They ditched the court skirts and the sponsored athletic tees on Friday night, as the Association of Pickleball Players hosted their 2023 Player of the Year Awards event at the Delray Beach Tennis Center Community Center, amidst the 2024 APP Vlasic Classic - Delray Beach.
The atmosphere inside was warm and celebratory as awards like Rookie of the Year, Icon of the Year and Fan Favorite were given out to some of the APP's best athletes. APP broadcaster, Dominic Catalano, hosted the event, and the following is a complete list of winners:
AARP Masters Division Players of the Year
Female Pro Doubles - Pam Gilbert & Sue Johnston
Female Pro Mixed - Kristin Hickman
Male Pro Doubles - Scott Moore
Male Pro Mixed - David Spearman
Referee of the Year
Brett Hutlas
AARP Champions Division Players of the Year
Male Most Improved - Stefan Andren
Female Most Improved - Nathalie Shaw
Female Pro Singles - Heather Lovett
Female Pro Doubles - Anna Shirley
Female Pro Mixed - Eva Welsher
Male Pro Singles - Mattias Johansson
Male Pro Doubles - Paul Olin
Male Pro Mixed - Jamie Oncins
APP Spirit Award
Chris Powers
APP Pro Players of the Year
Female Rookie of the Year - Riley Bohnert
Male Rookie of the Year - Richard Livornese Jr.
Male Most Improved - William Sobek & CJ Klinger
Female Most Improved - Alix Truong & Allison Harris
Female Pro Singles - Salome Devidze
Female Pro Doubles - Simone Jardim
Female Pro Mixed - Susannah Barr
Male Pro Singles - Hunter Johnson
Male Pro Doubles - Andrei Daescu
Male Pro Mixed - Andrei Daescu
APP Icon Award
Simone Jardim
APP Fan Favorite Award
Female Fan Favorite - Susannah Barr
Male Fan Favorite - Andrei Daescu
Congratulations to all our 2023 Players of the Year - may 2024 be better and brighter!