What is a Gold Card in pickleball?

A Gold Card is the highest contract tier on the PPA Tour. Gold Card holders receive the full published prize money payout (1.0x multiplier) at every event. All Gold Cards have already been distributed — no new ones are being issued. Gold Card players represent the top tier of contracted professionals on the PPA Tour.

How much do unsigned pickleball players make?

Unsigned pickleball players receive the lowest tier of prize money payouts on the PPA Tour. While the exact amounts vary by event type and placement, unsigned players generally earn significantly less than Gold Card or Standard contract holders for the same finish position. On the APP Tour, there is no tier system — all players receive the same payouts.

What is the difference between Gold Card and Standard contracts?

Gold Card players receive the full published prize money (1.0x multiplier), while Standard contract players receive approximately 0.4x of the published amount. For example, if the published winner payout is $10,000, a Gold Card winner would earn $10,000 while a Standard winner would earn approximately $4,000. The difference applies to every placement from Winner through Round of 32.

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Pickleball Contract Tiers Explained

How Gold Card, Standard, Futures, and Unsigned tiers work on the PPA and MLP tours — and why the APP has no tier system at all.

Report Type: Tour Economics·Last updated: March 4, 2026

Overview

The PPA and MLP tours use a tiered contract system that directly affects how much players earn in prize money. There are four tiers: Gold Card (highest), Standard, Futures (new), and Unsigned (no contract). A player's tier determines the multiplier applied to their prize money on the PPA Tour, while MLP pays all team members equally regardless of tier. The APP Tour does not use a tier system — all APP players receive the same payouts.

Tier Breakdown

Tier	PPA Multiplier	Status	Description
Gold Card	1.0x (full payout)	All distributed	The highest tier. Full published prize money at every PPA event. No new Gold Cards are being issued.
Standard	~0.4x	Active	Most common tier among contracted professionals. Receive approximately 40% of the published Gold Card payout for the same placement.
Futures	TBD	New — none signed	A newly created tier for emerging players. Multiplier and terms have not been finalized as no players have been signed to Futures contracts yet.
Unsigned	Lowest	Open entry	No contract with the tour. Players enter through open qualifiers and receive the lowest payout tier at PPA events.

Gold Card

Gold Card holders receive the full published prize money — a 1.0x multiplier on all PPA payouts. This makes the Gold Card the most valuable contract tier in professional pickleball. Key facts:

All Gold Cards have already been distributed to top players
No new Gold Cards are being issued by the PPA Tour
Gold Card players also receive guaranteed contract payments independent of tournament performance
The combination of full prize money plus guaranteed contracts means Gold Card players have the highest earning floor in the sport

Standard

Standard contract players receive approximately 0.4x of the published Gold Card payout. This is the most common contract tier among professionals who compete regularly on the PPA Tour. While the payout multiplier is lower than Gold Card, Standard players still receive contract guarantees that provide baseline income independent of results.

Futures

The Futures tier is a new category designed for emerging players who are not yet established enough for Standard or Gold Card contracts. As of March 2026, no players have been signed to Futures contracts, and the specific multiplier and terms have not been publicly finalized.

Unsigned

Unsigned players have no contract with any tour. They enter PPA events through open qualifiers and receive the lowest tier of prize money payouts. For Unsigned players, tournament performance is the sole source of prize income — there are no guaranteed payments or contract minimums.

APP: No Tier System

The APP Tour (Association of Pickleball Professionals) does not use a contract tier system. All APP players receive the same prize money for the same placement, regardless of contract status. This means an Unsigned player who wins an APP event earns the same prize as any other winner.

APP events use a six-category system based on purse size and prestige, but these categories affect the total prize pool — not individual payouts by player status.

MLP: Equal Team Payouts

In Major League Pickleball, contract tiers do not affect prize money. All players on a team receive identical payouts based on the team's final placement. A Gold Card player and an Unsigned player on the same winning MLP team earn the same amount.

This makes MLP an equalizer: lower-tier players can earn the same prize money as Gold Card teammates, making team events proportionally more valuable for Standard and Unsigned players.

Learn more about MLP payouts →

Impact on Career Earnings

Contract tier is one of the most significant factors in a PPA player's total earnings. Consider two hypothetical players with identical results across a full PPA season:

Scenario	Gold Card Player	Standard Player
Published winner payout	$10,000	$10,000
Actual payout received	$10,000 (1.0x)	~$4,000 (0.4x)
Season total (10 wins)	$100,000	~$40,000

This 2.5x earning gap between Gold Card and Standard players for identical results is why contract tier is one of the most discussed topics in professional pickleball economics.

Methodology

DinkBank tracks player contract tiers alongside tournament results and prize money. Tier assignments are based on publicly available information and tour announcements. All prize money figures on DinkBank account for the player's tier multiplier.

For more details on how DinkBank calculates and verifies prize money, see the Methodology page.