World's No. 1 racquetball player wins in Honolulu

By Leila Wai
Advertiser Staff Writer

During a week when golf's Sony Open dominated the sporting news in Hawai'i, there was another tournament here that featured seven of the top 10 players in the world.

Hawai'i's first Women's Pro/Am and U.S. Armed Forces Invitational Racquetball Tournament final took place yesterday at the Honolulu Club, the first time a women's professional racquetball tournament was held in Hawai'i.

Cheryl Gudinas of Chicago beat Jackie Paraiso Rice of San Diego, 11-5, 11-4, 11-4, in the championship of the professional division.

"We're really pushing to show the world these ladies are professionals and they work just as hard," said Ladies Professional Racquetball Association Director of Operations Chris Wachtel. "People don't know about us, and it was even harder with the Sony Open being here. But the PGA started off small too, and hopefully we'll get there."

The tournament purse was $34,000, the largest given out in LPRA history. The only other tournament that came close was last year's U.S. Open in racquetball.

Gudinas, who is the top-ranked woman in the world, won $4,500. Paraiso Rice is No. 8 and took home $2,250.

Gudinas dedicated her win to her friend, Ted Huddleston, who suffered a heart attack in December. Huddleston survived heart surgery and is OK , she said.

"I'm fortunate to have my health; winning and losing doesn't matter," Gudinas said.

Other ranked players included No. 2 Kerri Wachtel, No. 3 Rhonda Rajsich, No. 4 Kersten Hollander, No. 7 Adrienne Fisher and No. 10 Lori-Janc Powell.

The competition included players from Canada, Mexico, Guatemala, Brazil, Chile, England and Japan.

The tournament also featured a military division with women's open, men's open and a men's senior division, and an amateur division with women's singles (open and A), men's singles (open and A) and men's senior divisions (A/B).

The atmosphere was lighthearted and competitor-friendly. Wachtel joked during a time out that "this is the LPRA pro final. The Sony Open — where you have to be really quiet — that's down the street. Let's hear some noise."

The LPRA, which put the tournament on with the Hawai'i Athletic Racquetball Association, hopes to bring the tournament back next year, according to HARA president Edwin Mangual.

Mangual, who said the tournament "looks like it was an enormous success," also said that the association hopes to bring the men's International Racquetball Tour to Hawai'i next year.

Reach Leila Wai at lwai@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2457.