SquashTalk note:   For the small but enthusiastic group of hardball players, Rob Dinerman will be reporting for SquashTalk on the hardball squash tournament circuit in the US. This is Rob's report number five, and it covers the Woodruff-Nee tournament in New York. To read his fourth report, click here."

Hardball on the road - News for mid-February 1999
reported by Rob Dinerman, New York

The Woodruff-Nee Invitational:

Fiftieth Annual Event This was the fiftieth anniversary of this popular and prestigious championship, whose hardball edition consisted of an Open and four age-group categories and was hosted as always by the University Club of Washington D.C., whose four excellent North American courts swarmed with activity throughout this mid-February weekend. As has been the case through much of its history, this event occurred just one week prior to the Nationals, and this placement often provides the springboard for what subsequently ensues in the National tourney.

Day and Meres run a sterling event While the club's tournament committee can be counted on to supply the various forms of back-up support that is required for an event to flourish, it is the two-man combination of Howard Day (now approaching the 20-year mark of his tenure as head pro and athletic director) and his associate Ghirma Meres who are the real heroes of this endeavor, and this year Day, clearly fully recovered from the knee and back problems that troubled him a few years ago, not only reached the semis of the 50-and-over flight, but also competed and acquitted himself well in the Open round-robin, compiling a tournament-high five total matches atop his weekend-long administrative efforts! He and Ghirma also had the wisdom to devote the Saturday night festivities to a reminiscence-filled "reunion" of the 1964 Washington D.C. team that won the USSRA National Team Championship that year. Unlike the Harry Cowles Invitational, whose golden anniversary in 1996 proved to be its swan song, the Woodruff-Nee seems destined to flourish for many years to come, though both events were bound and saddened by the death of Germain G. Glidden, who founded the Cowles and was the first Woodruff-Nee champion, and who passed away at 85 just a few days prior to this tourney.

Open Division round-robin The Open Championship, as noted, was for the third consecutive year a four-man round-robin which fortuitously devolved to make its last match a true show-down final, as both players were undefeated coming into their Sunday morning match. This was also true in '97 and Rob Dinerman was involved in both of those events. Two years ago he rallied from 2-1 down to edge out the power-hitting Nat Otis 15-13 in the fifth and thereby win his third Woodruff-Nee title (previously '80 and '89). This year he first defeated Howard Day in a very competitive four and then barely survived a murderous five-game match with heady Merion Cricket Club sharpshooter Tim Kent, who one week later would upset Keen Butcher in the Nationals, and who earned an 11-10 lead in the fifth game of this match before Dinerman engineered a match-ending five-point run.

While Rob had been extended in both of his Saturday matches, five-time and defending Woodruff-Nee champion Tom Harrity sailed through both these opponents in straight games. Harrity's '94 and '96 titles had both come at Rob's final-round expense and this '99 final would go Tom's way as well, in four, with Harrity tinning his way to a loss in game two, but then re-asserting his power and footspeed to control the final two chapters in convincing fashion.

Frazier and Smedley in the 50+ In a disturbing sign of the hardball game's current trend, the Open category was the only one that had to resort to the round-robin format, as all four older age-groups had full draws. The pre-tournament question was whether former Open finalist ('78), Scott Ryan, whose tournament-winning return to age-group play after a several year gap last month at Merion earned him the top seed, could consolidate his recent triumph in the face of a solid nine-man field. Unfortunately, this issue remained unresolved as Ryan suffered an eye injury just before play was to begin and had to withdraw. This presented David Muickler of Washington with a gift ticket to the semifinals, where he succumbed to Walter Smedley's power game. In the bottom semi, Howard Day defeated nationally-ranked Henry Steinglass before bowing in four to John Frazier. Frazier and Smedley have often played in this event over the years, most recently in the '97 over-50's final, but this rematch proved both more competitive and more contentious than normal. Frazier wound up winning 15-13 in the fifth in perhaps the most entertaining and exciting final of the weekend.

Close 60s final! The most serious competition for the above-mentioned honor came from the 60 plus draw, where Lucky Young of Omaha, Nebraska prevailed, but only barely and by a similarly 15-13 fifth-game tally, over southpaw sharpshooter Bruce Elfenbein, who has been playing some of his best squash of late. Elfenbein reached the final winning in three over Austin Graff and four over Bill Wilson, while Young in his half of the draw swept past John Pearson and Dorie Friend, whose quarter-final with John Davis (one of the stars and raconteurs of that '64 Washington championship team) went only one game before Davis, who had been sidelined from competition for the past several years, reaggravated an old knee injury and had to default.

Baker in the 70s The seventies flight represented sweet revenge for top seed Charlie Baker, who had been upset one month earlier by Bob Penotti in their Atlantic City 70's final. Both men advanced to the final without losing a game (Baker over Tom Berry and Jim Glassco, Penotti by subduing Charlie Palms and Milo Coerper) but this time Baker not only triumphed but did so in three convincing games. The two were destined for a rubber match, in the National semis one week later, with Baker winning this time as well (in five games) before falling to Henri Salaun in the finals in Boston.

Solin: tiebreaker specialist The 75's flight was limited to only five players but still was played in a "straight-draw" format. Kingdom Gould won over Arthur Peters in the only pre-semi match-up before losing to top seed Harold Boddorff in three. In the bottom half, Myron Solin won a 16-14 first-game tiebreaker with Seth French, then coasted through the remainder at 4 and 6. He then similarly won a first-game tiebreaker (18-15) in the finals with Boddorff; they split the next two games, and Solin then never looked back in running out the last game 15-8. At this age-level the outcomes of tiebreaking games assumes even added importance, and Solin's triumph in those crucibles served him well in his march to the title.

Finally, six well-preserved octogenarians faced off for their flight. Players like Franklin Gould, Howard Wilkins and Charles Smoot, who formed the core of the 85's flight in recent years, are still alive but no longer able to participate, though all provided continued encouragement and inspiration either by letter or their attendance. Wes Furste defeated Hal Bowen 3-1 to reach the semis, there to lose to frequent Woodruff-Nee age group champ John Weissenfluh. Bob Fearey, a "dark horse", who has entered very few prior events, surprised the field by sweeping to 3-0 victories over Philip Brown, Harry Steniola, and Weissenfluh to finish a successful weekend.