2012-2013 WPRO Season

Posted by The Racquetball Blog 

The Women's Professional Racquetball Organization (WPRO) has posted its schedule for the 2012-13 season. There are 10 Tier 1 or Grand Slam events on the schedule, which is balanced between events in 2012 and in 2013 with five in each. There's also a Tier 3 event - the traditional Wilson Tour for Hope in Cincinnati.

The WPRO season begins in late August with the Ektelon Texas Open in Dallas. Then there will be a break of over a month before the US Open in Minneapolis in early October.

In November, the WPRO will play in Mexico, which will be its first event outside the USA since September 2010, when they were in Cali, Columbia, and two weeks later in Seattle before ending the year with the Christmas Classic in Arlington, Virginia.

Two of the five events in the second half of the season are new and they are the first two events of 2013. The WPRO will begin the new year with the Winter Freeze tournament in Dayton, Ohio in early January and then in late February they'll be in Overland Park, Kansas for the Winter Classic.

The WPRO season will end with the Battle at the Alamo in San Antonio in April, the SCS Title and Escrow Pro-Am in Herndon, Virginia and finally with the Ektelon Nationals Presented by Penn in Fullerton, California. The WPRO was in Fullerton this past season, but only as a Tier 3 event. Next year they plan to have a Tier 1 event in Fullerton.

Of the eight Tier 1 or Grand Slam events this past season, seven of them are on the schedule for next season. The only exception is the Denver event, but three events have taken its place: in Mexico, Dayton and Overland Park.

All in all the schedule represents a nice progression for the WPRO from what seems to be a stable base of support. The spacing of events might be a bit better, as there are no events in September or March and multiples in November and May. But that's not something that's entirely within the WPRO's control.

We look forward to the next WPRO season, which is only a little over two months away.

2012-13 WPRO Schedule
Dates - Tournament - Location

August 24-26  -  Ektelon WPRO Texas Open, Dallas
October 3-7  -  US Open Championships - Minneapolis
November 1-4 - Abierto Mexicano de Raquetas, Mexico

November 16-18  -  Seattle Event, Seattle
December 7-9  -  Christmas Classic, Arlington, VA
January 4-6  -  Winter Freeze, Dayton, Ohio

January 25-27  -  Wilson Tour for Hope, Cincinnati
February 22-24  -  Winter Classic, Overland Park, Kansas
April 19-21  -  2013 Battle at the Alamo, San Antonio

May 3-5  -  2013 SCS Title and Escrow Pro-Am, Herndon, Virginia
May 22-27  -  Ektelon Nationals, Presented by Penn, Fullerton, California

(note: Tier 1 events in bold, Grand Slam events in bold italic)

Follow the bouncing ball…. 

Posted by The Racquetball Blog 

Jenny from the Block ~ JEN SAUNDERS WPRO #7

By Sarah Warhaftig

It’s no surprise that Jen Saunders’ first sport love was ice hockey.  In Thompson Manitoba, Canada, kids often learn how to skate before they walk, and Jen was no exception, learning how to first play ice hockey before any other sports.  However, after a one day racquetball clinic at the courts attached to the ice rink, Jen entered her first racquetball tournament and has been playing the sport ever since.  Reflecting back, racquetball was the first individual sport that Jen tried, and after being on team sports with all boys, she was excited to have the chance to be the one to, “take all the shots.”

Jen received the nickname “Cool Spice” from her fellow competitors for her casual and even keeled demeanor off the court.  On the court, however, that demeanor changes, and she becomes fierce competitor, battling for every point. 

Currently, Jen works for the Racquetball Manitoba, whose support she greatly appreciates, recognizing their support of her training and touring for Canada as well as with the WPRO.  She has to bring work on the road but says it’s a very fair tradeoff.  According to Jen, playing for Canada has been the greatest honor in her life, and her training focuses on winning Canadian Nationals and representing Team Canada in international tournaments. 

 Jen said that during her first World’s competition in 2002, she made the finals against Cheryl Gudinas.  She recalls it being a highly competitive match, and it instilled confidence in her to move forward in her racquetball career.  From there, Jen made her first semi-finals in Dallas and was thrilled to be playing in front of cousins who made the trip to see her.  And what’s more, the tournament was Keely Franks Kennedy’s tournament, a close friend of Saunders. 

Similar to many of the other top touring WPRO players, Jen is excited to see the WPRO become a consistent and exciting tour.  She would love to see both the WPRO and IRT have the capabilities to pay their athletes, especially so young racquetball players can aspire to play racquetball as a career.

Jen spends her time off the racquetball court adoring her nieces and nephews, and she stays active with golf and slow-pitch softball—of course, when it’s not snowing.  Jen is a huge sport fanatic and probably can come up with any statistic you may need one day.  She holds season tickets for the Winnipeg Jets and enjoys the WPRO travels, often taking time out to see live sporting events in many of the cities that host tournaments.  The list is quite long, but she recalls seeing the Vikings, Broncos, Bulls, Padres, Wilds, Diamondbacks, and Coyotes games all during her travels.  Her one modest request? Jen has asked that if you are reading this article, please host a tournament in a city where she has yet to see a professional event.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jennifer_Saunders_(racquetball)

Featured Athlete TJ Baumbaugh

T.J. Baumbaugh –

“The Trainer”

By Sarah Warhaftig

T.J.’s personal training clients are extremely supportive of her career outside the gym and on the WPRO Tour.  After a solid few weeks of training, many of them happily see T.J. on her way to a tournament, after the #11 player in the world works them out!  T.J., continues to share her passion for fitness, and continues to improve her racquetball status, a sport she was introduced to by her father. 

T.J. was put on a court at an early age by her father, who himself still plays, but the tenacious T.J. began her high level quest at Penn State where she played for the club team.  T.J. was busy playing a multitude of sports growing up including softball, swimming, basketball and golf.  T.J. had the opportunity to play golf at the college level, but she decided it was too slow of a sport and she made the switch to racquetball.  

After school, T.J. relocated to the Washington D.C. area, where she first discovered the WPRO and met former commissioner Ed Willis.  Ed encouraged her to play some tournaments and 10 years later T.J. is still a top touring pro. 

Similar to many of the ladies on tour, T.J. manages to balance a busy work schedule with her tournaments.  T.J.’s fitness trainer schedule has meshed well with her touring dates, and her clients can usually look forward to those days, after a few weeks of tough workouts.  T.J. feels like she gets to “play” at work every day and between clients you can find her lifting weights, swimming, playing tennis, taking a Zumba class, and of course racquetball! 

Along with competing each weekend T.J. is also the player representative of the WPRO.  She would love to see the tour grow, and appreciates her role as rep to learn more about her fellow competitors.  T.J. is involved with behind the scenes efforts and challenges of the tour, and is excited to see its development with more young and up and coming players.

T.J. said she hasn’t had her greatest moment in her racquetball career yet, but this motivates her to train and keep working hard at her game.  She values the tour for the wonderful friendships and people she has met, and still having a competitive outlet in a sport that she hopes to play for a long time. 

When asked what T.J. would be doing if she wasn’t playing pro, she always had considered being a lawyer, a college professor and even a singer.  T.J. admits that she really isn’t a great singer but seems like an amazing career to have.  For now we will watch her rise on the tour, and maybe a few years down the road a pop career on the side with her stage name of Teri Jade!

Rock And The Role

d The Role

Rock And The Role

Gigi Rock, WPRO Commissioner, Outsider and Thinking Big.

by: -----Restrung Magazine 

The email reply went as such, "The trials and tribulations I have gone through in seven months almost makes me want to throw in the towel….wow..the things I’ve learned…sure I’m game to put this down on paper...". As provocative a statement as that is, Gigi makes sure to point out, that her Rock keeps her in line with who she is. When her husband, who goes by "Rock", sees her getting caught up in the frustrations in her work life, he will simply walk her outside for 15 minutes, so she can breath and calm down. Upon accomplishing the cool down, he simple states, "Now get over it and get back to work."

When the Women's Professional Racquetball Organization was looking to to fill the lead spot left by former commissioner Shannon Feaster for professional and familial reasons, Gigi Rock was tapped to fill the position. Whereas, Feaster was once an actual player in the WPRO, Gigi, who openly talks about not playing racquetball, over a short time, got put into the mix after an encounter with Rhonda Rajsich and Feaster, as they attended weekend networking events taking place during the 2010 Superbowl in Miami. Rock, having a deep entertainment and charitable events management background can be thought of as a direct contrast to Feaster, who still serves on the President's Council of Fitness, Sports and Nutrition.

As it goes, Gigi and Rhonda remained connected. During a phone conversation, Rhonda mentioned that the WPRO was in the process of searching for a new commissioner. As they were speaking, Rhonda casually worded that Gigi should fill the position. They both laughed. Shortly after that conversation though, Rhonda mentioned the conversation with Shannon, who by speculating that it may not be a bad idea, sparked the vetting process for Gigi Rock.

It was an overall positive engagement, though it did have signs that foreshadowed some tough aspects Rock faces each day in her drive to advance the WPRO's mission. At one point in her interview with the organization's board of directors, she inquired about women professional racquetball players participating in the Olympics and took note that she was actually told that the Pan American Games would be the best they could do. (...to which, began her own inquiry with the IRF.) But its the restrictive sentiment behind that kind of language that Rock faces regularly in her drive to advance opportunity for the athletes of the WPRO.

READS LIKE TROUBLE

Almost immediately upon her securing the commissioner position, Rock seemed to stir up controversy. At the start of the 2011-2012 season, Gigi removed the WPRO from being a featured division at the 3 Wall Ball outdoor Las Vegas event, in it's second year for the new ambitious outdoor endeavor. She wasted no time in holding a hard line to equal prize money for the women. What ensued was a series of public postings online that quickly got ugly. It was the first example of how Rock's "outsider" status and uncompromising stance would clash with how the sport has been operating over the past two decades.

Gigi Rock operates from a marketer's perspective and she is quick to state that her main priority is the interest of her players, something she views as currently well undervalued. When speaking with her, one quickly gets that she wears this on her sleeve, as she talks about the incredible athleticism of the women of the WPRO. What they look like. How competitive they are. She sees tremendous value in presentation, detail and what is possible. Her thinking leads to her fighting for what she feels her players need right now.

She also wants them, all of them, thinking about what they are. Their ability. Their recognition. And the thought that they should go beyond just showing up at clubs to play racquetball. She wants all of them, in their own ways, following the lead of her two top players, Paola Longoria andRhonda Rajsich, who appear seasoned in front of fans and cameras. Top WPRO players are professionals and Rock feels they have the right to embrace everything possible with those rights. 

Fighting for those rights as she knows how, directly and to the point, has caused tension between the WPRO and some who are comfortable with the established norms. Her feeling is that if she can't control what the women professionals are presented and how they are viewed, then she will find other ways to facilitate her mission. To her it's about the words "No" and "Why Not?". It is also about openly addressing the bias towards men as it relates to money and coverage in the sport of racquetball that has been historically prevalent. 

Having suitable presentation and benefit for her athletes is about money. The commissioner insists she maintains good relationships with the WPRO's major sponsors. Though she admits that funding is still hard to come by. To move forward with her vision, Rock works by the premise that most of the money circulating within the sport is already taken. Some manufacturers "don't even want to talk to us." It's in that line of thinking, where Gigi has crafted her strategy of looking outside the sport for backing, support and media services. That's where she spends her time and energy. It also serves as subtle message, "Watch us grow, with or without you." 

GOT MAIL

As the head of the WPRO, she communicates clearly that her mission is to grow interest in her athletes. It's a mission filled with "outside the box" big ideas, crossover and follow ups with sporting industry contacts. All for her players. Her mother bear attitude has caused some ripples in what some have come to expect through the years. She openly pushes anything that promotes her players and exposure for the WPRO. Some of her thinking flies in the face of traditional conservative views of what women racquetball players should be. She receives a good number of emails, and although the majority of them are positive, many are negative in nature. She states that, without even getting to know her, or even a proper greeting, she will get statements like "Why don't you get off your high horse?"...in the vain of who do you think you are? 

She takes it in stride, though she relies on the support from her husband and daughter. She also leans on Deputy Commissioner Andy Kulback, who ensures all WPRO stops meet the specific guidelines set for each event, allowing Rock to concentrate on the big picture.

AND THE WOMEN OF THE WPRO

She openly communicates with them and runs everything by them. They have a voice with her. Some have taken to her completely, and some are still learning how to ride her train during this, her first full season. The women professionals are the ones the work and the pressure is all about, and for some, well, only they know how they feel about her. 

You will spot Gigi Rock at all the major WPRO events. Working the sidelines, advocating for times and music and access for her players. For her, every event is an opportunity to see what works and what doesn't and what can be done better. She sits back and watches. She networks, pushes and learns. And what you might hear, when sitting by some of the most elite women players as the commissioner approaches is, "Here comes Gigi, she's gonna change the rules."

-----Restrung Magazine 

http://restrungmag.com/page/rock-and-the-role

About Restrung:

Restrung Magazine shares a view of racquetball, influenced by diversity, community, competition and opinion.

http://restrungmag.com/profile/RESTRUNGMAG