MLP Las Vegas took place from Monday to Wednesday, following the PPA Guaranteed Rate Championships Las Vegas Open.
Ten Premier Level teams and four Challenger Level teams competed in the event, with 30 matches played over the three days. While the weather was warm, it was noticeably cooler than the previous week during the PPA event.
The following teams finishing up their regular season in Vegas:
Premier Level
- St. Louis Shock
- Dallas Flash
- Texas Ranchers
- Utah Black Diamonds
Challenger Level
- SoCal Hard Eights
- Las Vegas Night Owls
- Bay Area Breakers
- California Black Bears
Overall Results from Vegas
Premier Level
Challenger Level
Top Storylines from MLP Las Vegas
Attendance was abysmal
And that’s okay. Hear me out…
This was the first year Major League Pickleball (MLP) held a full regular season with multiple events leading up to a playoff to crown a season winner. The league—and the sport as a whole—is growing at such a rapid pace that mistakes are bound to happen.
We need to step back and recognize that some things will go wrong along the way.
Here are a few issues that have come up:
- Differing service rules from the PPA, with the rule being changed midway through the year
- There was no production at MLP Virginia Beach, with matches simply uploaded to YouTube
- Questionable rules surrounding injured players, transactions, and loans
The latest addition to this list?
Scheduling an event immediately after a PPA Tour event on a Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. This wasn’t ideal—let’s strike through this idea.
In fact, I have seen some of the insider thoughts on what the season may look like next year, and I don’t think we will see this problem again.
Some teams clinched the playoffs, and others were eliminated
Premier Level
Clinched a playoff berth & first-round bye: St. Louis Shock
Clinched a playoff berth: Dallas Flash & New Jersey 5s
Eliminated from playoff contention: Utah Black Diamonds & Columbus Sliders
Challenger Level
Clinched a playoff berth & first-round bye: None
Clinched a playoff berth: SoCal Hard Eights
Eliminated from playoff contention: California Black Bears
Mathematically speaking, these are the only teams that have clinched everything. The following teams are not mathematically eliminated but essentially don’t really have a chance:
Premier Level: Carolina Pickleball Club and the LA Mad Drops
Challenger Level: Florida Smash and Frisco Pandas
A recap of the action from Las Vegas courts
The Really Really Good
St. Louis Shock
The Shock earned 14 out of a possible 15 points over the weekend, dominating the event with an overall 18-3 record in their 21 games.
St. Louis is firing on all cylinders right now, and even Kate Fahey and Gabe Tardio, who haven’t had much success this year, managed to go 3-2 in this event.
The biggest wins came on the final day. St. Louis faced Dallas early on Wednesday in a battle for the lead in the standings, winning 3-1 and securing all three points. They followed that victory with a win against the AZ Drive, who had a strong tournament of their own.
With their performance in Vegas, the Shock locked up one of the coveted top two playoff spots.
AZ Drive
AZ hadn't performed well prior to MLP Vegas, averaging only 0.92 points per match.
The addition of Jessie Irvine had an immediate positive impact—she went 6-4, a significant upgrade over Kaitlyn Christian’s previous stats with the team.
The only thing that could have made the Drive’s weekend better would have been earning points in their match against the Shock. However, they jumped three spots in the standings in Vegas, moving from 10th to 7th in points per match (ppm).
AZ notched wins against Utah, Carolina, LA, and even pulled off a major upset against the Dallas Flash.
Las Vegas Night Owls
Playoff hopes looked bleak for Vegas heading into MLP Las Vegas.
Blaine Hovenier and Rafa Hewett showed improvement—not great, but better—finishing with a combined 5-7 record in their doubles matches, largely carried by Judit and Zoey.
On the final day, Vegas faced two teams: the Black Bears and the Hard 8s. They earned five points from those matches, boosting their total to 35 points—placing them firmly on the playoff bubble.
The Good
New Jersey 5s
Aside from their loss to the Orlando Squeeze, the 5s had a strong showing in Vegas, earning nine points from four matches—a solid result. They’re well-positioned for success heading into MLP Miami next week.
California Black Bears
A standout performance came from Chris Haworth, who ranked as the fourth-best player in the entire event at the Challenger Level. He’s definitely someone to watch next year at this level.
Just OK
Orlando Squeeze
The Squeeze were on the verge of having a fantastic three days in Vegas, earning nine points from five matches. They dominated early, beating the 5s in regulation and sweeping Utah and Columbus 4-0 on the first two days. The team's energy was palpable, and it seemed like they could have taken the entire weekend. However, they stumbled with back-to-back 1-3 losses to the LA Mad Drops and Dallas Flash.
Dallas Flash
The Flash earned nine points from five matches, just like the 5s. So why are they in the "Just OK" category while the 5s are in "The Good"? Simply put, they didn’t perform well enough to secure a top-two spot for the season. Their loss to the Shock was decisive, raising concerns as they head into the playoffs.
Overall, it was just an okay weekend for Dallas, who are likely to enter the playoffs as the 3 seed.
The worst performances of the week
Premier Level
- Columbus Sliders, Carolina Pickleball Club, LA Mad Drops, Texas Ranchers, and Utah Black Diamonds.
- These teams earned a combined 19 points out of a possible 72.
- The Ranchers were pummeled with injuries in this event—Alshon got hurt in PPA, and Etta got hurt on day two. Texas earning any points with Lindsey Newman and Anderson Scarpa was miraculous. Scarpa was especially impressive during this event.
Challenger Level
- Bay Area Breakers - Two points from three matches is simply not good enough, especially when fighting for a playoff spot. The Breakers couldn’t find their rhythm despite making several changes earlier in the year. Jill Braverman, Collin Shick, and Allyce Jones ended up as the three lowest-rated players in the event. At this point, I’d estimate the Breakers' chances of making the playoffs at less than 5%.
- SoCal Hard Eights - I think if you asked the team how they felt about the weekend, they'd likely say they were disappointed. The biggest issue in Vegas was losing to the Black Bears in the midst of their playoff push. While I still believe the Eights will make the playoffs, it’s doubtful they’ll secure the coveted first-round bye they were hoping for before the weekend.
Here are the team standings after the MLP Las Vegas event, heading into the MLP Miami event next week:
Thanks to Real Clear Stats for the graphics and keeping up with the standings
