DALLAS, TX - PPA tournaments and MLP events are different in many ways.

MLP uses rally scoring, players play on a team, and the players often are paired with doubles partners they do not regularly play with. In this different environment, some players rise to the occasion, playing much better than they do in traditional PPA tournaments. Other players seem to fold under the pressure of a team event, playing much worse than they do in PPA tournaments. But why?

We dug deep, investigating why the difference in performance among players in MLP v PPA play. Here is what we found.

 

1. Energy is big. The major difference between MLP and PPA play is the team format. Just as the team play in Ryder Cup presents a very different format for golfers, MLP presents a very different look for pro pickleball players. It is the one time players have a teammate on the court, who they can root for from off the court. The best teammates are ones who have energy to play well, then energy to root on their teammates. We see it in every MLP event; certain players exhibit high energy, constantly encouraging their teammates, while moving well when they are on the court. Other players look disinterested, not moving well while on the court, and not voicing much support for teammates. I talked to a number of the pros playing MLP, and they all cited energy as a huge issue.

 

 

2. Partners matter. In PPA play, players pick their doubles partners. Top players play with other top players, middle ranked players play with other middle ranked players, while players who have not yet broken through typically have trouble finding solid partners. MLP is different. If you are a top 5 player, you don’t just get to play with another top 5 player. Instead, as a first round draft choice, you will be teamed with good but not top 10 players. For the lower ranked player, it is an opportunity to play with one of the best players in the world, and maybe show you too belong at that high level. We have seen that well demonstrated by Quang Duong, an undrafted player picked up by Texas, who has played top level pickleball when paired with Christian Alshon in men’s doubles and Tina Pisnik in mixed doubles. Alshon and Pisnik are much better players than Duong has ever played with in a PPA tournament, and he has clearly elevated his play to take advantage of the opportunity. At the other end of the spectrum, Ben Johns no longer has Anna Leigh Waters next to him in mixed, and while Ben is still playing well, his results in mixed are not so dominant.

 

3. Team chemistry matters. Not all teams are similarly organized. One team I spoke with said their ownership shows them that the owners are 100% behind the players. They stay at a nice hotel near the event (paid for by the team), they have a good practice schedule together, they eat together, they do some fun things together off the court, and they just like each other. At the opposite end of the spectrum, not all teams have players that have each others’ back. We can see that in body language on the court, when some players look like they would rather be somewhere else than on an MLP court.

 

 

4. Well rounded players shine. When you sign up for a PPA tournament, you can choose which events to play. If you don’t like singles, you don’t play singles. If you don’t like the mixed partners available, you skip mixed doubles. MLP is different. You have to play gender doubles and you have to play mixed doubles. If you tie 2-2, it goes to a Dreambreaker and you find yourself playing singles even if you did not play singles in any PPA event all year. Players also have to be flexible about what side they play. Maybe you like the right side in men’s doubles, but you get drafted on a team with a lefty, so you have to be ready to play left side. The ability to play both sides is important. Then there is singles. Even if you are not a regular singles player, you better be ready when it is Dreambreaker time. The players who regularly play singles on the PPA tour have an advantage when it comes to the Dreambreakers. We see that with the New Jersey 5’s; they have four players who often play singles tournaments, and they are 6-0 in Dreambreakers in 2024 MLP.

 

5. Rally scoring. MLP uses rally scoring while PPA has traditional scoring. Rally scoring more harshly punishes simple mistakes. If you miss a serve, it is not just side out, it is also a point for the other side. Every missed dink is a point for the other side, no matter who served. In talking with players, they recognize the added pressure to be precise in rally scoring, and say that adds pressure. As we always see in every sport, if you add pressure, some players will thrive, others will fold.

 

 

MLP and PPA are different. They are different for the fans and different for the players. Just as some fans like one or the other more, players also may favor one format or the other. It shows in body language and it shows in the play. The successful MLP teams do not just have more talent; they also have more energy. Watch for that energy at the next MLP event, as it may well tell you which team is likely to win.

 

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