Mary Brascia, a professional pickleball player on the PPA tour, currently ranked number 4 on the PPA leaderboards for women's singles with an impressive DUPR rating of 5.666 in doubles and 5.871 in singles, is among the top-ranked female players in the sport. Hailing from Southern California, Mary finds the greatest joy in playing pickleball with her family, and especially enjoys being coached by her father Vinnie Brascia.

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“Our whole family is a pickleball family. We all play all the time and our family is super close. We enjoy spending time together so it’s really nice that we found a sport that we can all play together as a family”, Mary says.

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Mary’s dad, Vinnie still coaches her and her sister to this day. Mary says,

"He knows me better than anyone, and he helps my sister and I play our best on the court because he knows the game really well.” Mary mentions she plays her best with her dad as her coach because it keeps her in a “positive headspace”.

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Vinnie has always taken pride in both Mary’s and her sister Maggie’s passion for pickleball. He remains focused on their goals and maintaining a good relationship to the sport.

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“My goal is for them to have fun and to achieve their potential as best as they can”, Vinnie says. As any good father would, he remains dad first, “I’m dad first and foremost, and always, and no matter what happens in a match I’m just going to give Mary a big hug and just say how proud I am for trying their best out there, cause this sport is hard.”

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As we celebrate Father's Day this year, let's not forget the role that fathers play in shaping our lives and helping us reach our full potential. Mary Brascia's story is a reminder of the impact that a father's love, guidance, and support can have on their child's journey to success.

To hear more about Mary and her dad, watch the video here. Follow Mary's journey in climbing the pro pickleball rankings on her Instagram.

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To all the fathers out there, Happy Father's Day!

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