The Fort is Here! The Humana APP Fort Lauderdale Open is set to be the first APP Tour event at The Fort, the APP Headquarters. Located in south Fort Lauderdale, The Fort has been in the works since early 2024.
The Fort is home to 43 professional regulation sized courts and boasts a dedicated stadium that is pickleball specific. 14 of the courts are weatherproof, so even if weather becomes an issue this week, play will still be able to go on. Click here for a 360° tour of The Fort.
The Fort Lauderdale Open is the first stop of 14 on the APP Tour in 2025:
A few reminders about the APP Tour
- The APP Tour is partnered with UTR Sports and all the tournament information can be found on that website. UTR APP Fort Lauderdale Open Link
- The APP Tour does singles a little differently, in that it is best two out of three, rally scoring, with games to 15, win by two.
New Broadcast Items on the APP Tour for 2025
- Streaming Singles - In 2025, the APP Tour is going to stream singles on Thursdays
- Introduction of the Players Court - In addition to Championship Court, The APP Tour is introducing the Players Court, which will also be streamed. This is exciting news, as now twice as many matches will be streamed!
Weather Outlook
The weather in southern Florida is looking great for play during the entire event!
Broadcast Schedule
Watch live on APPTV on YouTube, Court Sports Network, and Facebook.
Thursday, Jan. 16 - Women’s and Men’s Singles
- Championship Court: 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. EST
- Players Court: 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. EST
Friday, Jan. 17 - Mixed Doubles
- Championship Court: 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. EST
- Players Court: 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. EST
Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025 - Women’s and Men’s Doubles
- Championship Court: 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. EST
- Players Court: 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. EST
Sunday, Jan. 19 - Championship Sunday
- Championship Court: 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.* EST
- Players Court: 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. EST
- * Coverage to conclusion of Gold Medal Matches
Note - Coverage is scheduled to be replayed in the future nationwide on linear TV
Let’s get into the action!
Women’s Singles
Top Seeds
- Megan Fudge
- Yana Newell
- Amanda Hendry
- Judit Castillo
- Shelby Bates
- Shannon Pretorious
- Alexa Schull
- Jenna Hessert
Top Storylines
- Megan Fudge was the best women’s singles player in 2024, can she keep it up for another year?
- There were 30 women in the qualifying draw, trying to earn one of four open main draw spots.
- Judit didn’t play a full circuit of APP Tournaments in 2024, and could very much push Fudge for the top spot if she plays most of the tour events.
- Alexa Schull is a name on the rise, and you should keep track of her - she is 17 and she is making a name for herself.
Predictions
- Semi-finalists: (1) Megan Fudge, (2) Yana Newell, (6) Shannon Pretorious, and (4) Judit Castillo
- Finals: Judit beats Fudge in the semis and then beats Yana Newell in the finals for gold
Men’s Singles
Top Seeds
- Chris Haworth
- Grayson Goldin
- Jack Foster
- John Cangelosi
- Ryler DeHeart
- Alex Crum
- Will Howells
- Brandon Lane
Top Storylines
- Chris Haworth is a top singles player in the world, and he won nearly everything in 2024. Can Grayson or someone else try to dethrone him in 2025?
- There were 73 men in the qualifying draw, trying to earn one of eight open main draw spots. Biggest names to make it through qualies: Max Freeman, Tanner Tomassi, Ammar Wazir, Claudio Quinones Garcia, and 15-year-old Will Shaffer.
- Will Howells is an interesting player. He played a ton on the APP Tour in 2024, but didn’t play much singles. Instead, he became the highest ranked men’s doubles and mixed doubles player on the APP Tour. If he takes singles seriously in 2025, he could very easily move into the top 2 or 3 players quickly.
Predictions
- Semi-finalists: (1) Chris Haworth, (7) Will Howells, (3) Jack Foster, and (5) Ryler DeHeart
- Finals: Haworth beats Howells in a thriller for his first 2025 gold
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Mixed Doubles
Top Seeds
- Jill Braverman/Will Howells
- Megan Fudge/Jack Munro
- Susannah Barr/Brandon Lane
- Yana Newell/Erik Lange
- Riley Bohnert/Richard Livornese, Jr.
- Allison Harris/Patrick Kawka
- Amanda Hendry/Chris Haworth
- Christa Gecheva/Rob Nunnery
Top Storylines
- Howells finished 2024 as the best mixed doubles man on the APP Tour. Can he repeat that feat in 2025? He is starting with a great partner in Jill Braverman.
- Fudge finished second in 2024 in women’s mixed doubles, and is looking to take over that #1 spot again in 2025. She looks to be playing a lot with Munro, so she will have a very good chance of obtaining that.
- There are 59 teams in the pre-qualifying and qualifying draws. These 59 teams are fighting for four spots in the main draw.
- Some unseeded teams to be on the lookout for:
- Christine Maddox and Max Manthou
- Arielle Butler and Grayson Goldin
- Sofia Sewing and Casey Diamond
- Alexa Schull and Max Freeman
Predictions
- Semi-finalists: (1) Braverman/Howells, (4) Newell/Lange, (2) Fudge/Munro, and (11) Schmidt/DeHeart
- Finals: Howells and Braverman face off against their gender doubles partners, Fudge and Munro, and get the win.
Women’s Doubles
Top Seeds
- Jill Braverman/Megan Fudge
- Allison Harris/Yana Newell
- Susannah Barr/Amanda Hendry
- Kelsey Grambeau/Daria Walczak
- Arielle Butler/Camila Garcia Wright
- Christa Gecheva/Sofia Sewing
- Riley Bohnert/Samantha Greenhut
- Shelby Bates/Emilia Schmidt
Top Storylines
- The #1 and #2 overall women’s doubles players in 2024, Braverman and Fudge are teaming up again in 2025 - they are going to be a hard duo to beat.
- There are 59 teams in the pre-qualifying and qualifying draws. These 59 teams are fighting for four spots in the main draw.
- Some unseeded teams to be on the lookout for:
- Judit Castillo and Ewa Radzikowska
- Ava Cavataio and Alexa Schull
- Madalina Grigoriu and Domenika Turkovic
- Michelle Murphy and Mehvish Safdar - qualifiers
Predictions
- Semi-finalists: (1) Braverman/Fudge, (12) Castillo/Radzikowska, (2) Harris/Newell, and (3) Barr/Hendry
- Finals: Braverman and Fudge defeat Harris and Newell
Men’s Doubles
Top Seeds
- Jack Munro/Will Howells
- Erik Lange/Max Manthou
- Ryler DeHeart/Richard Livornese, Jr.
- Rob Nunnery/Chris Haworth
- Ben Newell/Erik Pailet
- Jason Bock/Spencer Lanier
- Stefan Auvergne/Brendon Long
- Patrick Kawka/Eric Oncins
Top Storylines
- The #1 and #2 overall men’s doubles players in 2024, Howells and Munro are teaming up again in 2025 - they are going to be a hard duo to beat.
- Haworth and Nunnery made a very interesting pairing and I am looking forward to them playing together.
- There are 54 teams in the qualifying draw, vying for eight spots in the main draw.
- Some unseeded teams to be on the lookout for:
- Tanner Tomassi and Kyle Koszuta
- Casey Diamond and Max Freeman
- Grayson Goldin and Stephen Madonia
- Caden Nemoff and Robert Slutsky - qualifier
Predictions
- Semi-finalists: (1) Munro/Howells, (4) Nunnery/Haworth, (2) Manthou/Lange, and (3) DeHeart/Livornese, Jr.
- Finals: Howells and Munro beat Lange and Manthou in the finals to maintain their top spot in 2025
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