For the first time in over a decade, the AVP tour is back in South Florida with the Fort Lauderdale Open, which began Friday and will run through Sunday.
The tournament, taking place at Fort Lauderdale Beach Park, has attracted many of the top male and female beach volleyball players in the world.
It pits 16 teams competing in a double-elimination bracket over the three days. Twelve of the teams qualified for the tournament automatically based on their AVP ranking, while the other four entered based on results from the Denver Open.
“The level of talent in both the men’s and women’s brackets is some of the best we’ve ever seen, and only has gotten better as the season’s progressed,” Al Lau, CEO of the AVP, said in a statement. “We’re thrilled to have the AVP returning to Fort Lauderdale for the first time in 12 years. There is a terrific community of people in Florida who are passionate about beach volleyball, as evidenced by the large number of colleges in the state offering beach volleyball programs. It’s going to be an amazing event.”
One of the headliners of this year’s event is South Florida native Nick Lucena, a two-time Olympian who has had success in events that take place in front of his home crowd. Lucena, a Western High grad, will be partnering with Andy Benesh, this year’s AVP Pro Series Austin Open champion.
In 2010, the last time a Fort Lauderdale AVP tournament took place, Lucena made it to the final but ultimately tied for second after inclement weather forced the championship to be canceled. Later, in 2018 he and partner Phil Dalhausser were victorious at the Fort Lauderdale Major tournament.
Open play matches for the tournament are each day from 9 a.m.-6 p.m. The women’s final will take place Sunday at 2 p.m., with the men to follow at 3 p.m. The winners will take home a $125,000 purse.
Admission is free to the public. Fans also can watch live coverage from Stadium Court or Court 1 on the AVP’s YouTube channel.
