Doubles play in Boston continues to be active and may get a new jolt if the proposed court at the Union Boat Club comes to fruition. In addition to the daily games for fun (and sometimes small sums), we have several players who participate in regional and national tournaments, earning rankings in the North American system. At the top of the skill ladder are our members who play on the professional ISDA tour, a series of some 15 tournaments with prize money approaching $1 million.

Doubles players at the University and Harvard Clubs typically begin their season in late September, early October although there are many who continue to intersperse their summer golf games with doubles sessions. Golf disappears with the onset of cool weather and the doubles season.

In addition to the club doubles tournaments, there are two major amateur events on the local calendar. The first is the University Club Pro-Am, held in conjunction with the professional ISDA tournament the second week-end in January. 16 amateurs team with professionals in a STAR format whereby each team is guaranteed at least three matches leading to four champion teams. The second is the season ending State championships which begin in March and culminate with the finals on the night of the Mass Squash annual meeting in early May. Last year eight divisions were contested by 145 players, the largest number ever to play in the States.

There are several tournaments on the North American doubles schedule that attract Boston players. Sandy Tierney & Derrick Niederman have won Canadian and US national titles in the past as have Tom Poor & Lenny Bernheimer. Mac Davidson & Jon Ross earned rankings as well last year as did Joel Kozol and Jamie Fagan. These players figure to play again this season with the exception of Poor whose knees will be replaced, a casualty of 50 years of singles and doubles. Many younger players – Tyler Hill, Jon Hyett, Tim Brennan – are playing some national events with steady improvement. Certainly one of the highlights of last season was Doug Lifford & Chris Spahr winning the US National 40’s title.

The ISDA tour runs from October through May, featuring the world’s top doubles players from numerous countries. Many are top singles players who have successfully turned to doubles, providing a steady flow of new players. That tour comes to Boston in January and includes Preston Quick, professional at the Union Boat Club, and Doug Lifford & Pat Malloy from the University Club. Chris Spahr and Nadeem Osman have played, and the prospective affiliation of David Palmer, former World #1 in singles, with the University Club should provide an interesting addition to this tour.

We look forward to a new and exciting season with new players and old players with hopefully another year of experience offsetting the slow advances of age.