This is the sixth in a series of articles written by the top-ranked U.S Squash Professionals about their lives on tour. These articles will cover some of the players’ training routines, travel experiences, and thoughts about the tournaments they compete in around the world. Welcome to the life of a US professional touring pro.
Gilly Lane
When is an American going to have success on the Professional Squash Association tour (PSA)?
This is the question that has been asked over and over again by the US squash community. Everybody in the world thinks that in order for squash to be a successful sport, an american has to rise up and shine.
Well what about now? Currently there are three full-time US players playing the PSA tour (Julian Illingworth, Chris Gordon, and myself). Between the three of us we have won eight PSA Tour Titles and made 15 Tour finals. We have also reached world-ranking highs of No. 28, No. 48, and No. 65.
Just a few weeks ago, at the Bluenose Classic in Halifax, Julian and I both reached the semifinals of a $50k event beating the Dutch No. 1 and World No. 11, LJ Anjema, and a former World No. 13 and current No. 37 in Mohammed Abbas from egypt. These wins represent progress and steps in the right direction. While it is only one tournament, the three of us are competing against the world’s best week in and week out and having success.
These results bode well for us for later on in the year with the World Men’s Team Championships in Paderborn, Germany, and the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico. It makes our goal of reaching the top eight in the World Team Championships and winning gold at the Pan American Games attainable, something that we couldn’t say in the past.
The peak range for today’s professional squash players is between 28-31 years of age. As the top three Americans are under the age of 27, the US squash fan should be excited at the idea that we have had such success and still have many years ahead of us. The question shouldn’t be when is an American male going to have success, but can the men playing on the national team continue to succeed over the years on the tour. I know they can.
