Mahmoud Bennett, got a behind the scenes look at the tournament. Watch here:
“We’ve broken all records this year,” said Ben Weinberger, U.S. Open tournament director. “We have almost 3,500 competitors from all 50 states and 40 countries," he added.
Weinberger said nearly 6,000 matches will be played across about 300 brackets, divided into junior, amateur and pro divisions.
“So, we have a lot of different divisions," he explained. "There’s the amateur division, the junior division, the wheelchair division, and then within the pro categories we have the regular pros, the senior pros, and the split-age pros — which means one of the pros is over 50 and one is under 50," Weinberger added.
One of the tournament's biggest highlights comes Wednesday when pickleball star Anna Leigh Waters is set to play mixed doubles with tennis legend Andre Agassi.
Leigh Waters, Anna Leigh’s mother and coach caught up with Fox 4's Mahmoud Bennett, and said the U.S. Open holds a special place for their family.
“I mean, the U.S. Open is really one of the tournaments that was the beginning for us," Leigh Waters explained. "Anna Leigh started playing here as an amateur with her grandfather, which is really what this sport is about. We’re just really excited to be back. I’m both playing and coaching… Anna Leigh is playing with Andre Agassi in the pro mixed doubles, and there’s just a lot of excitement — a lot of buzz this year!”
Across the pro events, there's more than $163,400 in prize money is up for grabs. Champions will be crowned Saturday.
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