By Sam Donnelly
For Ponoka News
Former racquetball pros are holding a fun tournament in Ponoka on Aug. 13.
Eleven doubles teams will be playing racquetball at the Ponoka Arena Complex for the Ponoka Cup. Play begins at 9 a.m.
“People are always asking, ‘When’s the tournament, when’s the tournament?”’ said co-founder of the tournament Paul Shanks.
Four years ago, Shanks and Randy Pentland created the tournament to stay in touch while Shanks lived in Edmonton and Petland resided in Red Deer.
All partnerships will be randomly chosen before play starts. Teams will be placed into one of two pools, with the winning team from each pool playing for the Ponoka Cup.
The winning team will have their names engraved on the cup.
The public are invited to come and watch throughout the day, with the finals being played at 5 p.m.
2022 is a special year for the Ponoka Cup as Racquetball Alberta has kindly paid the court fees for the tournament.
Shanks said how thankful he was that racquetball Alberta had supported them.
This year’s tournament will also host the talents of former professional racquetball players. Shanks himself played in the 1987, 1988, and 1989 year national teams. He played with his longtime friend Roger Harripersad, who will also attend this year.
Shanks said he would be happy for people to come and watch the event.
Those seeking more information on the racquetball tournament are asked to email Shanks at firststar@shaw.ca or rpent@telus.net for Pentland.