PSA: San Francisco to host giant waterfront event

August 13, 2012 - 3:36am
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San Francisco Ferry Building

San Francisco To Host New PSA Major

13 August 2012

San Francisco will host a new major PSA World Tour squash event when the PSA International 70 NetSuite Open is staged outdoors on an all-glass court in the Californian city from 17-23 October.

The $70,000 event has already attracted England’s world champion Nick Matthew, the four-time world champion from Egypt Amr Shabana, and world No3 Frenchman Gregory Gaultier.

“Our outdoor San Francisco location by the iconic Ferry Building is very exciting and the player entry so far is really rewarding,” said US promoter John Nimick. “It will be a great event in a great city, at the right time.”

The 2012 NetSuite Open follows the inaugural 2011 event – which had a $35,000 prize fund and was staged at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California.

“It’s fantastic to see this event grow so quickly,” added PSA CEO Alex Gough. “The US has always been such an important region for the PSA and to now have a glass court event on the West Coast is a first for the Tour.

“The new event strengthens an exciting month for the PSA Tour in North America where the Delaware Investments US Open takes place in Philadelphia from 6-12 October,” concluded Gough.

For all the latest Tour news: www.psaworldtour.com

Ted Gross, from Daily Squash Report, adds:

There is a chance that this event could be a major showcase for the sport, and, strangely, that depends on the fate of the San Francisco Giants baseball team.

If the Giants, currently one of the top teams in baseball, make it to the 2012 World Series, which would likely mean winning two playoff rounds, they would then host the first game of the World Series on Wednesday October 24th.

My understanding is that promoter John Nimick’s semis and finals are on the 22nd and 23rd.

John’s set-up is right at the center of the waterfront,  just blocks from the Giants baseball stadium. If the Giants are in the World Series, the whole area on the 22nd and 23rd will be a madhouse and a national media frenzy.

In addition, NetSuite is now a sponsor of the Giants baseball broadcasts, so the possibilities are huge.

And of course one of the founders of NetSuite is Larry Ellison, who still owns a stake in the company. Ellison is pegged as the 3rd wealthiest American.

John is aware of the potential scenarios and I’m guessing has become a rabid San Francisco Giants fan.

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