March belonged to one player.
Everyone else spent the month trying to keep up.
Across three tournaments, the PPA Tour delivered everything at once, shifting rankings, wild conditions, long matches that refused to close, and a growing sense that the sport is changing both on and off the court.
- Anna Leigh Waters extended her dominance with three straight Triple Crowns
- Men’s singles rankings changed hands at every event
- Matches, conditions, and structure all pointed to a sport in transition
But through all of it, one thing did not move.
The Constant: Waters
Anna Leigh Waters did not just win in March.
She controlled it.
At Newport Beach, she claimed her 41st career Triple Crown without dropping a single game. In Texas, she added a 42nd in conditions that turned matches into survival tests. In Utah, she completed number 43, though not without being pushed, dropping her first game to Kate Fahey since May 2025.
The numbers are becoming routine.
The dominance is not.
“At this point, the question is no longer whether Anna Leigh Waters is the best in the world. It’s whether anyone is close enough to make it interesting.”
If you’re tracking how dominance and competition are evolving week by week, the World Pickleball Report breaks this down every Wednesday.
The Chase Behind Her
While Waters remains fixed at the top, everything beneath her is shifting.
Men’s singles has turned into a revolving door:
Hunter Johnson defeated Federico Staksrud in Newport Beach to take the No. 1 ranking
Staksrud responded in Texas, adapting to brutal conditions
Chris Haworth then flipped it again in Utah, beating Staksrud to reclaim top spot
Three events.
Three changes.
No control.
Quick Read: Men’s Singles #1 Timeline
Newport Beach → Hunter Johnson
Texas → Federico Staksrud responds
Utah → Chris Haworth takes over
👉 The top spot isn’t being defended. It’s being traded.
Matches That Wouldn’t Close
If March had a feel, it was this:
Nothing ended cleanly.
At the Greater Zion Cup, Waters and Ben Johns held eight match points in the mixed doubles final. Eight chances to close. Eight chances missed. The match dragged back to 13–13 before finally finishing 15–13.
In men’s doubles, Johns and Gabe Tardio stayed perfect for 2026, coming back from 2–1 down to win in five.
Even earlier in the month, chaos arrived from outside the game itself, a stray golf ball cutting across court mid-match in Newport Beach.
March did not follow scripts.
Conditions Changed Everything
In Texas, the biggest opponent was not across the net.
It was the wind.
With gusts reaching 40 mph, matches became unstable. Control replaced aggression. Points shortened. Errors crept in.
Federico Staksrud’s win over Chris Haworth captured it perfectly, losing the first game 2–11 before adjusting and taking the next two 11–5, 11–5.
This was not about clean execution.
It was about solving problems faster than your opponent.
This type of adaptation is becoming a key theme across modern pickleball analysis, where conditions and decision-making are shaping outcomes as much as technical skill.
Pressure From Below
While the top tier holds, pressure is building underneath.
15-year-old Tama Shimabukuro recorded another win over Connor Garnett
Tina Pisnik and Eric Oncins made a deep run from the No. 10 seed to silver in Newport Beach
Will Howells returned from injury, adding depth back into the field
The gap is still there.
But it is being tested more often.
Watch List
Tama Shimabukuro → already disrupting seeded draws
Pisnik / Oncins → proof that deep runs aren’t locked to top seeds
Howells → return adds weight back into the field
The Game Off Court
March mattered beyond results.
The structure around the sport is starting to catch up.
Automated line calling (PlayReplay) successfully tested, set for official debut at PPA Finals
Anna Leigh Waters confirmed for PPA Asia (Vietnam), marking a clear global step
DUPR introduced wheelchair ratings, expanding the competitive system
MLP + Champions Series launched a 50+ league, opening a new tier of the sport
MATCHDAY app launched, bringing real-time scoring and tracking to fans
These are not isolated updates.
They are pieces of something being built.
That wider shift sits within ongoing global pickleball news coverage, where off-court development is moving as quickly as on-court results.
Where March Leaves the Tour
March didn’t settle anything.
It clarified the shape of the season.
At the top, there is control.
Behind it, there is movement, rankings shifting, matches turning, new players pushing in, no clear order holding.
And around it all, the structure of the sport is evolving just as quickly as the results themselves.
Closing Thought
March didn’t crown a new order.
It showed exactly where the gaps are.
And that gap, between control and chaos, is where the next phase of professional pickleball will be decided.
If you want the full breakdown of March, including deeper analysis, additional insights, and the wider global picture, you can download the full April issue of World Pickleball Magazine here:
Download the April 2026 issue of World Pickleball Magazine
Further Reading
- Latest pickleball news from around the world
- Tournament coverage and results
- Rankings and player profiles
- Regional pickleball coverage
Chris Beaumont
Founder and Editor-in-ChiefChris Beaumont is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of World Pickleball Magazine. Chris follows the global game closely, reporting on the latest news, developments, stories and tournaments from all five continents. He also hosts the World Pickleball Podcast, interviewing people at…
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