FLIP + CHING

Franklin US Open Pickleball Championships

Posted on April 29, 2026 by Ching under Pickleball, Travel.

Yes, you read that right. The Minto US Open is now Franklin US Open Pickleball Championships – at least this year, anyway. To get a recap from previous years, read this and this.

You can’t go to the US Open and not take a picture in front of this wall. It is iconic. I love how they add every single year so it’s easy to tell what year you were there. They’re starting to run out of room, though.

Some key differences between this year and previous years – besides the obvious absence of two major sponsors (Minto and Margaritaville) – the player goody bag was just a basic string bag and not as nice as past year’s bags, and there was not much in it this year in terms of swag. You still got a tournament shirt, though, which was nice and always appreciated. Since Franklin is the title sponsor, players also got a commemorative Franklin X40 ball this year.

Brian and I ran into a few people at the tournament such as Ramon’s friend Johnny (whose last name I forget) and William and Rosti Sobek (below).

We also had a fun Lunar sighting. This young kid named Nicholas from California is sponsored by Lunar.

The usual suspects were there – Kyle Yates and Rob Cassidy.

We got to see Rich Lively, a senior pro who we met through our friend Susie Ternes because she hosted him one year.

And we got to watch Jack Oxler play several matches throughout the week.

And, of course, we also watched our favorite pro Jay Devilliers. He got to partner with Anna Leigh Waters in mixed doubles which was amazing!

My friend Laurie Adams and I played together in 3.5 women’s doubles 40-49 age group on Thursday. I can’t believe I didn’t get a picture of us in our matching Chicken N Pickle team uniforms!

Then on Saturday I played 3.5 mixed doubles 40-49 age group with Michael Cheung. We played in our matching Lunar shirts.

I actually got accept for 3.5 singles 40-49 age group as well but the event was on Saturday, April 11, the day we were flying in so I had to withdraw. At least I withdrew early enough that I didn’t have to pay for the event that I couldn’t play in.

I was a bit more subdued this year and didn’t hound people for pictures. Something I deeply regret because I love looking back at photos and there’s not as much for me too look back on from this last trip. However, I did get participate in the iconic US Open flag ceremony this year.

Brian didn’t want any part of it so he just stayed in the Fan Zone while Michael and I walked with the Philippine contingency. It was so cool. The flag ceremony is one of the most unique and distinctive features of the US Open tournament and I was grateful to be part of it. I want to bring the Wichita flag next year.

Besides spending time at the tournament, Brian and I got to eat some good (albeit expensive) food and do some touristy things while we were in Naples. I’ll share more about those activities in the next post. Stay tuned!

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National Pickleball Month MEGA Fiesta

Posted on April 28, 2026 by Ching under Community, Pickleball.

Did you know that April is National Pickleball Month? If you’ve been following me, then you probably already know this because I am completely obsessed with pickleball and will tell everyone all sorts of pickleball factoids and am eager to celebrate my favorite hobby all month. Much like previous years, I planned some activities throughout the month to bring people together to celebrate.

To kick things off, we decided to host a MEGA Fiesta at TapNPaddles. For those who are unfamiliar with it, I host a Friday Night Fiesta round robin group every week at TapNPaddles. We started it last year and it has evolved over time. We’ve had as many as 16 teams (32 players) on 8 courts but on average probably get about 8-10 teams on average.

Anyway, to kick off National Pickleball Month festivities, we decided to have a MEGA event on April 3. We took over all 12 courts at TapNPaddles from 6 PM to close. Since we had 24 teams, we divided everyone into three pools of 8 teams each. After the round robin matches, the teams competed in a single elimination bracket to determine the winners. Besides the event lasting four hours (instead of the normal 2 hours), we also received a $250 grant from USA Pickleball which we used on some heavy appetizers and finger foods for the players. We also had festive decorations, fun prizes, and drink specials. We brought the sign board back out for people to write “why they love pickleball” and my friend Susie Ternes made an awesome photo booth which was a huge hit. It was a great kick off party overall.

Instead of using the usual king and queen crowns that we use for photos each week, I leaned in to the “fiesta” theme and got these mini sombrero headbands from Amazon to “crown” our winners. They usually don’t get to keep my fancy crowns which we just use for photo ops but they did get to keep these cute sombreros.

I got a bunch of “fiesta” decorations just to be more festive. A few people, like Jeanette Santo and Hai Nguyen, came early to help decorate.

We took some fun photos at Susie’s photo booth.

Susie’s custom photo both props were hilarious!

Bharath Reddiyar and Amy Dupont won the top group.

Karen Fox and Devon Fuller won the middle group.

Taylor Griffin and Rob Adams won the bottom group.

It was a Friday Night Fiest for the ages! Here’s a highlight video I made:

If you ever want to play pickleball on a Friday night, register your team here. Come and fiesta with us!

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Chicken N Pickle Courtside Crew

Posted on April 24, 2026 by Ching under Community, Pickleball.

Chicken N Pickle expanded their ambassador program this year by launching a new group called CNP NET-Work. It’s kind of a scaled down version of the original Chicken N Pickle ambassador program with less emphasis on participating in tournaments and greater focus on building community. The NET-Work is designed for loyal, local fans who embody the spirit of Chicken N Pickle. Mom, dad, and Brian are all part of this program.

Some of the perks of being part of CNP NET-Work include:

Welcome package with $50 CNP Gift Card, CNP shirt and hat
50 BOGO brunch certificates per year
4 FREE Court hours per year
Monthly open play with our staff, NET-Work, ambassadors, kids crew, and campus crew members
25% OFF CNP swag in store and online
25% off ReserveCNP.com
Plenty of volunteer opportunities

It truly is a wonderful program to be a part of and, since we moved our monthly open play night to Mondays, I am actually able to organize and participate in the events now. Last year the monthly ambassador open plays were on Wednesdays so I couldn’t attend any of them because my Zumba class. I did make it in time for a few group photos, though.

Our friend Jim Tsen actually got to join us for the one in March while he was in town. Brian and I were also back from the US Open in Florida in time for the one in April because the Courtside Crew Socials (as these events are called now) are on the third Monday of each month.

I just love being part of the Chicken N Pickle family!

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My First Blarney Breakfast

Posted on April 20, 2026 by Ching under Community, Things to Do.

The Blarney Breakfast is on its 51st year but I’ve never ever been able to attend because it’s usually on a weekday. This year, however, I managed to squeeze it in to my schedule. Although, I did have to get up super early and go at 6 AM. It helps to have a little bit of peer pressure.

The event benefits Rainbows United and is usually on St. Patrick’s Day (whatever day that might fall during the week). There were drink specials but I couldn’t partake because I had to go to work immediately after. Some of our friends were smart and took the day off, though. I’m thinking I might have to do the same to fully experience Blarney Breakfast next year. What a great way to start the day!

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One More Fun Group Dinner with Jim

Posted on April 9, 2026 by Ching under Food and Drink.

We had another fun group dinner with our friend Jim Tsen while he was in town last month. This time it was at our most favorite restaurant of all, the Belmont.