The PPA Tour is back in Virginia Beach this week for the second straight year.

The Virginia Beach Cup starts Tuesday, kicking off a stretch of three big events in the next five weeks (the Vegas Cup will be Oct. 20-26, followed by the Pickleball World Championships Nov. 3-9).

If you're in the area and looking to attend this week's tournament, you can purchase tickets here.

All of this week's matches can be viewed on Pickleballtv -- which is now available on YouTube TV -- in addition to the following broadcast windows on Tennis Channel and ESPN 2:

This week's event is a "Cup," which means 1,500 points will go to the winners in each division. Most of the top players and teams are in the draws this week, so we should see plenty of great matches as the tournament progresses.

Here's a look at the brackets for each division, as well as who is expected to be in the mix come Saturday and Sunday:

Women's doubles

The favorites (Check live Kalshi odds here) 

No. 1 Anna Leigh Waters/Anna Bright: They've been beaten in the semifinals in their last two tournaments -- first by Jorja Johnson/Tyra Black in Las Vegas and then by Jade and Jackie Kawamoto in Cincinnati. While all of those players are in the field again this week, the partnerships are different this time around. I expect Waters and Bright to get back to Championship Sunday, and I'd still consider them favorites against anybody from the other side of the bracket -- but they're certainly not as heavy of a favorite to win as they were over the summer.

Contenders

No. 2 Jorja Johnson/Rachel Rohrabacher: These two have teamed up one other time this year -- at the Bristol Open in August. They made the final in that tournament, but weren't particularly close against Waters/Bright, losing 11-6, 11-3, 11-1. They certainly could improve as second-time partners this week, but would need to make a big jump if they end up facing the top seed in the final again.

No. 3 Jade Kawamoto/Catherine Parenteau: This is Parenteau's fourth different partner since she and Waters split up back in the spring. She has continued to have solid results, but has lost to Waters/Bright four times since then (twice with Rohrabacher, once with Todd and once with Jackie Kawamoto). If the seeding holds, Parenteau would match up against her former partner again in the semifinals. Can Jade Kawamoto help get her over the hump?

No. 4 Parris Todd/Tyra Black: They have played together six times this year, with four bronze medals and one gold medal so far. They're likely to be in the mix come the weekend, but will need to be at their best to walk away with gold.

Men's doubles

The favorites (Check live Kalshi odds here)

No. 1 Ben Johns/Gabe Tardio: They've won their last four tournaments together, and done it in convincing fashion as of late. There were times earlier this year when you could make a case for multiple teams to be the "favorites" in men's doubles, but it is now clearly this duo. There is a twist this week, however: Johns has spent the past two weeks playing over in Asia and flew back (I believe) on Sunday. So he'll have had limited time to recover from the long trip before his first matches on Tuesday. If ever there was a week when the No. 1 seeds were vulnerable to an early round loss, this is probably that week.

Contenders

No. 2 Federico Staksrud/Hayden Patriquin: This has been an interesting partnership to follow this season. They were very consistent in the spring, with three silver medals and some close-ish losses to Johns/Tardio in Championship Sunday matches. But they haven't been as sharp over the summer months, only medaling in two out of their past five tournaments together. They have experimented with Patriquin on the left in their most recent events, and I suspect we'll see them switch back and forth again this week.

No. 3 Christian Alshon/Andrei Daescu: This is another team that has taken a small step back from some high points earlier this year. They have three gold medals on the PPA Tour this season, but the last one came at the Red Rock Open in March. And they are on the same side of the bracket as Johns/Tardio, who they have a 1-4 record against in 2025 -- and the last meeting in the final of the Cincinnati Showcase was a sweep (11-2, 11-6, 11-9) in favor of Johns/Tardio. 

No. 4: JW Johnson/CJ Klinger: They broke through with a gold medal at the Atlanta Pickleball Championships in May, but have been beaten in the semifinals their last two tries. This will be CJ Klinger's debut with an adidas paddle, so it will be interesting to see if that changes anything for them. I expect them to be playing on the weekend, it's just a matter of whether they will be playing for gold or bronze on Sunday.

No. 5 Dekel Bar/Tyson McGuffin: McGuffin is coming off of back-to-back gold medals in Asia with Eric Oncins, while Bar earned a bronze with Ben Johns at the Vietnam Cup. That was Bar's first action in a PPA Tour event since May, as he's been dealing with illness/injuries for several months. Like Johns, both of these players will likely be dealing with travel-related fatigue.

No. 6 Dylan Frazier/Eric Oncins: They made some noise (literally and figuratively) together en route to a bronze medal at the North Carolina Open in April, but haven't partnered together since. They definitely have a high ceiling, but the floor is probably lower than some of the other top teams in the draw. 

Mixed doubles

The favorites (Check live Kalshi odds here)

No. 1 Ben Johns/Anna Leigh Waters -- Waters and Johns have won the past five PPA Tour events in mixed doubles, with their last loss coming to Jorja Johnson/JW Johnson at the North Carolina Open in April. As long as jet lag isn't a huge factor for Johns, I'd expect them to find the winner's circle again.

Contenders

No. 2 JW Johnson/Jorja Johnson -- They are in the mix down the stretch in almost every tournament, but are still big underdogs against the top seed.

No. 3 CJ Klinger/Anna Bright -- Klinger has been a steady presence in men's doubles all year, but his mixed results have been a bit up and down. He's been playing mostly with Mari Humberg this season -- they made a good run to finish fourth at the Orange County Cup in June, but otherwise haven't made it past the Round of 16. This is Klinger's first chance to play with a top 5 women's partner, so it's a big opportunity for him to prove that he can be as much of a contender in mixed as he is in men's doubles.

No. 4 Christian Alshon/Parris Todd -- This is a first-time partnership, but both players have had success in mixed this season. Alshon has three silvers and two bronze medals, while Todd won a gold with Dekel Bar at the Red Rock Open in March (over Alshon and Parenteau). 

No. 5 Hayden Patriquin/Tyra Black -- They've paired up twice this season, with a silver in Las Vegas and a quarterfinal exit in Cincinnati. If the seeding holds, they would play the Johnson siblings in the quarterfinals. 

Men's singles

The favorites (Check live Kalshi odds here)

No. 1 Hunter Johnson: He hasn't won since taking over the No. 1 ranking, but he's still been playing well and medaling consistently (except for the latest event -- the Sacramento Vintage Open, which was played with wooden paddles). He's probably the safest bet, but men's singles remains a wide open division.

No. 2 Federico Staksrud: He got back in the winner's circle for the first time since January with a gold in Sacramento. But was that for real, or did he benefit more than others with the wooden paddle? He gets a chance to back it up this week.

No. 3 Connor Garnett: He has two silvers and two bronze medals in singles this season, but is still seeking his first gold.

No. 4 Christian Alshon: He's not as consistent as Garnett or Staksrud, but has higher highs than either of them, with three gold medals, which ties him with Johnson for the most on tour in 2025. Ben Johns (2) and John Lucian Goins (2) are the other two players who have won multiple titles this season.

Contenders

Almost anybody in the main draw of men's singles could be considered a contender if things go their way. A few other names I have my eye on: No. 15 Chris Haworth, No. 8 Johns Lucian Goins, No. 6 Jack Sock, No. 21 Grayson Goldin, No. 5 Jaume Martinez Vich, No. 12 Noe Khllif, No. 24 Max Freeman, No. 10 Roscoe Bellamy.

Women's singles

The favorite (Check live Kalshi odds here)

No. 1 Anna Leigh Waters: We're nearing the 500 day mark since Waters last lost a PPA Tour singles match. And one of her main rivals is out this week -- Kate Fahey got married over the weekend (congrats), so she's skipping this tournament.

Contenders

No. 2 Kaitlyn Christian: She's another player who is coming off of back-to-back tournaments in Asia, and she pulled out of her bronze medal match in Game 2 on Saturday at the Vietnam Cup. If she stays in the field, this week is a good opportunity for her to gain ground on Fahey in the 52-week rolling points standings. Fahey is currently No. 2 and a little over 2,000 points ahead of Christian.

No. 3 Parris Todd: She has two golds, two silvers and one bronze medal in singles this season, but Waters was notably absent from the tournaments she won.

No. 4 Brooke Buckner: She has a silver and two bronze medals this year.