PPA Tour pros to play with wooden paddles at Sacramento Vintage Open
Last Edited
Sep 24 2025
Category
News
The PPA Tour is turning back the clock this week, as the pros will all be using wooden paddles at the Sacramento Vintage Open, which starts Thursday.
It's no secret that paddle technology has advanced rapidly over the past 3-4 years, which has changed the game in many ways -- more speed, more spin, more athleticism, etc.
If you're looking to pick winners this week, I'd look to the players who were playing at a high level pre-2020/2021. Here are a few names in the field that meet that criteria:
Men: Andrei Daescu, Collin Johns, Dylan Frazier, Tyler Loong, AJ Koller, Pat Smith, Matt Wright, Brandon French, Spencer Smith, Chuck Taylor, John Cincola, Jay Devilliers, Riley Newman.
Women: Lea Jansen, Lindsey Newman, Callie Smith, Jessie Irvine, Allyce Jones, Etta Tuionetoa, Lacy Schneemann, Meghan Dizon, Lucy Kovalova, Lauren Stratman.
Those players weren't playing with wooden paddles in the late 2010s, but they also weren't using the rocket launchers that have become commonplace in 2025. The game was much more about placement over power 5-10 years ago, and I expect we will see a return to that play style during this week's matches.
That's not to say that power won't be important, however. Modern paddle technology has given almost every player high-end power. But we might find out this week who can really generate power on their own, without the benefit of foam-enhanced cores -- looking at you, Daniel De La Rosa and Jack Sock.
Here's a look at the schedule and draws for this week:
Women's doubles
Anna Leigh Waters, Anna Bright (playing the PPA Tour Asia Malaysia Cup), Catherine Parenteau and Rachel Rohrabacher are all skipping this event. That leaves Tyra Black and Jorja Johnson as the No. 1 seed -- they've made the past two women's doubles finals, winning one gold.
I am interested to see if the tech rollback benefits the the following three pairings, and if any of them can make a push for gold this weekend: Callie Smith/Jessie Irvine, Etta Tuionetoa/Lacy Schneemann, Meghan Dizon/Lucy Kovalova.
Men's doubles
I'm expecting men's doubles to be a grind fest, with long points and a lot of dinking. That seems like a favorable recipe for the top 2 seeds: Andrei Daescu/Collin Johns and Federico Staksrud/Matt Wright. Collin Johns has actually been training with a wooden paddle for several weeks in preparation for this tournament, so he's fully invested and has probably had this event circled since it was announced.
We also get the reunion of JW Johnson and Dylan Frazier, who haven't played together in nearly a year. They are also a grindy team, so they should be in the mix at the end as well.
Another team that shouldn't be overlooked: Jay Devilliers/Riley Newman. I'm of the belief that nobody has been hurt more by power paddles than Newman, whose game is based on playing elite defense and keeping points alive. There's simply too much power in the modern game for that to be a sustainable strategy, and his results have fallen off over the past two years as a result (in my opinion). But Newman and Devilliers have been playing pretty well together lately, with two quarterfinal appearances and a bronze medal in the past three tournaments. The tech rollback should only help them.
Mixed doubles
Ben Johns is in Malaysia this week and Waters is taking the week off, so the door is open for JW Johnson and Jorja Johnson, who are the No. 1 seed.
But Daescu and Tina Pisnik have also had success together in the past, and their games should be a good fit for the wooden paddles.
A couple other OG pairings to keep an eye on: Tuionetoa/Devilliers (No. 5 seed) and Lindsey Newman/Spencer Smith (No. 23 seed).
Men's singles
I'm almost always lost when looking at the men's singles draw, because it seems like anybody can win on any given week. Now I'm even more lost, because I have no idea what pro singles will look like in 2025 without everybody ripping passing shots. Part of me thinks the wooden paddles will actually still favor the power players, because with everybody using the same tech there will be a clearer separation between those who can generate big power and those who can't.
We could find out very early on what we're in for if Riley Newman makes it out of the play-in match, because if he does he'll face No. 1 seed Hunter Johnson. Newman hasn't played singles in a very long time, so if he's able to make it a close match against Johnson, that will be a good indicator that this isn't your normal singles event.
Women's singles
Much like mixed doubles, the door has been opened in women's singles because of the absence of Waters. And Kaitlyn Christian, who is second in the women's singles points standings in 2025, is playing in Malaysia, so that makes this a great opportunity for Kate Fahey, Brooke Buckner or Lea Jansen to get a gold.
Fahey already has one gold this season and is coming off a silver at the Cincinnati Showcase, while Buckner and Jansen are each seeking their first gold in 2025.
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