PPA Tour “Stats and Facts” Headlines from 2023

Gold Medal Matches

In numerical order:

11: Catherine Parenteau trailed Lea Jansen 0-5 in the decisive Game Three of the Women’s Singles Final at the National Indoor Championships, then she won eleven points on eleven serves to claim the title.

12: There were only 12 rallies in Game Three of the Men’s Doubles Final at the Tournament of Champions. A side-out, then a rare first-server “pickle.”  (James Ignatowich and Tyson McGuffin defeated AJ Koller and Riley Newman).

29: Ben Johns’ 29 clean winners in the Men’s Doubles Final at the Orange County Cup was the most by a player in any gold medal match this year.

30: Collin Shick, the #30 seed in Men’s Singles at the Florida Open, reached the Final and won a game before losing to Ben Johns.

34: There were 34 offensive lobs hit in the Women’s Doubles Final at the National Indoor Championships (Lucy Kovalova and Callie Smith defeated Lea Jansen and Allyce Jones), including 20 by Kovalova. That was the most in any Doubles Final this year. At the PPA Finals broadcast, Dave Fleming predicted the offensive lob would be “the shot of the year for 2024.”

50+: There were nine rallies of 50 shots or more in the Men’s Doubles Final at the Cincinnati Open. (Ben Johns and Collin Johns defeated Dylan Frazier and JW Johnson). The longest rallies there were 79, 78, and 69 shots. 

53: There were 53 clean winners in the Men’s Singles Final at the Atlanta Open. (JW Johnson defeated Connor Garnett). These players had 27 and 26 clean winners, respectively, the two highest totals this year in a Singles Final.

97: There was a 97-shot rally in Game Four of the Men’s Doubles Final at the Arizona Grand Slam, the longest in any Doubles Final this year. (Ben and Collin Johns defeated Riley Newman and Matt Wright.) Honorable mention to the 94-shot rally in the Women’s Doubles Final at the National Indoor Championships.

115: The fewest shots in a game in a Doubles Final this year. Game Three of the Women’s Doubles Final at the North Carolina Open had 115 shots in 14 rallies. (Catherine Parenteau and Anna Leigh Waters defeated Yana Grechkina and Lauren Stratman). 

737: The 13 men playing in the Men’s Doubles Finals in the first seven tournaments of the year made 737 consecutive serves without hitting one out.

1,022: More than one thousand shots in one game? Yes: Game Four of the Men’s Doubles Final at the PPA Finals. (Ben Johns and Collin Johns defeated Riley Newman and Thomas Wilson). Is 1,022 a high total? There were several Women’s and Mixed Doubles Finals that had fewer shots in their entire matches. By the way, this match averaged 15.9 shots per rally.