2027 pickleball calendars: PPA Challenger Series sets 18 stops, APP plans 12 U.S. events

Two pro-level organizers put their 2027 plans on the table in October, and the picture for next year is getting clearer. The PPA Challenger Series announced an 18-stop schedule on October 14. The Association of Pickleball Players said on October 8 that its 2027 U.S. calendar will have 12 stops, and opened registration for its first one. Here is what each organizer has actually published, and what is still missing.

PPA Challenger Series: 18 stops, seven of them new

The PPA Challenger Series is the entry point to the PPA Tour for amateurs and aspiring pros. It announced its 2027 season, its third, with 18 stops, seven new and 11 returning. In 2026, according to the series, events averaged 400 players per tournament, with players from all 50 U.S. states, Washington, D.C., the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.

Three changes stand out. The number of 250-point tournaments goes from four in 2026 to five, which gives more players a chance at World Pickleball Ranking points. Life Time will host eight events, up from two. And all 2027 events will use the LT Pro 48, which the series describes as the official ball of the PPA Tour. The Kitchen Pickleball adds that the top points earners will qualify for the PPA Challenger Showdown in Dallas at the end of the year, where they compete for a PPA Tour contract.

The new stops are Jacksonville, Fla.; Ocotillo, Ariz.; Peachtree Corners (Atlanta), Ga.; Chicago; Roseville, Calif.; Chanhassen, Minn.; and Richmond, Va. The returning stops include Houston, Auburn-Opelika, Ala., Fort Collins, Colo., Macon, Ga., Seattle, Harbour Island, Fla., Punta Gorda, Fla., and Wilson, N.C. St. George, Utah is listed as a returner in the text, while the schedule itself lists Black Desert Resort in Utah for April 30 to May 2.

### The 2027 schedule

- Jan. 8-10: Jacksonville, Fla. (HUB Jacksonville) - Jan. 22-24: Ocotillo, Ariz. (Life Time Ocotillo) - Feb. 5-7: Peachtree Corners, Ga. (Life Time Peachtree Corners) - March 5-7: Houston (Life Time Kingwood) - April 16-18: Auburn-Opelika, Ala. (Opelika Pickleball Club) - April 30-May 2: Black Desert, Utah (Black Desert Resort) - May 7-9: Wilson, N.C. (Burt Gillette Athletic Complex) - May 21-23: Fort Collins, Colo. (Zero Zero Two) - June 4-6: Chicago (Life Time North Shore) - June 18-20: Roseville, Calif. (Life Time Roseville) - July 9-11: Chanhassen, Minn. (Life Time Chanhassen) - July 23-25: Macon, Ga. (Rhythm & Rally) - Aug. 6-8: Seattle (Sideout Tsunami) - Aug. 20-22: to be announced - Sept. 10-12: Richmond, Va. (Pouncey Tract Park) - Sept. 24-26: Punta Gorda, Fla. (Pickleplex) - Oct. 8-10: to be announced - Oct. 22-24: Harbour Island, Fla. (Life Time Harbour Island)

Series vice president Tanner Groff called it the series' "most ambitious yet" and said the Life Time expansion pairs "world-class facilities with a competitive platform that gives rising pros a clear path to the sport's biggest stage."

APP: 12 U.S. stops and more than 60 events worldwide

The APP's announcement, reported by CourtCore on October 15, is less detailed. The organization says its 2027 calendar will include more than 60 events worldwide, of which 12 will be in the United States. Registration is open for the Boca Raton Open, which the APP says is its opening U.S. event of 2027. The other U.S. dates, player fields, ticket information and broadcast details were not in the announcement, and the APP says more will come later.

The APP also made forward-looking promises, which CourtCore labels as plans rather than results: it intends to double professional prize money, expand livestream coverage and add linear television coverage for its U.S. stops. It says its 2027 events will carry USA Pickleball Golden Ticket status for the 2027 and 2028 national championships. Players should confirm what that means at each event, because qualification rules are set by the organizers.

The CourtCore piece is careful about its limits. It is based on the APP's October 8 announcement and says it has no commercial relationship with the APP, USA Pickleball or the Boca Raton event. That makes it a decent summary, but the APP's own pages are the place to check dates and entry rules.

How the two circuits differ

The two announcements serve different players. The Challenger Series is a development circuit: amateur and pro brackets at the same event, ranking points, and a year-end showdown with a tour contract at stake. The APP calendar is built around its own tour and a worldwide schedule, and its first details focus on one event with open registration.

The Moneyball Series that the APP announced separately, with $15,000 guaranteed at each of four stops this fall, fits as a third rung for players who want to turn pro. Taken together, the three show an effort by both major organizers to give mid-level players more places to compete and more ways to earn ranking points.

What to do with this

If you plan to enter an event, use the official registration pages, since schedules in a press announcement can change. Two Challenger dates are still to be announced, in August and October. For travel planning, the Challenger schedule is the most complete public calendar for 2027 right now, and the APP's Boca Raton registration is the only APP U.S. event with a published entry route.

Sources checked 20 Oct 2026.