[jbutton size=”large” color=”blue” link=”https://www.ussquash.com/serve/?program=myurl&myurl=modules.ussquash.com%2Fssm%2Fpages%2Ftournaments%2Fdraw.asp%3Fevent_id%3D5013%26event_id2%3D263%26″ newpage=”yes”]Charlottesville Open Main Draw[/jbutton]
[jbutton size=”large” color=”blue” link=”http://usprosquashseries.ussquash.com/live/” newpage=”yes”]U.S. Pro Series Live[/jbutton]
The McArthur Squash Center at Boar’s Head Resort welcomes the third annual Festival of Squash in Charlottesville, VA, this week headlined by the U.S. Pro Series Charlottesville Open.
The third edition of the Charlottesville Open sees the total prize money of the event continue its rise from an inaugural $10, 000 in 2013, $25, 000 in 2014, to $35, 000 in 2015 attracting an increasingly elite group of men’s professionals to the University of Virginia’s blue and orange glass court.
Two rounds of qualifying took place at the Country Club of Virginia in Richmond, September 13-14, with four players, including current U.S. national champion Todd Harrity and 2013 U.S. Champion Chris Gordon, completing the sixteen-player main draw.
Main Draw play commences Wednesday morning at 11:00am ET with all main draw matches streaming live on U.S. Pro Series Live with live scoring powered by www.clublocker.com.
Egypt’s Karim Abdel Gawad, world No. 11, and South Africa’s Stephen Coppenger, world No. 14, are the main draw one and two seeds respectively. Gawad is seeded to meet the world record holder for the hardest hit squash ball, Australia’s Cameron Pilley, in the semifinals, while Coppinger is predicted to face defending champion Alister Walker in the other semifinal.
Harrity, who reached a career high world ranking of sixty-one this month, will face Scottish world No. 28 Alan Clyne in their third career match up at 2:15 pm local time. Clyne most recently defeated Harrity in a four-game opening match during the 2014 Oregon Open. Harrity isn’t the only Ivy League graduate in the main draw as Havard’s Ali Farag prepares to face Mexican world No. 25 Cesar Salazar at 7:15pm.
Gordon, currently the highest ranked male American at fifty-nine, takes on English world No. 24 Tom Richards for the first time in six years at 1:15pm. Coppinger opens proceedings Wednesday against Mexican qualifier Alfredo Avila at 11:00am.
The professional tournament is free and open to the public. The Festival of Squash will once again concurrently host adult singles, junior, and doubles draws alongside the professional draw on the facility’s surrounding eight international singles and two hardball doubles courts.
Follow all scores live on www.clublocker.com, and use the Player Tracker feature to follow your progress through the draws.