Thanks for reading another week of the journey. The last few weeks I’ve tried to do bi-weekly updates because of the lack of tournament play. Maine has been really enjoyable this summer, but our time here is coming to an end on Labor Day before returning to Michigan!

This weekend Audrey and I will be traveling to Orlando, FL to see family and train in the heat for a few days before heading to our first PPA of the fall season. The first PPA tournament will be held in Cary, NC and it’s a huge tournament worth 2000 ranking points. See my draws below:

Mixed vs. TBD

Men’s w/ Chris Crouch vs. Jayce Morris/Yates Johnson

Singles vs. Pesa Teoni

Please be on the lookout for streaming opportunities on the Pickleball TV app.

Paddle Review

I’ve had a number of players reach out about the new Proton Sports Coyote paddle. I’ll give you a few of my honest thoughts below.

1. It’s fast at the net. If you’ve played with an elongated Proton before, you know they tend to be slightly more elongated than the average paddle. I love them for singles play because of this extra reach. This paddle is a more traditional elongated shape (think Ben Johns Joola Perseus) and is much improved for doubles play.

2. The sweet spot is big. With the combination of foam and honeycomb, the sweet spot on this paddle is unmatched in the market now. I’ve tried a number of the big sweet spot paddles on the market but ball striking with this paddle was a pleasure every time.

3. Power. Apparently this paddle came very close to the legal limits of testing for UPA-A standards and I can see why. The paddle goes through the air fast and the ball rockets off of it from the start. There is little to no break in period from what I’ve experienced.

This paddle is a huge step up from the previous generations of Protons. I won’t be using it in North Carolina because of the lack of training time I’ve had with it so far, but I’m looking forward to using it in future PPAs. Use the link below to buy yours with my discount today.

https://protonsports.com/connor

Thank you to Proton and all of my sponsors!

crossroadspickleball.com

morphiteboards.com

eldershelpers.com

Blessings,

Connor

It’s been a few weeks since I’ve provided an update and recap of MLP San Diego. I did this on purpose because apparently there was a chance that I could be picked up by another team after San Diego before the trade deadline and in the last waiver period. This is because the Florida Smash didn’t select me in the draft so my rights aren’t currently with any team.

San Diego was the toughest MLP that I’ve played in. We played in a solid group with SoCal, Cal Black Bears, Columbus, Orlando and Phoenix. We had a few very winnable matches at the beginning of the week but lost close ones to SoCal and Phoenix. Once we lost those matches, I felt like we lost a lot of momentum into the weekend and ended up losing the last three matches to Columbus, California and Orlando.

I personally felt like I played some of the worst pickleball I’ve played all year in San Diego. For whatever reason I wasn’t seeing the ball very well and couldn’t execute on my game plan going into matches. It was also difficult turning around after Beer City with so many emotional matches.

Unfortunately after San Diego the Smash were eliminated from the MLP playoffs. I had a great experience playing for the Smash and would love to play for the team next year if they decide to draft me.

Reflecting back on my first year playing MLP, there were a lot of highs and lows. Going undrafted was disappointing, but being able to play for the Hogs was a great opportunity. After being traded and waived I thought the year might be over for me, but playing for Florida helped me realize how much fun MLP could be. One of my goals next year is to be in a better position to train for MLP both before the season and during the weeks to be sharper going into the matches.

I’ll be in Maine teaching tennis and pickleball for the rest of the summer to save as much money as possible. The PPA season starts up again in Cary, NC in September at the national championships where I’ll be playing with Audrey and Chris. After MLP, I took a 2 weeks off of training to allow my body to recover from lessons. Last week I began training again for the PPA season in order to be fit and sharp for a big event in Cary worth 2000 points.

MLP was a major blessing this year. The exposure and experiences were unmatched in the midst of all of the changing teams and scheduling chaos. Gods hand was with me through it all and will continue to be with me throughout the remainder of the summer and into the PPA fall season.

Thanks again for all of your support and please patronize my sponsors!

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protonsports.com

Blessings,

Connor

I was blessed to compete in the Beer City Open last week, a very special tournament in Grand Rapids, MI. Before I get into some of the results, I want to thank everyone that came out to support me and the Florida Smash. Our team was very excited to have so many fans. I was really grateful that many of you care enough about my career to come watch and support me.

Many of my family members were able to come watch which was also special. Audrey and I were both able to make the trip from Maine to the event which was great. Tournaments feel much more normal and easier whenever she’s able to be with me because we play so many PPAs together!

We started our matches on Wednesday against Bay Area, who we beat in New York a few weeks prior. After splitting 2-2 after four matches, we went into a dreambreaker. I was able to secure 8 out of 8 points for the team and helped propel us to a win. It was a great feeling to perform that well with a lot of pressure in front of my home crowd. This was probably my favorite moment from the past weekend on the court.

Many players get to play in their home PPA tournaments or tournaments that fall in their state. There aren’t many players, however, who are able to get the opportunity to play on center court, in MLP, at the park they developed at in a dreambreaker with tons of fans there to support them. The moment on Wednesday wasn’t lost on me and it will be one I remember for a long time.

We turned around Thursday against the Shock and lost in pretty poor fashion. It was the second time I’ve played them. After playing them this time, I knew they were playing at an extremely elite level and expected them to at least final if not win. They ended up winning the tournament 3-0 in the final beating AL in women’s and mixed which isn’t easy to do.

On Friday, we took on the college all star team. A tricky team that took men’s off of the Utah Black diamonds (Connor Garnett and Tama), a good team. I took them extremely seriously from the film study all the way until the last point. Chris and I were able to win men’s fairly easily, before Zoey and I took a while to come back to clinch the match 12-10. Our mixed match was extremely tough and we were not playing our best ball, but the match experience from PPA and MLP carries you through those matches.

We then faced the SoCal Hard Eights Friday afternoon. Chris and I were able to win men’s to split the match before Zoey and I fell disappointingly in mixed. Chris and Paula came back from 0-10 to win mixed 12-10, something I’ve never seen before at the pro level. We then fell in the dreambreaker to end the weekend.

There was so much media done over the weekend, including my interview on PickleballTV. But this story done by Fox 17 was one of my favorites. Check out my instagram for more posts and media from the weekend.

Fox 17 Story

While pickleball slows down in Grand Rapids after the Beer City Open, mine continues on this week. I’m currently on my flight to San Diego where the Smash will participate in our last regular season event. Thank you all for following the journey and for the support this week. Go smash!

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Blessings,

Connor

Last week was a great weekend in New York with lots of pickleball. Our team was placed in the pool of 6 which means we played an extra pool play match. I was thankful that Audrey and my parents were able to come out and support throughout most of the weekend.

On Thursday, we started off against the Dallas Flash. While I wasn’t in the lineup, I was focused on being a good teammate and trying to coach where I saw opportunities. Dallas is a very good team and we lost 0-4.

I got my first opportunity to play on Friday against the Brooklyn Pickleball team. Chris and I played men’s doubles against Riley Newman and Christian Alshon. After a great match with a few highlights, we lost 11-8 and our team lost 3-1.

Later in the day we played a solid team in Bay Area. After being up 2-1, I was ready to play mixed to close out the match. Zoey and I were able to play really solid and pull out the clinching win 11-4 for the team to win 3-1.

Saturday I was scheduled to be in the lineup for both men’s doubles and mixed. I felt like my game was really poor against Palm Beach in men’s. But after a stoppage and moving indoors, Zoey and I were able to beat Sofia Sewing and Casey Diamond 12-10. Unfortunately, our team lost the match 3-1.

I was also able to get revenge on the Carolina Hogs, my previous team. Chris and I were able to weather the storm of Micheal Lloyd and DJ Young to win 11-8. In mixed, we were able to to the same thing while imposing offense to win 11-6 and clinch a 3-0 win for our team and berth into super Sunday.

On Sunday we took on the Las Vegas Night Owls for the 6 ranking points that were up for grabs. We started off strong winning both gender matches before disappointingly dropping both mixed matches. Our team was able to bounce back strong in a dreambreaker that I was able to clinch at 21-15 to win the match 3-2. It was really exciting to clinch the dream breaker and win the first ever super Sunday match for the Smash this year.

Next week the Smash travel to Grand Rapids, MI, a place that I’m mildly familiar with for the midseason tournament. It’s been a goal of mine to play in this tournament at the pro level since it began as an MLP event. I’m really excited to live out this goal in front of friends and family and glorify God for this amazing opportunity.

Early word is that we play at 2PM local time on Wednesday July 8th against the Bay Area Breakers.

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Blessings,

Connor

I know it has been a few weeks since I’ve shared an update. In the last few weeks I’ve been able to move to Maine and start my summer job at the Causeway Club. Maine is a beautiful state that reminds me a lot of northern Michigan. Nestled in Southwest Harbor, ME, the Causeway Club is a great summer retreat for its members to play tennis, golf, pickleball and swim. Living in the heart of Acadia national park has been beautiful to remember the wonders that God’s creation offers.

This week I was planing on playing in the PPA challenger in Portland, Maine just down the road. However, plans changed yesterday when I was picked up by the Florida Smash MLP team. Since I was waived by the Black Bears in the last waiver period, I was able to be picked up during this period. I had a few teams reach out that were interested, but I’m grateful to be on the Smash.

I’m looking forward to playing with my men’s doubles partner, Chris Crouch, in hopefully a few matches against top teams. Our group this week is manageable, with Brookyln, Dallas, Palm Beach, Carolina and Bay Area. If we finish in the top four teams we will advance to Sunday to play for ranking points. I’m grateful for another opportunity to play MLP!

The last 24 hours have been more difficult than exciting in many ways. While on the outside getting picked up by a team is amazing, and in many ways it is. The reality is, however, that I’ve been on 3 teams in three weeks. Which means my schedule has been in flux three different times and trying to manage that while working is extremely tricky. The anxieties of being picked up and then flying to another city in less than 24 hours while I have a job I need to physically be at has been really difficult for me in the last day or so.

Again, I don’t want to complain too much, there are many players that would love to be in my position and I’m extremely grateful for the opportunity. But in the last three weeks I’ve noticed that the league seems to miss the human element of trades, adding and dropping as part of its policies.

Please find the schedule for the weekend below, all matches can be streamed on Pickleball TV:

MLP NYC Schedule

Thank you for patronizing my sponsors!

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Elders’ Helpers

Blessings,

Connor

Special thanks to some of you who came out to support me at MLP Columbus. There were a number of friends from the Jackson pickleball community and family who were in attendance. Our team wasn’t able to pull out any wins on the weekend but we did play hard to force a few dreambreakers.

The weekend started on Thursday morning against the Palm Beach Royals. We were 1-1 heading into our mixed match against Tyson and Sophia before losing that match 11-6. I played okay for my first MLP match but not good enough to win. We lost to the Royals 3-1.

On Friday, we had two matches scheduled and played the St. Louis Shock first. We lost pretty badly in men’s and I felt out of sync in most of the points. In mixed, I played Anna Bright and Hayden Patriquin and lost 11-7 which was a decent result against the best mixed team in MLP. We lost to the Shock 4-0.

The second match of the day was much more winnable against the Las Vegas Night Owls. In men’s Brandon and I were up 6-1 at the side switch but couldn’t close the match out and lost 11-6. I was able to bounce back and win mixed against Callie Smith and Roscoe Bellamy for us to go up 2-1. Las Vegas forced a dreambreaker and we lost badly 21-9 to lose the match 3-2.

On Saturday we played another winnable match against the Florida Smash. We were down 1-2 going into our mixed match but thankfully we played a solid match to force another dreambreaker. Our team played a tough dreambreaker and ended up losing 21-15 to lose the match 3-2.

On June 2nd, there was another waiver period for MLP. The Hogs traded my rights to the California Black Bears in exchange for Michael Lloyd. The Black Bears then decided to waive me so I’m no longer on an MLP team as of now. I’m really thankful to be off of the Hogs, but it is frustrating to go through all of the chaos behind the scenes that only resulted in playing one event.

Thanks for all of the continued support. I’m looking forward to my move to Maine where I’ll be working this summer!

Please patronize my sponsors:

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Connor

Upcoming Events

PPA Challenger (Portland, ME), Singles, Men’s Doubles w/Anderson Scarpa, Women’s Doubles w/Audrey Adele Brown

This past weekend I was fortunate to compete in the PPA Challenger in Wilson, NC. Before competing, I made a trip to Washington DC to see my brother on Thursday night for dinner. Audrey and I were also able to see some of her family on Friday before heading down to the challenger to begin doubles on Saturday.

The weather in Wilson was odd this weekend with very misty and foggy conditions in the mornings. This made for very hot and humid conditions in the afternoons once things heated up. Chris Crouch and I made a good run in the doubles to end up in the semi finals. We faced off against Yuta Fimenzu/Nico Acevedo and lost in three tight games. They are a very good team who just won the PPA 500 held during the PPA finals in early May. We were able to come around and get bronze after beating an APP team that we lost to in the Houston challenger bronze match.

Audrey and I started off our mixed day well with a two set win over a team from Chicago. Unfortunately we didn’t play as well in our next two and lost the round of 32 easily and lost our backdraw match 15-13. The mixed draw was very solid, with most teams in the round of 32 being signed players.

This weekend I’ll be heading down to Columbus to compete in my first MLP event for the Carolina Hogs. I’m not sure what our lineups will look like yet, but you can follow the below matches on Pickleball TV.

Thursday 5/28 12:30 EST vs Palm Beach

Friday 5/29 12 EST vs St. Louis

3 EST vs Las Vegas

Saturday 5/30 12:30 EST vs Florida

Depending on results we could move on to Sunday to play for ranking points.

Thanks for following along, blessings.

Connor

Thanks for reading another week of updates. Last week I didn’t have much to comment on as I was moving across the country. It’s been nice to be back in Michigan and I’ll be back for a few weeks before going to Maine for the summer.

Last week as I was driving back from Arizona, my dad called and let me know that I was picked up by the Carolina Hogs MLP team. It’s an honor to be recognized enough to be picked for a team. I’ll be the third men’s player on the team as of now, which offers me a good deal of flexibility on the events I need to attend. The team does not play in every MLP event but will be playing MLP Dallas, Columbus, Austin, New York City, Grand Rapids and Orlando.

As the team picked me up only a few days ago, I won’t be going to Dallas. I’ll be heading down to the Wilson, NC challenger instead to play men’s doubles and mixed doubles. I’m going to be limiting challenger singles days going forward. The days are so long, sometimes playing 5 or 6 matches and it causes extreme soreness for me the rest of the weekend.

This weekend provides a great opportunity to earn some more PPA points in doubles. My events will be pretty limited this summer, especially PPAs, so it’s important to secure some points to not fall too much in the rankings. Thanks for all of your support!

Connor

Upcoming Events

TBD

Crossroads is an indoor pickleball facility in Jackson, MI. They offer a number of open play, clinics, private lessons and court reservation options for all skill levels and ages. Check them out on their website below, or on Instagram at @crossroadspickleball . Thank you to the whole team at Crossroads for your belief and support of my career!

crossroadspickleball.com

On Thursday or Friday before Atlanta, the PPA informed the pro players that Proton was back in good standing with the UPA and would be allowed back in play. This was exciting for me as I’ve spent the last few weeks struggling to find a paddle that I can play well with and pass testing. The thousands of hours of reps with Proton make a huge difference both from a performance and mental perspective.

After looking at the draws in Atlanta I felt I had a number of difficult opponents. I was able to take out Max Freeman easily in singles. Max can be a very good singles player and has beaten a number of top players including Ben Johns.

In mixed, Audrey and I played Nico Avecendo and Regina Goldberg. We played a solid match, but ended up losing in 3 games once again. Nico and Regina took CJ Klinger to three games in the next round. It goes to show how thin the margins are in mixed.

In men’s, Chris and I were able to beat a solid team in James Delgado and Carlos DiLaura. Both guys I have never beaten before. We were rewarded with playing Ben Johns and Gabe Tardio in the next round.

Day two started off with my first singles match against Hunter Johnson. Hunter is a better version of me and when playing someone with a similar game style it can be difficult to change your game. I lost pretty easily 11-5, 11-1 but Hunter is one of the best players in the world.

Chris and I were excited to play Ben Johns and Gabe Tardio on center court later in the day. After losing game one 11-2, we were able to respond and play aggressive in game two. After being up big and then closing in on our lead, we were able to close out the game on a nice point to take game two 11-6. In game three, we played a little sloppy and lost the match 11-5.

We were pretty happy with the effort and to take a game off of them. Every time I step on the court we expect to win and I’m surprised if I don’t. Overall, I had a great experience in Atlanta and am looking forward to going back.

Audrey and I then made our way back to St George, Utah for the Black Desert PPA challenger. We had a tough day on the court, only going 2-2 on Sunday. But we were able to teach two clinics for Black Desert Resort and enjoyed the scenery and activities in St George.

As Atlanta was the last PPA of the spring season, I’ll be focused on playing a few challenger events over the summer. I’m also excited to move to Maine for a few months where I’ll be teaching tennis and pickleball. Thank you for all of your continued support, and please patronize my sponsors!

Crossroads Pickleball

Morphite Boards

Elders’ Helpers

Blessings,

Connor Mogle

Upcoming Events

PPA Challenger Wilson (Wilson, NC) (May 23-24) (Men’s doubles w/ Chris Crouch, Mixed w/ Audrey Adele Brown)

PPA Sacramento was held at a great venue, the LifeTime in Arden, CA. LifeTime venues are great because they have everything the players need including recovery tools, a cafe serving healthy food and most importantly a locker room. After getting in on Monday night, I was ready for an exciting day of play on Tuesday.

I was able to cruise through my first singles match against Danny Phillips and won 11-3, 11-1. Audrey and I then took on Lindsey Newman and Tyler Loong in mixed. We had a good game plan going into the match of playing Audrey on the left a lot and putting me in front of Lindsey. This worked to isolate her and take Tyler out of the match with his lefty forehand.

We played poorly in games 1 and 3 making too many errors and lost them 11-2, 11-6. It was tough to come out flat in game three after dominating game two winning that 11-5. It was disappointing, but it was good to see our progress and know that we’ll get out of one of these close matches. Chris Crouch and I were able to take Zane Ford’s big drives out of our men’s match and won 11-3, 11-8.

Going into this tournament I knew that I would have really tough draws in the second round of all three events. What made matters worse was that all of my CRBN paddles failed paddle testing on Monday night, which meant I needed to find another paddle to use Tuesday. Thankfully, Chris let me use one of his spare RPMs, but it’s been really frustrating to keep having to switch paddles.

In singles, I played Jaume and thought I played a decent match but he was able to shred me 11-2, 11-5. Had we won mixed, we would have played Jack Sock and Lea Jansen, but the team we lost to actually beat them in two games. In men’s Chris and I played JW Johnson and CJ Klinger. We played a pretty poor match and they played lights out to beat us 11-4, 11-0. Getting pickled hurt, but they showed why they are on another level.

This week I’m focused on getting stronger and healing up my wrist to get ready to go again in the last PPA of the spring in Atlanta. I’m also searching for a paddle that I feel comfortable with which has been a big challenge of late. Thanks for following along and for all of the support!

Blessings

Connor Mogle

PPA Atlanta - Atlanta, GA (Apr 28-May 3) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Chris Crouch, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

PPA Challenger Utah - St George, UT (May 1-3) (Men’s Doubles w/ TBD, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

Two weekends ago I was fortunate to play in the Newport Beach PPA Challenger. I was grateful to make a deep run in singles and get bronze in a solid field. Anytime you can medal at any pro level is a good result.

Pesa Teoni and I made a quiet run to the quarterfinals in men’s, before falling to Matt Barlow and Rio Newcombe. Though the tournament fell on Easter, Audrey and I played mixed and had a blast. We fell in a 3rd game in our R32 match after being up big in game three. It was a frustrating loss, but we learned a lot from it. Fortunately, we got tons of publicity for our outfits which is more important than winning sometimes.

https://pickleball.com/fashion/best-dressed-at-ppa-challenger-series-newport-beach

Newport Beach is one of my favorite venues that the tour has been. With over 40 courts, the games move quickly. Newport has a ton of great restaurants and shops along with being on the beach. If you’re an amateur player looking for a PPA to attend/play at, Newport would be high on my list.

In Newport I was able to play with CRBN paddles. Thank you to CRBN for sending me some paddles after scrambling that week to find a paddle that I like. I’ve been able to train with the paddle more and feel confident with it going into this upcoming week.

This upcoming week I’m excited to play a tournament in Sacramento, CA. The draw for this week is a little lighter than usual due to a number of factors. This creates a good opportunity for many players including me to have a positive week and make a deep run.

Please find the draws for the week below. The streaming courts can be found at the PPA Streamed Courts YouTube Channel.

https://youtube.com/@ppastreamedcourts?si=Hc51Hppt3dtcJUs0

Singles vs. Danny Phillips

Mixed with Audrey Brown vs. Lindsey Newman/Tyler Loong

Men’s with Chris Crouch vs. TBD

Blessings on the week.

Connor Mogle

Last week was a great week of pickleball in Utah along with some amazing scenery. Driving up from Phoenix on Monday was a highlight of the week. Navigating through massive canyons and a national forest, the drive was breathtaking and reminded me of how beautiful creation is.

Play started for me on Tuesday afternoon as I took on James Delgado in singles. James is a dangerous opponent and can be a very good singles player so I was grateful to get through and win the match. In mixed, Audrey and I played Connor Garnett and Allyce Jones and unfortunately fell 11-6, 11-2. They’re a tricky team because of how many balls Allyce can make combined with Connor’s speed. Mixed is the hardest bracket to do well in because of how low our seeds are, but we had a lot of fun during the match which is all that matters. In men’s, Anouar and I were able to get through a hometown team pretty easily in the first round 11-0, 11-7.

On Wednesday I began play very late again against Gabe Joseph in the singles. I learned a few things from my match against him in Minnesota, but still fell 11-9, 11-6. I didn’t feel like I played poorly, and Gabe is a great player, but I felt like my level could’ve been a little higher to at least win game one. Anouar and I played the familiar team of Jay Devilliers and Jaume Martinez Vich in doubles. After winning game one, we felt good and confident about our chances. Unfortunately, after some poor starts in the next two games, we ended up losing the match 11-9, 8-11, 5-11.

Fortunately, we were able to stay at the tournament for another night to enjoy some of the scenery and players dinner that the PPA put on. After some really difficult losses, it was a great reminder of perspective and that pickleball isn’t everything.

As some of you might know, there was some relatively big news in the pickleball world this week with the UPA banning the use of Proton paddles from pro play. The UPA cited the reason for the decision was because of unpaid debts. Unfortunately, I’ve been using Proton paddles for singles and doubles over the last few months. I won the challenger finals in Dallas using a Proton. I have no idea whether the paddles will be reinstated into pro play anytime soon, but for now I’m searching for the paddle that I’ll be using this weekend in Newport.

This week I’m focused on continuing to heal my knee and wrist injuries along with some regular training sessions. I’m looking forward to playing some singles on the smaller court in Newport this weekend. I hope everyone has a great week and a Happy Easter.

Connor Mogle

PPA Challenger Newport - Newport Beach, CA (Apr 3-5) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Pesa Teoni, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

Welcome back to another tournament week on the PPA Tour, as the best players in the world are heading to Black Desert Resort in St. George, Utah. This venue was notoriously the windiest venue on tour, but the tournament has changed locations to a new venue on the same site this year. I’m hearing from practice sessions today that the wind is much improved which is a good sign.

This past week was a great recovery week as my knee and wrist injuries are feeling considerably better. I’ve also spent some time in the gym and feel slightly stronger going into this tournament then I did in Dallas. Most importantly, I feel excited to play and compete again with a healthy amount of nervous energy.

This past week I was able to finish an agreement with a new sponsor, Morphite Boards. Morphite Boards is a Michigan based startup company that makes collapsable skateboards that fit right into a backpack. As someone who enjoys skateboarding, I’m really looking forward to getting my hands on a board and trying them out. Check out the link to their shop at www.morphiteboards.com.

I’m looking forward to creating some compelling content on Instagram to help promote the brand and draw views to their website. Partners like these and Elders Helpers are extremely important financially for me and are one of the ways I’m able to pay bills while playing. Unlike top players, I don’t receive any money to show up and play tournaments. I have to win to make money in prize money and gain exposure to open up opportunities like this. If you or someone you know might be interested in partnering with me, please reach out to my email - connormogle@yahoo.com.

See below for the matchups this week in Utah:

Singles R64 vs. James Delgado

Mixed Doubles R64 vs. Alice Jones/Connor Garnett

Men’s Doubles R64 vs. Jaxon Madsen/Daniel Phillips

Thank you all for following along and have a great week!

Connor Mogle

PPA Utah Cup - Black Desert Resort, UT (March 24-29) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Anouar Braham, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

PPA Challenger Newport - Newport Beach, CA (Apr 3-5) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Pesa Teoni, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

While these last two weeks were a great learning experience of how much of a grind the tour is, I was a little frustrated with my results at the Texas Open this past week. The week started off indoors with a fairly uneventful singles win over my doubles partner Stephen Madonia. This is the third tournament of the year where I’ve had to play my doubles partner in singles. This can make it a little challenging to build chemistry in the partnership.

Our mixed match began outdoors in tough conditions. After playing far from our best ball, we lost 11-6, 12-10 in the first round. Thankfully, our men’s match went a little better as we cruised through the first and were up big in the second before letting our opponents back in the match. We were able to secure the second and victory winning 11-5, 12-10 and didn’t let our singles battle affect the result.

Moving into Wednesday playing two events was a solid start to the week. I won’t pretend that I was feeling the most inspired I’ve ever felt to win, but I knew I needed to go out, be professional, and give everything I had. After tweaking my knee early against Jay Devilliers, I fell pretty easily 11-4, 11-4. Thankfully, my knee is feeling a lot better now, with no structural damage.

Doubles began later in the day and I was excited to get a chance to play Christian Alshon and Hayden Patriqun, the two seed. We started the warmup outside and realized the wind was gusting up to 30mph. The match was a very strange and didn’t feel like we were playing pickleball. We ended up losing pretty easily 11-1, 11-5, credit to them who played in the wind much better than we did.

Since leaving Dallas, my focus has been on healing my knee and restoring my emotional well being. My knee has fortunately made some great strides and I will be practicing for the second time today since Dallas. I feel good physically now, but after my last match in Dallas was the most beat my body has been in a long time. The other challenge has been restoring my emotional will to practice and train after playing so many matches. Taking a few days off and playing some casual games has helped with that. Getting stronger in the gym and continuing to take care of the metal side to avoid burnout are the focal points for me this week.

Thank you for following along for the last few weeks. I’m looking forward to competing next week in Utah! Blessings on your week.

Connor Mogle

Upcoming Events

PPA Utah Cup - Black Desert Resort, UT (March 24-29) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Anouar Braham, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

PPA Challenger Newport - Newport Beach, CA (Apr 3-5) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Pesa Teoni, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

Many of these questions and more came into my mind over the course of the last week. These are questions that are usually caused by making a decent run in a progressive draw, which I did. They are all great problems to have.

The week in Newport Beach, CA started off with a tough draw and strong singles win over Augie Ge 11-2, 11-6. Audrey and I were lucky enough to have our opponents withdraw from mixed doubles in our first round and we picked up some valuable points. We then ran into JW and Jorja Johnson in the round of 64 and lost the match 11-0, 11-8. Our first game was pretty tight, but game two we played much looser and pushed them. Eight points was the most any team had gotten off of them until they lost in the semi finals. In men’s doubles Andre and I were able to cruise to victory after winning two tight games 11-8, 12-10.

I was pleased going into Wednesday playing two events. I again drew Connor Garnett in the second round of the singles. Thankfully, I was able to even the score between us after I figured out a few key approaching points and made slightly less mistakes than him in the match to win 12-10, 11-9.

The highlight match of the week was men’s doubles round of 32 against the 6 seed Jay Devilliers and Jaume Martinez Vich. Andre and I came out really solid in game one without many errors and won 11-4. We made tons of errors and their attacks heated up to shred us 11-1 in game two. Going into game three I knew we had to try to slow the ball down and make it a similar game to game one which is exactly what we did. Aside from a few points at the end of game three, we should have won the game going away but won it 11-5 to win the match. Getting a big doubles win like that provides a lot of confidence and exposure which is really helpful moving forward.

Going into Thursday playing two events was really exciting and a first for me at a PPA tour event. The draws are so difficult that anytime you can win more than you lose in an event is pretty special. Unfortunately, the day Thursday did not go as well as the others.

I came out pretty flat in my round of 16 singles match after a great warmup and lost the first game 11-0 to Yates Johnson. In the second, I felt like I was feeling the ball better and was up at one point but felt tight on the forehand side and lost the game 11-8. In men’s doubles we played two pretty identical games with errors and bad attacks. Both games resulted in similar scores 11-4, 11-4 as we lost our round of 16 to Noe Khlif and AJ Koller.

After being done in Newport late on Thursday, I turned my focus on how to get to Tampa, FL to play a challenger on the weekend. I withdrew from singles on Friday which was the right decision. On Saturday, my men’s partner Johnathan Medina Alvarez and I came out pretty flat, made a lot of errors and lost to a good team in the first round. Unfortunately, there was no backdraw at this challenger so we were done for the day. Being done at a challenger at 11AM was a new experience for me, but it game me a chance to relax a bit and practice mixed for the next day.

Mixed day on Sunday with Audrey started off with a bye into the round of 32. PPA challengers are seeding based off of PPA Tour points this year instead of DUPR. This can make for some tricky first round matches, especially if good players aren’t playing much on the tour. As was the case in men’s doubles, we played a good team in the first round in Cass Hoag and Federico Nani but were able to win in three games 11-9, 7-11, 11-7. We lost in the round of 16 to the eventual silver medalists 11-1, 11-7. Round of 16 has been my kryptonite this week which was really frustrating.

Thankfully I have another opportunity to win this week at the Texas Open starting on Tuesday 3/10. I’ll be playing all three events there and I’m looking forward to another opportunity to compete. The first round draws are below, please check the PPA Streamed Courts Youtube channel for streamed matches.

Singles vs. Stephen Madonia

Mixed Doubles vs. a Qualifier

Men’s Doubles vs. Braden Jacobsen/Chris Crouch

Upcoming Events

PPA Dallas Open - Mckinney, TX (March 10-15) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Stephen Madonia, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

PPA Utah Cup - Black Desert Resort, UT (March 24-29) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Anouar Braham, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

PPA Challenger Newport - Newport Beach, CA (Apr 3-5) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Pesa Teoni, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

This past week was a welcome week off from tournaments as I head into a stretch of three tournaments in two weeks. I opted to stay in Phoenix, AZ during the past week to train with some upcoming partners in Andre and Audrey. I was also able to get some great practice sessions in with a number of top players.

After a recovery day on Monday, I was able to hit the ground running with a few drilling sessions on Tuesday. On Wednesday, I was able to play some singles with Connor Garnett which was a good learning experience. Connor and I will play again in the Newport Beach PPA this week if we both win our first round matches. This will be the third PPA in a row that we’ll play each other in the second round if it comes to fruition.

Thursday and Friday I was able to play some more singles and doubles drills with Rafa Lehnard. Audrey and I were able to get some solid mixed games in with players from the AZ area to help us build confidence going into the next two weeks. On Saturday, I was able to play with a few good groups including playing two sessions with JW Johnson. The afternoon group was myself, JW, CJ Klinger and Augie Ge which was a fun group. I was the worst player on the court, which was a good change of pace and something to learn from.

This week in Newport beach I have a number of difficult first round matches but I’m looking forward to playing in such a beautiful location. The goal for this tournament is to try to enjoy the matches and enjoy the beach as well. The matchups for this tournament are below with courts in case you’d like to stream on the PPA Streamed Courts YouTube channel.

10:45 AM PST Singles vs. Augie Ge Court 13

1 PM PST Mixed w/ Audrey Brown Court SC4

4 PM PST Men’s w/ Andre Mercado Court SC1

Unfortunately, I wasn’t selected to be on an MLP team this past Friday during the MLP draft. I’m a little disappointed but know that wherever God wants me is where I’ll be during that time. It also gives me a really good opportunity to take a summer job where I can make money teaching tennis/pickleball.

After Newport Beach this week I’ll be traveling to Florida to play the Tampa Bay Challenger this weekend. This will be a difficult logistical challenge, but I want to continue prioritizing the challenger tournaments, especially in doubles. These tournaments are important for me to earn money and learn how to win.

Thank you for following along in the journey this week. Blessings on your week!

Connor

PPA Newport Beach - Newport Beach, CA (March 3-8) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Andre Mercado, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

Harbor Island Challenger - Tampa, FL (March 6-8) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Johnathan Medina Alvarez, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

PPA Dallas Open - Mckinney, TX (March 10-15) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Stephen Madonia, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

My first round singles match against Tom Protzek was a great three set battle. I played Tom at the Masters in January and lost a three set match, but I was able to pull out the win this time. I played a very consistent third game and minimized some of his weapons and won the match 11-0, 4-11, 11-3.

Roughly 20 minutes later Audrey and I were called to the mixed court and we didn’t play our best match. We lost our first round 3-11, 6-11 and I felt like it was partially a reflection of not getting a great warm up with points before the match. In men’s Andrew and I played a tough match against Zane and Juan but we ended up making too many errors in game three to lose the match 6-11, 11-3, 3-11.

This wasn’t an ideal start to the tournament, but I was grateful to be moving on to the next day in the singles to play Connor Garnett again. The match started off with a tighter first game with a number of side outs that I lost 5-11. Game two was a classic battle with both sides saving game/match points before I eventually pulled it out 15-13. In game three, Connor played very error free and put a lot of pressure on my passing shots to win the match 11-4.

I was disappointed to lose another close match, but felt encouraged that the win in Cape Coral wasn’t a fluke and that I’m capable of playing with the best players in the world on a regular basis. Check out the match at the link below:

Tournament two of two on the week was the Houston Challenger. I ultimately decided to not play singles in Houston on Friday for a few reasons:

1. My body was tired from my singles on Wednesday

2. The singles lines in Houston are totally different than the court I had just played on

3. My ranking would not improve much even if I won the whole tournament

So I decided to rest another day and save my body for what would be two great doubles runs. On Saturday, Chris Crouch and I started off the day with a double pickle winning 11-0, 11-0 which I don’t think I’ve ever done before. We went on to win three more tough matches to make the semi-finals, which is further than I’ve ever gone in a challenger before.

We played some familiar opponents in Anouar Braham and Bruno Faletto in the semis and started off great winning game one 11-5. The wind was very severe from one side making it difficult to drop the ball and we lost on the “bad” side 10-12. This was encouraging going into game three though, because we knew we’d be able to play half of the game on the “good” side. Unfortunately, it was all for not as we lost 4 match points and ended up losing the match 10-12 in the third game.

One of my goals this year is to win a challenger in doubles. This match was a really difficult pill to swallow, because of being one point from the finals. It also hurt financially losing out on ~$400. We ended up finishing 4th in the tournament out of over 60 teams which is a good showing.

Going out to the mixed court Sunday felt encouraging as this was the freshest my body has felt for a mixed day at a challenger. Audrey and I played a really tight first match against her women’s partner and a familiar singles foe in Matt Finnerty. We were able to steal the match with some exceptional movement at the end of game three winning 11-9, 5-11, 11-7.

In our second round, we played the eventually silver medalists and started and ended poorly. We played a good game in the middle of the match to push them, but fell 5-11, 11-4, 0-11. This is just an example of how deep these challengers are getting. We both have mixed points and are ranked decently high, but we drew a signed team and the eventual silver medalists in the round of 32.

Audrey and I battled through the back draw and beat a number of good teams. Most notably, we beat the girl we lost to in Mesa (revenge) and a team we lost to in Tucson (revenge). We won 5 matches in the back draw before falling to the eventual bronze winners in the match before the bronze medal match. Overall, I felt super pleased with our showing. Going 6-2, finishing 6th out of over 80 teams and losing to two medalists at a challenger isn’t easy so I was proud of how we battled.

This week will be focused on rebuilding the body and training before Newport Beach next week. I’m looking forward to training with my partners Andre and Audrey, as well as training for singles with Connor Garnett this week. Thank you all for following my journey and blessings to all.

Connor Mogle

PPA Newport Beach - Newport Beach, CA (March 3-8) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Andre Mercado, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

Harbor Island Challenger - Tampa, FL (March 6-8) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Johnathan Medina Alvarez, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

PPA Dallas Open - Mckinney, TX (March 10-15) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Stephen Madonia, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

Having some success in the previous year gave me some confidence going into this tournament in 2026. The familiar factors of the venue and staying with my grandparents who live close have made Cape Coral feel like a home tournament over the past two years. Thanks to everyone who came out to watch and support from Michigan this week as well.

The week started off in singles where I squared off against my men’s doubles partner for the second tournament in a row. Playing Pesa in singles was tricky as his backhand slice returns stay so low, and he has great volleys. I was able to get through the match in decent fashion winning 11-7, 11-3 and moved on to the round of 32.

In mixed, Salome and I were able to win our first round of 128 match fairly uneventfully. It was valuable for me to win that match to grab a few mixed points and get more experience on the mixed court. We played Rachel Rohrabacher and Christian Alshon in the next round and fought hard but lost 4-11, 5-11.

Finally, in the last match of the day Pesa and I were able to share the court and face off against Rafa Lehnard and Chris Crouch. The match was very back and forth, with everyone playing very consistent pickleball with few errors. Pesa and I were able to come back in game one to win 12-10. We were able to come back from a 0-7 deficit in game two to win 12-10 again to move us into the round of 32.

After day 1 I was pleased to get onto the next day in two events. Everyone is so good at PPA Tour events so I felt grateful to be playing another day and knew I had chances to win two matches on Wednesday.

Wednesday morning started off with a great win in the singles over the 5 seed Connor Garnett. I played Connor at the Lifetime Open and played some horrible pickleball losing in three easy games. The ball was feeling great on my paddle in the warmup on Wednesday and I knew that my singles game was in a good spot to be able to pull off the upset.

Game one was back and forth and I was able to dictate a lot of points, taking the game 11-9, I felt confident going into game two. Game two didn’t go quite as planned as unforced and serving errors crept into my game as I lost the game 1-11. Going into game three, I knew I had to swing the paddle hard to win and not allow myself to think about the unforced errors I had just made. If I was going to win the match, I wanted to do it on my terms.

Game three was similar to game one, very tight points with both of us trying to figure out and hurt the other's weaknesses. I was up 9-7 with the ball before Connor came back with four points in a row. Calling timeout at 9-10 was a little risky given the rhythm I was in on the return, but it paid off and I got the ball back. I was able to close the match out eventually at 13-11.

I knew I was capable of winning against the best players in the world and that match really validated those feelings for me. It was an important step for me on the court but also was really rewarding to see my hard work pay off in a number of ways.

I was able to soak in the win for a few hours before heading back to the venue to play our men’s doubles match against Pablo Tellez and Noe Khlif. Pesa and I played a great defensive game in game one to win 11-5. Pablo and Noe cleaned up their errors and got hot before winning the next two games 11-5 and 11-2 respectfully.

My last match of the week was against Dylan Frazier in the round of 16 singles on Thursday. I was excited to be able to play on Thursday, but unfortunately Dylan played a great match and won 12-10, 11-5. I had a game point in game one which could’ve changed the outcome of the match, but these are great weeks to learn from and experiences to take into future events.

After the strong week in Cape Coral I’m excited to get the opportunity to play again in Mesa, AZ this week. I focused on getting some rest and time away from pickleball over the weekend, and I feel recharged leading into this big event. Please find my matchups for Mesa below. All matches will begin on Tuesday 2/17.

Singles vs. Tom Protzek

Mixed vs. Wes Burrows/Luana Stanciu

Men’s vs. Zane Ford/Juan Benetiez

Thank you for following along and blessings to all!

Connor

PPA Mesa - Mesa, AZ (February 17-22) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Andrew Calderella, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

PPA Challenger Houston, TX (February 20-22) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Chris Crouch, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

PPA Newport Beach - Newport Beach, CA (March 3-8) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Andre Mercado, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

I focused on teaching as many lessons as I could, rebuilding my body in the gym and keeping skills sharp on the court. Off the court, I was able to enjoy a lot more down time than a usual tournament week. This past Friday I was able to intentionally not schedule much to spend time with friends and take quiet time to connect with God.

Today, I travel down to Florida to prepare for PPA Cape Coral that starts on Tuesday. Thankfully my grandparents live close by to the venue in Cape Coral, so my parents and I will be staying with them for the duration of the week. Staying with them and having family around for tournaments is always nice to further avoid the feeling of being on the road all the time.

On Monday I’ll be able to head to the venue, support some of the qualifiers and practice with my partners. I’ve been able to get a good amount of reps in with my men’s partner, but the mixed partnership will be a new one. Unfortunately, I do not have exact courts or times for the matches yet, but below are the matchups that I have on Tuesday:

Singles

vs. Pesa Teoni

Mixed Doubles

vs. Tatiana Ruhl/Chuck Taylor

Men’s Doubles

vs. Chris Crouch/Rafa Lehnard

Thanks for your support this week. I’m ready to get back out on the tour and compete over the next few weeks!

Blessings

Connor

PPA Cape Coral - Cape Coral, FL (February 10-15) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Pesa Teoni, Mixed Doubles w/ Salome Devidze)

PPA Mesa - Mesa, AZ (February 17-22) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Andrew Calderella, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

PPA Newport Beach - Newport Beach, CA (March 3-8) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Andre Mercado, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

On the tour, I do my best to replicate the same routine at every stop. Fly in a day or two early, have a rental car for flexibility and get an Airbnb instead of a hotel. Sharing an Airbnb with a few friends cuts down on the cost and makes me feel like I’m living closer to how I would at home. The simple things like a kitchen, living room, quiet space and a yard can do a lot to alleviate anxiety and promote stillness. My mental clarity and health improves a lot when I go through this routine on the road, and it improves my play.

I’ve learned these things through a lot of trial and error this past year. Looking back on when I was working a full time job and traveled to these tournaments as a “vacation” makes me laugh now. As I used to use “vacation” time to play and I thought of being in a warm place would make me feel like I’m on vacation. These tournaments, however, are anything but a vacation for me and I realize I’m privileged to say that. All that to say, I’m really looking forward to getting back to work in the next few weeks on the tour with a few important stops coming up before the MLP draft on February 27th.

While I’m at home this week, however, I’ve been able to enjoy a nice weekend with friends. We were able to hangout at my house and get a nice dinner in chilly downtown GR. This weekend I took Saturday and Sunday off from pickleball in an effort to prevent some burnout. I was able to go back into the gym the last few days and accomplish some heavier lifts in an effort to rebuild my body before the busy few weeks ahead. I’ve lost some muscle mass over the last few weeks which is okay, but building some of it back up to prevent future injuries is an important goal this week.

I have plenty of drilling lined up this week in Grand Rapids that I’m excited for. I’m excited to get back into a familiar week of training for singles and doubles. A couple things I want to work on this week on the doubles court are third shots, transitions, and aggressive dinking from the left side especially for mixed doubles. On the singles side, I’m looking forward to working on my fitness, leg strength and my forehand on the run as I’m moving to my right.

I was able to come back to an awesome package from Jamie at ATP Apparel. ATP has a ton of awesome apparel options and my personal favorites are the shorts that I’ll be rocking over the next few weeks on tour. If you’re interested in the products, check out their site below and feel free to reach out if you have any questions.

ATP Pro Series Pickleball Apparel

Thanks for reading this week, I’m humbled that you care enough about my journey to make it to the end of this. Peace and blessings

Connor Mogle

PPA Cape Coral - Cape Coral, FL (February 10-15) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Pesa Teoni, Mixed Doubles w/ Salome Devidze)

PPA Mesa - Mesa, AZ (February 17-22) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Andrew Calderella, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)

PPA Newport Beach - Newport Beach, CA (March 3-8) (Singles, Men’s Doubles w/ Andre Mercado, Mixed Doubles w/ Audrey A Brown)