Hawkes Aiming for the Top Again

Brian Hawkes’ ambition is to be the once and future king.

Hawkes, a 34-year-old middle school teacher from Laguna Hills, was the national outdoor men’s racquetball champion for all but one year between 1981-95--he lost in the quarterfinals in 1985.

This week, more than 200 players will compete in the National Outdoor Racquetball Championships at Golden West College. Hawkes, who sat out last year’s tournament rehabilitating shoulders he injured from “too many years of racquetball and too much weight lifting,” will see some familiar faces.

In 1994 and ‘95, Hawkes, defeated Tony Jelso, a racquetball pro at Goleta Valley Athletic Club, in the finals. Two years ago, Jelso defeated Hawkes for the title.

Jelso enters this year’s tournament as its top-seeded player and two-time defending champion.

Seedings are based on last year’s championships. Dave Genevay, of Fountain Valley, who was a finalist last year, is seeded second.

Hawkes is unseeded, but be warned: he’s not competing for the exercise.

“I want to win this,” said Hawkes, who once was ranked as high as seventh on the professional indoor tour.

Most players will be shifting gears from the indoor, four-wall game to the outdoor, three-wall game for this tournament. Such is the case with Jelso, 28, who divides time between his job at a health club and playing in his fourth season on the professional indoor tour.

“It’s a different game,” said Jelso, who has been playing racquetball since age 8. “There are different shots, different serves. You’re chasing the ball all over. Plus, you’re out in the elements. The only time I play outdoor is during this tournament. . . . It usually takes me about a match or so to get into the groove of playing the outdoor game.

“This will be my fifth year in the tournament, so you could say I’ve been playing it for five years, but it’s really only been five weekends.”

But it’s the same story for most of the players. “It’s not too bad an adjustment,” Hawkes said. “What your game is like indoors determines how you play outdoors. Some people have a hard time. They play a real slow game indoors and can’t be competitive outdoors.”

Hawkes’ biggest hurdle is “making sure I don’t hurt my shoulder again,” he said. “It’s hard to jump back into playing competitively and hold back at the same time because I’m used to playing as hard as I can.”

Players from California, Florida, Colorado, Arizona and Oregon have registered. One couple, Martha and Greg McDonald of Gainesville, Fla., have played in the tournament since its second year in 1975, and have only missed a few years. Last year, they won the open mixed doubles and men’s A doubles, their 39th and 40th outdoor titles.

“I guess our marriage is kind of built on this trip,” Martha said from her office at the University of Florida, where she is an academic coordinator. “We met on the racquetball courts at the university in 1973, when we were both students.”

Play begins Thursday and finals in 15 divisions are scheduled for Sunday. Championship matches are open to the public; there is no admission.

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Racquetball Tournament

* What: 25th National

Outdoor Racquetball Championships

* When: Thursday-Sunday

* Where: Golden West College, 15744 Golden West St., Huntington Beach

* Admission: Free

* Benefits: Boys & Girls Club of Santa Ana and Golden West College Track Club

* Information: (714) 224-9068