Teen Pickleballer Wins Second Triple Crown Event

In just 2 1/2 years, Delray Beach’s J.W. Johnson is rising up the ranks of professional pickleball.

He recently picked up his second Triple Crown at the Association Of Pickleball Professionals South Carolina Open, winning three gold medals in singles, mixed doubles and doubles at the tournament. The 19-year-old said he is somewhat surprised by his ascent, which currently has him ranked third in the APP/Onix Pickleball Pro Rankings.

“Winning in South Carolina was nice, but the first one in Delray was better because it was more challenging with better players,” said Johnson, who won his first Triple Crown last month at the APP Delray Beach Open. “There were a few better teams.

“It’s exciting because I just take them as another tournament,” he said. “It’s definitely surprised me because I didn’t think I would be doing this good in a little over two years. It is a lot different from tennis.”

Johnson is also one of three in his family to be competing at a high level in the sport, joining his mother Julie and younger sister Jorja, 15.

“It’s really awesome because there aren’t a lot of other families playing pickleball and I really like that a lot,” Johnson said. “Basically, I just want to do better than last year. I have already done better at the start of this year than last year and I am excited about that.”

In winning the Triple Crown in South Carolina, Johnson topped Federico Staksrud 11-5 and 11-8 for the singles title. Later he teamed with Simone Jardim to win the mixed doubles title over Michelle Esquivel and Rob Cassidy 11-2 and 11-8, and then with Zane Navratil to defeat Eden Lica and Andrei Daescu 13-11 and 11-7 for the men’s doubles crown.

Another player with Palm Beach County ties, Anna Bright, 22, has also taken to the sport at the professional level after getting her start in October 2021.

Bright posted a 44-1 high school record at West Boca Raton High School where she was a five-time high school state champion and high school All-American (2015-17). She also claimed the 2015 title of Florida’s “Miss Tennis” for her many high school tennis accomplishments.

She went on to play for the University of California where she led the Golden Bears in singles wins in the 2021 season and recorded 96 career singles victories and played in 75 consecutive dual matches for the Bears. She graduated in May 2021 with a double major in business administration and data science.

She recently took third in a Pro women’s singles event and teamed with Delray Beach’s Jorja Johnson to win the 2022 APP Tour Punta Gorda Open Pro Women’s Doubles gold medal.

“I got home in mid-September and there are a couple of pickleball courts near my house,” said Bright, who lives in Pompano Beach. “During my time in college, I had played a couple of times with my dad. There was someone who said I was pretty good, and I should play in this charity event in Plantation and once I played, I was absolutely hooked.”

After turning professional, she started traveling and playing in tournaments around the country.

“Tennis is the only reason I am good as I am and that I have gotten this good so quickly,” Bright said. “The movement, the mental game, just the court sense is everything and I was naturally talented in pickleball, probably more so than tennis.

“I always had very fast hands and was good at anticipation and not making mistakes,” she said. “Those are the three things that are most important in pickleball. I thrive at it and I love the community. The feeling at a tournament is better. You have people of all ages and of all levels competing and getting all fired up, which I really love. I love the game and the pace of play is so much faster.”