Thomas B. Jones (1935- )
Tom Jones was a pivotal and ebullient leader who revolutionized squash in America in the last quarter of the twentieth century. A Rochester native, Jones won the 1977 U.S. and the Canadian national veterans (40+) doubles titles, with John Swann and was an active A singles player. From 1978 to 1999 he and his wife Hazel White Jones issued Squash News, the first national squash magazine, with Tom acting as publisher, advertising executive and chief front-man. They became major tournament promoters, directing three North American Opens and, after presciently switching it from hardball to softball, fourteen U.S. Opens. They hosted eight portable court events in total and collated smaller softball tournaments into their Grand Prix circuit, as well as ran a Davis Cup-style tournament, the Loews Cup. Jones managed the U.S. team at the 1991 World Team Championships and played a central role in getting squash into the Pan American Games. One of the most laurelled men in squash, Jones received U.S. Squash’s President’s Cup, NYSquash’s Eddie Standing Trophy and Board of Governor’s Award, the WPSA’s Man of the Year Award and the College Squash Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Hazel White Jones (1942- )
One of the most influential women in squash history, Hazel White Jones was a tournament director, magazine editor and visionary leader. From Indianapolis, she made a giant impact off the court and around the country. She edited Squash News for twenty-one years, making it a primary vehicle for U.S. Squash’s tremendous growth. With her husband Tom Jones, she directed three North American Opens and fourteen U.S. Opens—eight of which were portable glass events that attracted enormous media attention and corporate support. She was a key force behind the transition to softball, whether turning the U.S. Open into a softball event, creating the Grand Prix circuit of summer-time pro softball tournaments or persuading the U.S. Olympic Committee to accept squash as a potential Olympic sport. She was the press liaison for squash at the 1995 Pan American Games. For her many administrative and journalistic efforts, she was awarded nearly every honor possible, including U.S. Squash’s President’s Cup, NYSquash’s board of Governors Award, U.S. Women Squash’s Achievement Bowl and the College Squash Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
