Meg Marion has played in a bunch of PPA Tournaments.
She’s not a pro. Nope. She’s not that different from so many people who spend their money, travel a little bit, and want the challenge and a little of the pressure that comes from playing tournaments.
Marion is 62 years old, started playing pickleball in 2021, and she has some suggestions for the PPA Tour.
Healthier food options, for one.
Make sure a team or a player can get to the finals through the back draw.
“I don’t like that the best you can do is win bronze, and I think most people feel that way,” she said.
She’d like to see Round Robin formats, a free shirt at least, and, “Please, please, please, have skinny singles. There, I’ve said it,” she said.
But you know what else Marion said, and this is something that makes the PPA unlike any other tournament option out there?
“There’s nothing like being in a tournament where you literally play alongside the pros. If that doesn’t help you bring your ‘A Game’ nothing will.”
The PPA’s relationship with amateur players is unlike any in other professional sports and the tour and the phrase, “Play Where The Pros Play,” has always been a motto on the Tour. There is no other professional sports organization that provides amateur players with the opportunity to compete at the same venue where the best players in the world are playing at the same time.
“Since taking over as the Tournament Director for the PPA Tour, it’s been a concrete goal of mine to improve the experience for the 1,000 amateur players we welcome at each event on an average basis,” said tour director Jake Weinbach. ”I believe our team has made significant strides toward that goal with data to support it.”
The PPA Tour’s two most recent tournaments show they are the highest-rated from amateurs since it started tracking data more than a year ago. The Cincinnati Open rated an 8.49 on a 1-10 fan experience scale.
“We’ve invested time and resources to focus on enhancing the hospitality, communication and organizational process within the amateur experience,” Weinbach said. “We are now providing amateurs with a shaded player lounge that holds complimentary refreshments, a special tournament-specific memento, increased health products and services through a variety of vendor village sponsors, quality equipment such as semi-permanent Selkirk nets, an advanced podium presentation for our skill/age divisional medalists and other assets that contribute to a smoother and more positive experience.”
Good timing, too. The PPA’s first all-amateur tournament will be this weekend in Hilton Head, S.C., and it will be another place for the PPA Tour to show how it’s committed to improving the experience for the amateur player.
All of that is coming up, but in the future, with more changes and improvements planned, the tour will still stick with what makes it most unique – its proximity to the pros.
“I watch as much as I can all day long,” Marion said of checking out the pros. “I’ve had some very meaningful conversations with pro players that have been both interesting and informative. That would never happen in tennis. I had several chats with Callie Smith and I asked her for some advice which she gave. Yeah, I love to watch the pros play.
“There are a number of pros whose games help inform mine because we share certain instincts. In some cases, those instincts don’t yield the results I’d like to see, so I might keep the one who’s just like me in mind as I aspire to play a bit more like another. I’ve started buying courtside seats for tournaments in order to get the most out of it.”
Of course, there will be complaints. That’s understandable, but the PPA is committed to making improvements. The Tour is listening to its players.
“It’s always an incredible feeling when you’re creating unforgettable experiences and the PPA Tour is 100 percent committed to building upon the one-of-a-kind opportunity for amateurs to play where the pros play,” Weinbach said.
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