January -
February 1998
Vol. 9, No. 1
By Kevin Vicroy

In its second year, the Promus Hotel Corporation U.S. OPEN, presented by American Express, offered even more than its debut delivered in '96. More excitement, more rivalry, more action and more upsets. While Michelle Gould breezed through the WIRT draw to successfully reclaim her U.S. OPEN crown, Boston native Cliff Swain re-established himself as the IRT's top player simply by reaching the men's finals against defending champion Sudsy Monchik.

BIGGER & BETTER ...
1997 Promus Hotel Corporation U.S. OPEN

Swain entered the tour's fifth pro stop trailing two-time defending IRT Player of the Year Sudsy Monchik by a mere 25 points in the overall standings. A semifinalist last year, Swain stood to take over the lead by finishing either first or second. The IRT standings are based on a 364-day window of competition and, since Monchik had captured last year's U.S. OPEN crown, he could not significantly increase his point total. But, Swain had lots of room for improvement – Monchik earned 457 points for his 1996 victory, while the Bostonian had only tallied 277 with his semi-final loss. With the math on his side, Swain was guaranteed the coveted #1 ranking if he made it to the final in Memphis this year — win or lose.

For Starters
The round of 64 kicked-off on the portable glass court with a premier match-up: two-time pro champion Sudsy Monchik vs. seven-time pro champion Marty Hogan. A capacity crowd of over 1,100 fans were delighted with one amazing shot after another by two of the best-ever players. Monchik prevailed in three straight (11-6, 11-4, 11-6), leaving the crowd begging for more.

Ohio's David Hamilton provided one of the biggest upsets of the first round with his 2-11, 11-3, 11-3, 17-15 victory over 10th-seeded Tony Jelso. Also in the first round, qualifier and Canadian National Team member Jacques Demers started his run to the round of 16 with a tough 12-10, 12-10, 11-2 win over 15th seed James Mulcock. But by far, qualifier Eric Muller's 14-12, 11-6, 11-2 victory over former pro tour titleist and seventh seed Mike Ray was the first real shocker of the event.

Muller's second-round opponent was another National Team member from the Great White North (Canada), Mike Ceresia. A veteran in many ways, Ceresia started strong but couldn't hold on for the victory and fell 8-11, 11-3, 11-5, 1-11, 12-10.

Facing Derek Robinson in the round of 16, the Harvard law student again pulled-off the upset, 9-11, 11-5, 11-3, 6-11, 11-7, to earn his first-ever quarterfinal appearance. Meanwhile, top four seeds Monchik, Swain, Andy Roberts and John Ellis, respectively, each advanced into the quarterfinals along with 11th seed Adam Karp, fifth seed Jason Mannino and ninth seed Woody Clouse.

The Eight Count
Ellis and Mannino opened the quarterfinal round with a thriller. The two had just exchanged the fourth and fifth spots in the IRT standings due to Ellis' strong play in the first four events of the season, and the crowd was well aware of the intense showing they were about to witness.

The 5-foot-6 "Ellie" took games one and two by the scores of 11-9, 11-8, but was hampered by a pulled left gluteus muscle suffered early in the first game.

"I did it in the first five points of the match," Ellis said of his injury. "After that, anytime I lunged with my forehand, or any movement with my left leg going forward, I was feeling the pain every time – my drive serve was gone."

Mannino, trash-talking to the crowd and his opponent, took advantage of the situation and won the next two games, 11-2, 11-8 to knot the match at 2-2. In game five, Mannino took a 6-0 lead only to see the lightning-quick Ellie tie it up at 7-7. Then, down 9-8 to Ellis and the crowd firmly against him, the Staten Island, N.Y., native pushed out to a 10-9 advantage. But the injured yet calm Ellis closed out the match with three straight points to win 12-10.

When asked how much the injury effected the match, Ellis responded, "It wasn't as bad as it would be against some other players. I was lucky that I was playing against an opponent where the style that I play him was close to the style I was forced to play due to the injury. If you try to play Jason and rip everything, he'll kill you. He'll beat you three straight because he's the best re-killer in the game."

Ellis wasn't bothered by Mannino's mind games, either. "He likes to talk a lot and that's just his style and that gets him going," Ellis said of his rival. "He likes to have the odds against him."

Following the match, Mannino told the crowd, "Whether you're rooting for me or against me, I don't care. We're here for all of you guys either way. Thanks for coming out." The crowd roared.

Next up was Memphis' own Andy Roberts versus the U.S. National Team's Adam Karp. From the start, Roberts (aka. The King) controlled the match and eventually won, 11-1, 11-8, 11-9. "Andy played a great match," Karp said to the crowd following the match. "He was a little bit too much for me. I didn't quite have it today."

When Roberts took the microphone, he gave credit to someone else for his victory. "I'd like to thank my five-year old daughter, Lauren," he said of his pint-sized, sideline inspiration. "I heard her rooting for me in here."

Even in defeat, Karp's play was dazzling. "He's so quick and gets to so many balls that my game plan was just to make him dive in the deep part of the court," Roberts said of Karp. "I didn't want him diving in the front. I thought I was spinning him pretty good – hitting a lot of wide-angle cross court shots."

While a satisfied hometown crowd enjoyed its part in Roberts' victory, Swain and Muller entered center court.

Tabbed "Mr. Cinderella" by RACQUETBALL tour writer Todd O'Neil*, Muller was outmatched from the start and was pounded 11-5, 11-7, 11-2. Following the match, and despite an impressive string of wins at the Open to his credit, Mr. Cinderella jokingly admitted that Swain's gameplan had been, at least, straightforward. "He didn't come here to lose to me!"

Crowd favorite Sudsy Monchik headlined the evening's finale as he dismantled last year's dark horse semi-finalist Woody Clouse, 11-6, 11-7, 11-6.

The Top Four
Longtime rivals Swain and Roberts met in a rematch of last year's semifinals, in which the Memphis native had been victorious. But this was a more determined Swain than a year ago.

The first game went Roberts way 11-8, before Swain got hot and cruised through the final three, 11-5, 11-9, 11-5.

"I really don't have a lot to say about the match," Roberts told the crowd. "I've got to go back to the drawing board. I was very discouraged. I thought Cliff served very well today, but I was very disappointed in my play. Next year is my last year ... and I promise you that I'll play better next year than I did today." (see pg. 19 sidebar)

Swain told the crowd, "Even though he (Roberts) has played better, I think you guys saw that there was no way he was going to quit on you today – I was kind of disappointed in that. I was hoping he'd fold for me, but no such luck. I'm hoping to play a little better tomorrow and I guarantee that I will. Tomorrow is going to be a great day."

By making it to the finals, Swain had taken over the tour's top ranking, regardless of Monchik's results.

"I really didn't think I played any better than last year," Swain explained, "the difference was that I wanted it this year. Last year, I was too distracted. This year, the only thing on my mind is winning."

The other semifinal featured a somewhat injured Ellis against a determined Monchik. Although closely contested, the match went to Monchik, despite the fact that Ellis jump-started each game with a significant advantage. Final score: Monchik, 11-7, 11-7, 11-9.

"I got off to early leads in every game, just didn't finish them for whatever reason," Ellis said following his fourth semifinal appearance in the last five events. "I'll take some time tonight and think about it. He proved that he can come from behind and win and he did that today."

Monchik remedied the early deficits. "I guess I just kicked myself ... and said, 'You've got to play some ball here.' In the third game, he had me 8-0. With a little luck and a couple of good serves, the game came around. In the first two (games), we were both kind of slowed down by the pace of everything – the cheerleaders, Elvis and all the hype. It made us play sloppy."

For Ellie, one of the tour's most respected players, his tournament was over, except for the socializing. He quipped, "I guess I'm partying tonight (at the Party with the Pros)."

Familiar Territory
So, as fate would have it, Swain and Monchik met in the finals for the fifth consecutive time this season. Swain held a 13-9 edge in their overall pro match-ups, 10-7 in finals.

Sudsy went up 2-0 in the first game before a 7-2 run by the Boston lefty switched the lead to 7-4, Swain. Monchik cut the lead to 7-6 and then the wheels fell off. Swain destroyed Monchik, hobbled from a leg injury, from that point forward — literally outscoring Staten Island's pride and joy 26-5 to close out the match, 11-6, 11-2, 11-3.

A disgusted Monchik stated to the capacity crowd, "I think he (Swain) knows it and I know it – that was the easiest win he'll ever get against me in his entire life. That will never happen again."

A fan yelled back, "You're still the best Sudsy!" He might still be the best, but he was no longer No. 1.

When asked about his injury, Monchik answered, "It happens, it's sports. I was alright, got a little injured at the end of the first game and then kind of lost everything – lost movement, lost confidence." "The injury really takes away a lot mentally and obviously physically. I didn't know how to handle it. I tried to take an injury timeout but by then it was too late. Cliff played great. He felt it, he tasted it. You can't bring a knife to a gunfight and that's kind of what I felt I was doing today."

Almost speechless, Swain told the fans, "I'm back. It's been a long time since I've played as well as I'm capable of, and boy does it feel good." "I just tried to go out there and have a blast," Swain told the media. "Life's short. I became very used to dominating and I got very spoiled by it. I took it for granted and it sent me sliding. It took me slipping to No. 2 to make me realize how much I love being No. 1 more than anything other than my family and health."

An underlying factor all week had been Swain's contract negotiations with his current sponsor, Head Racquet Sports, and others. One of the "others" was rumored to be Ektelon.

"There's all kinds of contract stuff going on," the happy Bostonian said following his title-winning performance. "I have quite a few offers. My contract (with Head) is up December 31, 1997."

Swain finished with a "no comment" on who he was in negotiations with and a big fat smile.

About his $10,000 winnings, "I'm going to go spend it all on Beale Street tonight, so come on down."

Ladies Lineup

Well, Michelle Gould won another pro stop. Surprised? Neither was anyone else.

Even though the final had been touted by observers as the one that might have upset potential, Gould downed a spirited Jackie Paraiso in three straight games of 12-10, 11-5, 11-4 to earn her second Promus Hotels U.S. OPEN crown. The Boise, Idaho resident never lost a game in the course of her five matches, doled out five doughnuts and won each game by an average score of 11-4.

Early on, the round of 32 had been absent of any true upsets. Qualifiers Chris Evon and Caryn McKinney advanced past sixth seed Molly O'Brien (13-15, 11-6, 11-6, 11-1) and seventh seed Kersten Hallander (9-11, 11-2, 11-2, 11-3), respectively. Evon and McKinney, a semifinalist at last year's OPEN, are far too talented and experienced to be considered underdogs. Oh, and Gould defeated Canadian junior champion Karina Odegard, 11-0, 11-2, 11-0 (see pg. 46).

The Sweeps
Only one of the round of 16 match-ups deviated from a standard, three-game sweep – second-seeded Cheryl Gudinas vs. 15th seeded Christie Van Hees. The 1997 Canadian National Singles Champion stole game one from Gudinas 11-9 and appeared to be as agile and accurate as ever.

But Gudinas, the tour's second-ranked player, rebounded with some good returns and dished out some large helpings of pinches into both corners to take the final three games 11-5, 11-5, 11-3.

"She tried a lob serve to the forehand and it was coming off of the back wall and brought back bad memories of the (U.S. National) Doubles," Gudinas said of Van Hees' serves. "But I've been working on that, they were setups and I was able to take advantage of that."

On this day, it was Gudinas' serves that provided the difference. "The hard-Z to her forehand was working great," she said. "I've always had success playing her forehand more than her backhand. That was my plan. Even though it looked like I kept hitting that hard-Z to her forehand, I mixed in a variety of other serves just to keep her off."

Gudinas left the court with an even higher amount of respect for the champion from British Columbia. "I told her afterward, 'If it makes you feel any better, I lost a lot of sleep over you last night.' She short hops the ball, she's aggressive but just a little inconsistent."

McKinney, the 1989 women's pro tour champion, continued her trek though the lower half of the bracket by sweeping 10th-ranked Lydia Hammock 11-3, 11-8, 11-2. The win setup a rematch of last year's semifinals between the crafty veteran and Gudinas.

"Oh, I want to play her (McKinney)," Gudinas said. "I've been looking forward to playing her. She proved that she can come onto our tour at any time and beat the players that are (ranked) eighth, ninth and tenth. I want to show that she's not going to come in here and beat me."

Meanwhile, Gould drummed out Kim Machiran 11-0, 11-2, 11-0.

Four Move Ahead
In the quarterfinals, third-seeded Jackie Paraiso, who easily handled Mindy Hartstein 11-1, 11-1, 11-2 in the 16's, advanced by putting away Chris Evon 11-4, 11-8, 11-3. Earlier Evon had smashed through Lorraine Galloway in the 16's, 11-0, 11-3, 11-1.

Fifth seed Laura Fenton was upended by 13th seed Marci Drexler 5-11, 11-7, 11-5, 8-11, 11-7. Drexler, one of a few women to have defeated the great Gould, appeared exceptionally well conditioned and mentally tough. She had made her mark on this year's OPEN, but could she beat the most successful women's player ever?

Almost forgot ... Gould was victorious over last season's Rookie of the Year Randi Friedman 11-6, 11-0, 11-7 to move into the semifinals.

The last quarterfinal, between Gudinas and McKinney, almost played out as an exact replica of last year's match between the two.

Gudinas took the first two games (11-6, 11-9) before McKinney came back to win the third 11-9. Would the Atlanta attorney push the match to a decisive fifth game, just as she had at the Inaugural U.S. OPEN?

As it turned out, no. Gudinas stayed mentally on her game and closed out the match with an 11-5 fourth-game win.

Top Three and a Lefty
The first semifinal contest featured the tour's Nos. 2 and 3 players, respectively, Gudinas and Paraiso. "It's always tough playing Cheryl," Paraiso said. "I always have to be on guard and play my best."

After splitting the first two games, with Gudinas losing the first 11-7 and winning the second 11-6, Paraiso changed to a high lob serve to the backhand.

"That was a great change," Paraiso, current world and national doubles champion with her twin sister Joy MacKenzie, said "I just decided that I would change something and see if it worked. It's always nice to go to a lob and I know it worked before against her."

The move clearly worked as Gudinas displayed obvious frustration. "She didn't use them early," Gudinas said of the well-placed serves. "It's hard because you're thinking about whether they are going to go out (of the court) and you're focused so much on that you can't really step up and short hop them like you normally would."

Paraiso took game three by the score of 11-4 , later, Gudinas' shot bounced out of the back-side corner in the fourth game for match point at 11-5.

The remaining semifinal opened like all of Gould's previous matches, with a quick lead. But Drexler pulled to 8-8 in the first game and brought the majority of the crowd support with her. Unfortunately for the Maryland native, Gould pulled away with a tough drive-Z serve to the lefty's forehand, for an 11-8 first-game win.

Second game, same result. Drexler even seemed to control Gould at times but couldn't move beyond another 8-8 tie and the "Boise Boomer" went up two games to zero with another 11-8 win.

Drexler, unafraid and energized, continued to come at Gould with everything in her arsenal. The lefty never stopped until Gould rolled the final points and won the last game 11-4. A dejected warrior, Drexler told the crowd, "Well, obviously, I'm pretty disappointed. I had my opportunities and I pretty much dumped them into the ground."

"Yea, I beat her a couple of times," Drexler said following her match. "But I just didn't come up with the shots when I needed them. I think I got too far behind then I'd come back and play really good and then just couldn't hold on."

"I've played her a lot of times in the past and one of the things she does a lot of is momentum change," Gould said of her athletic opponent. "She can go from extreme highs to extreme lows in a matter of points. As a player, I've learned that the best thing I can do is just hang in there and wait for those high's and low's. I have to stick with what I do best and not add to the emotional overload on the court and try to remain calm."

"She's been giving everybody fits and that's Marci. She's a great addition to the tour and I'm sure she's just going to keep getting better as her confidence grows."

About the drive-Z serves that seemed so effective, Gould responded, "If I left it off of the back wall, it gave her a huge setup. But I think it was jamming her pretty effectively."

No Upset in the Wind
Now it was time for Gould's usual three-game thrashing in the finals ... maybe?

Paraiso, who defeating Gould at last season's pro stop in Arlington, Va., didn't seem to care about the 6-footer's tour dominance over the past several years as she jumped out to a 5-0 lead.

Gould scored a couple and then a Paraiso pinch resulted in a side-out. Two skipped return-of-serves and the Californian was up 7-2. Then 8-2. The crowd loved every pass and pinch by the underdog. It was the best women's racquetball of the tournament! The mighty Gould was actually trailing someone! But not for long.

Down 8-4, Gould got hot and took over the lead at 9-8. Paraiso scored two more on a backhand pinch and a Gould skip for a 10-9 lead. On the next serve, Gould's follow through on a powerful backhand pinch-kill solidly cracked into Paraiso's nose! Following an injury timeout to try and stop the bleeding, a dazed Paraiso re-entered the glass court.

With Gould serving, it was all Paraiso could do to see the ball and not think about the pain. The result was three straight points to close out the first game, 12-10.

The next two games were vintage Gould – quick and painless. At least less painful that taking an elbow in the nose. She won by the scores of 11-5, 11-4, respectively.

"It definitely would have been a different match if I would have got that first one (game) under my belt," Paraiso said to the media after the match. "She started to get some serves in and that sort of took my momentum away a little bit."

Gould agreed that the match might have turned out a little different had Paraiso won the first game. "I started out kind of colder than cold. I kept telling myself to remain calm. You're going to get this out of your system and you're going to start fighting back. You're going to be fine. She plays better as her confidence level progresses. Letting her get out to an 8-2 lead on me was extremely dangerous. I got it together at the right time and I think I kind of took the air out of her by winning the first game."

According to Gould, winning the U.S. OPEN means "The whole entire world. It means everything to me and to be able to win it twice is something that you only dream about – it's the biggest event there is."

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