The USTA National Campus in Orlando served as the electric backdrop for the kickoff of the 2025 Major League Pickleball (MLP) season. Unlike the MLP Playoffs that also took place in Orlando last November, which had players layering up to stay warm, this one was a scorcher. The four-day event, stretching from Thursday to Sunday, was jam-packed with high-energy matches, passionate fans, and all of your favorite pickleball pros: Anna Leigh Waters, the Johnson siblings (not to be confused with the legendary Johns brothers), Federico Staksrud, and more.
This season marks a fresh chapter for MLP with some notable rule changes. Most significantly, the league has moved to side-out scoring — you know, the way the rest of us play in rec games — a shift from the rally scoring used in previous seasons. It’s a nod to the sport’s roots and adds another layer of strategy to every point. Additionally, Premier Level team rosters expanded to six players (three men, three women), offering more lineup versatility and deeper team dynamics.
For those new to the MLP format, matches consist of five games: Men’s Doubles, Women’s Doubles, and two rounds of Mixed Doubles. If teams are tied 2-2, things get spicy with the “Dreambreaker” — a singles-style tiebreaker where each player rotates in. It’s fast, unpredictable, and always a crowd favorite.
After four days of intense rallies, strategic timeouts, and plenty of sideline drama, the reigning champs, Dallas Flash, stayed perfect at 4-0. The hometown heroes, Orlando Squeeze, energized the local crowd with a strong 4-1 showing. Meanwhile, the New Jersey 5s, who posted a solid 5-1 record, left the event with a touch of controversy — but that’s a story for another day.
As always, I was right there, courtside, capturing things through the lens of my vintage 35mm camera. Here is what I saw:
