After more than a month off, the PPA Tour will be back in action this week with the second Slam of the season: The Atlanta Pickleball Championships.

The tournament is one of four Slams on the schedule this season, offering 2,000 ranking points to the winner, which means most of the top players are in attendance and there will be no shortage of intriguing matchups in each division. It will be held at Life Time Peachtree Corners for the fourth consecutive year and the pros will be using the Life Time ball for the first time (this ball will be used going forward at PPA Tour stops that are played at a Life Time facility).

It also marks the first tournament in more than a year in which Anna Leigh Waters will be playing women's doubles with somebody other than Catherine Parenteau or her mom, Leigh Waters.

Waters and Parenteau ended their longstanding partnership last month after losing to Tyra Black and Jorja Johnson in the finals of the North Carolina Open. It was their second loss of the season and they were starting to be seriously challenged more frequently, leading Waters to look elsewhere for a women's doubles partner.

That partner will be Anna Bright for the remainder of 2025 (that's the word as of now, anyway).

Parenteau turned to Bright's former partner, Rachel Rohrabacher, after the split with Waters. That pairing will be the No. 1 seed this week because they have slightly more combined points than Waters and Bright (because Waters and Bright have played fewer events). Waters and Bright are the No. 2 seed.

Looking to catch the action in person? Buy tickets here.

The tournament started Monday with pro qualifying, then it will be a progressive draw (one round per day in each division) from Tuesday through Sunday.

PPA Tour Atlanta Pickleball Championships predictions and storylines

Women's doubles

The favorites
Anna Leigh Waters/Anna Bright (No. 2 seed)

The challengers
Catherine Parenteau/Rachel Rohrabacher (No. 1)
Jade Kawamoto/Jorja Johnson (No. 4)
Tyra Black/Parris Todd (No. 3)

Under the radar, but wouldn't want to play them
Kate Fahey/Tina Pisnik (No. 9)
Mya Bui/Alix Truong (No. 17)

Picks

Semifinals
Kawamoto/Johnson def. Parenteau/Rorhabacher
Waters/Bright def. Black/Todd

Finals
Waters/Bright def. Kawamoto/Johnson

Just as we were starting to get some legit parity in the women's game, Waters and Bright go and make a move that sets them up as the clear favorite to win every event between now and Christmas.

The three other teams I think will make the semifinals are very good, but I suspect Waters and Bright will be on another level. It shouldn't take much for them to get on the same page as a partnership, either, as they won 7 titles together in 2023.

It's worth noting that the last time we saw Jorja Johnson, she was destroying opponents at MLP Orlando. My feeling is that Johnson and whoever she partners with will be the biggest road block for Waters and Bright going forward. But I can't pick against the favorites this week.

Men's doubles

The favorites
Ben Johns/Gabe Tardio (No. 2)
Andrei Daescu/Christian Alshon (No. 3)

The challengers
Federico Staksrud/Hayden Patriquin (No. 1)
Dekel Bar/Dylan Frazier (No. 4)
JW Johnson/CJ Klinger (No. 5)
Pablo Tellez/Jaume Martinez Vich (No. 7)
Matt Wright/Riley Newman (No. 8)

Under the radar, but wouldn't want to play them
Noe Khlif/Tyson McGuffin (No. 9)
Quang Duong/Hunter Johnson (No. 11)
Jay Devilliers/Augie Ge (No. 12)
Eric Oncins/Rafa Hewett (No. 14)

Picks

Semifinals
Staksrud/Patriquin def. Bar/Frazier
Daescu/Alshon def. Johns/Tardio

Finals
Daescu/Alshon def. Staksrud/Patriquin

If the top seeds hold on through the early matches, the best match in men's doubles this week figures to be the semifinal between Johns/Tardio and Daescu/Alshon. I think whoever wins that match will go on to win the tournament, and Daescu/Alshon are 1-0 in that scenario so far this season -- they beat Johns/Tardio in the final at the Mesa Cup in February.

As has been the case in recent times, men's doubles should offer plenty of exciting matchups throughout the draw. I'm curious to see if Jay Devilliers and Augie Ge can make a deep run with Devilliers now using a JOOLA paddle (or at least he was at MLP Columbus). I also keep waiting for JW Johnson and CJ Klinger to take down a top team. On paper it seems like they should be capable of making a run to the finals, but it just hasn't happened yet. This would be a good week to have a breakthrough.

Note: Jack Sock has withdrawn from all three events this week because of an ankle injury.

Mixed doubles

The favorites
Ben Johns/Anna Leigh Waters (No. 1)
JW Johnson/Jorja Johnson (No. 2)

The challengers
Federico Staksrud/Catherine Parenteau (No. 3)
Christian Alshon/Etta Tuionetoa (No. 4)
Quang Duong/Anna Bright (No. 5)
James Ignatowich/Tyra Black (No. 6)
Dekel Bar/Rachel Rohrabacher (No. 7)
Gabe Tardio/Jessie Irvine (No. 8)
Andrei Daescu/Tina Pisnik (No. 9)

Under the radar, but wouldn't want to play them
Hayden Patriquin/Kate Fahey (No. 10)
Jaume Martinez Vich/Meghan Dizon (No. 11)
Dylan Frazier/Jade Kawamoto (No. 13)
Max Freeman/Alix Truong (No. 27)

Picks

Semifinals
Johns/Waters def. Daescu/Pisnik
Johnson/Johnson def. Alshon/Tuionetoa

Finals
Johnson/Johnson def. Waters/Johns

The last time we saw these two teams in the final, the Johnson siblings came out on top, winning 11-8 in Game 5 in North Carolina. As I pointed out in my women's doubles preview, Jorja Johnson has been playing at a very high level lately. She went 8-0 in her games at MLP Orlando and outscored her opponents 88-15. I think that last win over Johns and Waters gave her a ton of confidence and I'm betting they keep the good vibes going in Atlanta.

I'm also looking for Daescu and Pisnik to make a deep run. They have a relatively favorable draw and would face Staksrud/Parenteau in the quarterfinals if both teams make it to that point. Mixed doubles has traditionally been Staksrud's weakest event, so I think Daescu and Pisnik can win that one.

Men's singles

The favorites
Federico Staksrud (No. 1)
Hunter Johnson (No. 2)
Ben Johns (No. 4)

The challengers
Connor Garnett (No. 3)
Jaume Martinez Vich (No. 5)
Quang Duong (No. 6)
Christian Alshon (No. 7)
Dylan Frazier (No. 8)
Gabe Tardio (No. 11)

Under the radar, but wouldn't want to play them
Michael Loyd (No. 9)
Roscoe Bellamy (No. 13)
Zane Ford (No. 15)
Noe Khlif (No. 18)
Jay Devilliers (No. 35)

Picks

Semifinals
Federico Staksrud def. Jaume Martinez Vich
Hunter Johnson def. Christian Alshon

Finals
Hunter Johnson def. Federico Staksrud

Would you believe me if I told you Staksrud hasn't won a gold medal in singles since January? After winning 9 singles titles in 2024, his lone win in 2025 came at The Masters to start the year. That tournament was also a Slam, so he's still the seasonlong point leader, but I expect it to be a close race between him and Johnson for the remainder of the season.

Johnson has been out with a finger injury since the North Carolina Open, where he was upset by Bellamy in the quarterfinals. Do you know what athletes do when they have a finger injury? They work out in the gym. I suspect Johnson will be coming into this week in great shape physically and with something to prove after an early exit in his last tournament.

Women's singles

The favorites
Anna Leigh Waters (No. 1)

The challengers
Kate Fahey (No. 2)
Kaitlyn Christian (No. 3)
Parris Todd (No. 4)

Picks

Semifinals
Waters def. Todd
Fahey def. Christian

Finals
Waters def. Fahey

While Waters has been seriously pushed in women's doubles and mixed doubles this season, she has maintained a significant edge in singles. She's 24-0 on the season and has only dropped one game. I expect that dominance to continue this week.