Santa Fe's annual Kiva Classic was a big success

Santa Fe's Kiva Classic tournament concluded Sunday afternoon (Dec. 8) with cheers for its many champions and finalists.

About 170 players and their significant others participated in the tournament and its associated social events.

Play began at 8 a.m. Thursday morning, and Lisa and David Barker held a party at their home that evening for all entrants, sponsors and their significant others.

On Friday, matches started just before sunrise at 7 a.m. and continued until about midnight. Cocktails and a buffet dinner were provided at the club.

Saturday saw a full slate of matches — 7 a.m. to midnight again — with cocktails and a sit-down dinner at the Peters Projects Gallery.

Sunday was for finals, starting at 7 a.m. and continuing until about 2:30 p.m.
The tournament was made possible by many sponsors, including Dan and Ashlyn Perry’s Trout Stalker Ranch in Chama, the Gerald Peters Gallery, the Museum of New Mexico Foundation and Walter Burke Catering.

At the Saturday dinner, Bill Palmer was honored with the Charlie Perkins Sportsmanship Award. The Kiva’s past president Stuart Kirk presented the award, which is named for a Kiva member who  helped start the Kiva Classic in 1981 and who died in 2017. Charlie Perkins was famous for his sportsmanship and fair play. He was as humble in victory as he was gracious in defeat.

Bill Palmer is a longtime friend of the Kiva Club. He has played in many Kiva Classics. His love of the game is immense. He started Guillermo’s Squash Club in Colorado Springs, and he embodies squash’s highest values.

Palmer joins Charlie Amm, Michael McBean, Clark Amos, Graham Sharman, Ross Brown and John Amos as winners of the Perkins trophy.

This year’s tournament also was notable for the record number of women who entered and played: Eight.

Here are the weekend’s other winners:

SINGLES

OPEN: Champion: Drewe Williams (Kiva). Finalist: Porter Drake (San Francisco).

40+: Champion: Willie Gaynor (Washington, DC). Finalist: Chris Fontes (Los Alamos).

50+: Champion: Chris Fontes (Los Alamos). Finalist: Scott Ciener (Kiva).

60+: Champion: Doug MacDougall (West Vancouver, B.C.). Finalist: Bruce Macfarlane (North Vancouver, B.C.).

70+: Champion: Tefft Smith (Washington, DC). Finalist: Rick Taft (Pepper Pike, OH).

DOUBLES

OPEN: Champions: Willie Gaynor (Washington, DC) and Porter Drake (San Francisco). Finalists: Will Moore (Denver, CO) and Chris Ivsin (Wheat Ridge, CO).

40+: Champions: Eric Eiteljorg (Denver) and T.J. Johnson (Denver). Finalists: Phoebe Trubowitz (Portland, OR) and Drewe Williams (Kiva).

50+: Champions: Charlie Groves (Denver) and Peter McGlynn (Denver). Finalists: Grant Robinson (Kiva) and Jim Nelson (Louisville, CO).

60+: Champions: Alan Dille (Golden, CO) and David Barker (Kiva). Finalists: Bob Bush (Greenwood Village, CO) and Charles Soderstrom (Winter Park, FL).

65+: Champions: Walter Burke (Kiva) and Doug MacDougall (West Vancouver, BC). Finalists: Dennis Cusack (Portland, OR) and Mark Todorovich (St. Louis, MO).

70+: Champions: Clark Amos ( Scottsdale, AZ) and Jim Gibbons (San Francisco). Finalists: Bob Brown (Denver) and Rob Piggott (Denver).

75+: Champions: Bart McGuire (Frisco, CO) and Dick Rice (Rochester, NY). Finalists: Martin Kaffka (West Vancouver, BC) and George Meyer (Fair Oaks, CA).

80+: Champions: Dave Matthews (Kiva) and David Puchkoff (New York, NY). Finalists: Graham Sharman (Kiva) and Dick Silbar (Santa Fe).

HARDBALL

OPEN: Champion: Willie Gaynor (Washington, DC). Finalist: Will Moore (Denver).

60+: Champion: Peter Logan (Missoula, MT). Finalist: Tefft Smith (Washington, DC).

70+: Champion: Tefft Smith (Washington, DC). Finalist: George Meyer (Fair Oaks, CA).

This 24-page booklet tells the story of the 2019 Kiva Classic. Bob Mosier took most of the photos, wrote the text and designed the pages. Click on the cover image above to see an electronic version of the booklet. You can purchase a printed edition for about $10 after you click on the link.