2005 US OPEN | Racquetball: Double Donut Studios

2005 US Open Flashback - Cliff Swain

Cliff Swain gets some interview time with Shawn Royster during the production for the Tennis Channel at the 2005 US Open Racquetball Championships.

Add comment August 10th, 2006 by Geoff Thomsen

2005 US Open - Stadium Court

Here’s a shot of the stadium court from the 2005 US Open Racquetball Championships. This was taken from the top row of the rear grand stands (Kudo points if you can figure out who is warming up on the court):

Add comment August 3rd, 2006 by Geoff Thomsen

2005 US Open Flashback - Rocky Carson

Here’s a flashback from the 2005 US Open - Rocky Carson backstage being interviewed by Shawn Royster for the Tennis Channel Production of the event. Rocky would go on to what many would call the best match of the event; with his incredible game 5 comeback against Kane Waselenchuk in the semifinals (that Kane would go on to win).

Add comment July 29th, 2006 by Geoff Thomsen

Women’s Finals now updated

Ok, I’ve finally processed and posted the “missing” shots from the 2005 US Open Racquetball Championships. About 15 more pictures were added, and they are pretty good

DD Gallery - WPRO Finals, 2005 US Open Racquetball Championships
DD Gallery - 2005 US Open
US Open Official Website

Add comment December 15th, 2005 by Geoff Thomsen

DOH!

Well, I just found 200 shots from the Women’s Final that I didn’t know I had. AND, it looks like most of the really good stuff was in the last 200!

I’ll get to work, and have them online soon.

Add comment December 8th, 2005 by Geoff Thomsen

US Open complete!

Finally!

All of the web content for the event is now processed and online. TONS of new galleries since my last post, so I’m not even going to try listing them all here.

2005 US Open IRT Gallery at Double Donut
2005 US Open WRPO Gallery at Double Donut

Here’s a nice little shot of Kane making a huge get in his semi-final match against Rocky. Notice how he’s diving toward the back wall, but hitting the ball in the direction of the front wall? Pretty amazing.

Add comment December 7th, 2005 by Geoff Thomsen

Picture flood - 2005 US Open

The pictures are coming!

Double Donut - 2005 US Open Racquetball Championships GALLERY

I’ve been hard at work boiling down the thousands of shots from the 2005 US Open Racquetball Championships. So far, we have:

Men’s 16’s - Beltran def. Hawthorne (gallery link):

There’s no denying the athletic abilities of Andy Hawthorne. During his first match on the stadium court, he solidified his position of tour up-and-comer. This was one of the most exciting matches of the event, with Andy flying all over the place making gets.

Men’s 16’s - Huczek def. Croft (gallery link):

Ben Croft continues to assert his presence with another solid appearance in the Men’s round of 16. Bad news for him; he faced number 2 seed Jack Huczek. Croft was hitting solid shots and making great gets, but Huczek’s talent on the court would not be overcome.

3 comments November 28th, 2005 by Geoff Thomsen

“Tower to Andy Hawthorne ..”

“.. you are cleared for landing.”

Ever want to smash your expensive sports camera? Sometimes I do. Here is a blurry shot of Andy Hawthorne covering like 15 feet of court to retrieve a kill by Alvaro Beltran in the IRT Men’s Round of 16 at the 2005 Choice Hotels US Open Racquetball Championships.

I hate posting “not-perfect” work, but this was an amazing display by Andy. Here it is, after some severe (and unsuccessful) Photoshop work. Wow.

Add comment November 23rd, 2005 by Geoff Thomsen

2005 US Open Re-cap

What an event! By far, the best day of racquetball was Saturday. The semi-final matches were amazing! I think Rocky Carson has a few new fans after his match with Kane. ROCK-Y, ROCK-Y, ROCK-Y! All contenders fell short for the Canadians, as Kane and Christie rose to victory on Sunday.

DoubleDonut.com stats:

Days at the event: 4
Hours at the event: 57
Pictures taken: 7200
Redbulls: 12

I’m going to do my best to get some teasers online ASAP, followed shortly by full galleries for each match.

6 comments November 22nd, 2005 by Geoff Thomsen

Latest news from Memphis

Looks like several more updates for the 2005 Choice Hotels US Open Racquetball Championships:

Per a blurb in the “Daily Racquet” - Wednesday edition, it was announced that the Legends Tour canceled their appearance at the US Open, just three days before the event. Wow.
Draws are UP! IRT / WPRO / All Draws
Weather update - only a few people were held up as a result of the hail storms; qualifying rounds / amateur play starts without incident

Add comment November 16th, 2005 by Geoff Thomsen

MeetAndPlay.com brimming with excitement ..

With the start of matches today for the 2005 US Open Racquetball Championships, the online RB community is brimming with excitement (from http://www.meetandplay.com/forum/):

Activities today include: Registration; Amateur Matches; IRT/WPRO Qualifying; IRT 64’s; Silent Auction; VIP Reception

“Daily Racquet” - Tuesday Edition, from Memphis, TN

Add comment November 16th, 2005 by Geoff Thomsen

2005 US Open!

The 2005 US Open Racquetball Championships are scheduled to get underway tomorrow!

This is the biggest event in racquetball, with $50,000 in prize money.

Links:

Official website of the event
Official discussion forums
Draws - Men’s Pro / Women’s Pro

Check back at www.doubledonut.com for daily photos and event coverage!

Add comment November 15th, 2005 by Geoff Thomsen