Australian Squash Tour bigger and better in 2011

Squash Australia has unveiled an expanded 2011 Australian Squash Tour, featuring 14 tournaments in every state and territory over a four month period,

The tour starts with the ACT Open in Canberra in late March and culminates back in the national capital with the Australian Open from 8th to 14th August.

The Australian Squash Tour has been building every year since 2007, with the number of tournaments increasing along with the amounts of prize money on offer.

This has allowed the country's younger players to compete for valuable ranking points without having to go overseas, as they often had to in the past.

Squash Australia Chief Executive Gary O'Donnell said the growth of the tour highlighted the resurgence of the sport across the country, stating "each year we have had more and more interest from people wanting to host stops on the tour.

"We are delighted that the tour will now take in so many different towns and cities as it gives all our locally based players, particularly the younger ones, the chance to take part in top quality events.

"We are also pleased to welcome Brisbane back to the tour ï¾ it's important that Australia's third largest city is host to a professional tournament."

Brisbane is home to two tournaments in 2011, the men's Hibiscus Gardens Open in early April and the Queensland Open in July.

Another highlight will be South Australian Squash Week, which will be held from the start of the Millicent Open on 10th June to the end of the Maxwell Wines South Australian Open on 19th June and will feature a range of promotional events including a Celebrity Pro-Am.

The Australian Open will once again be held on the all-glass court at Canberra's Royal Theatre and will attract the best players in the world to Australia.

There will also be three tournaments after the Australian Open, with the men's and women's events to be played at Coffs Harbour, Mackay and Caboolture later in the year.

2011 Australian Squash Tour

25th to 27th March: ACT Open, Canberra
1st to 3rd April: Hibiscus Gardens Open (Men), Brisbane
8th to 10th April: Westerfolds JDP (Women) Melbourne
5th to 8th May: Top End Open, Darwin
13th to 15th May: Alice Springs Open, Alice Springs
27th to 29th May: City of Perth International, Perth
3rd to 5th June: Golden Open, Kalgoorlie, WA
10th to 12th June: Millicent Open, Millicent, SA
16th to 19th June: Maxwell Wines South Australian Open, Adelaide
7th to 10th July: Victoria Open, Melbourne
15th to 17th July: Tasmanian Open, Hobart
22nd to 24th July: Queensland Open, Brisbane
29th to 31st July: NSW Open, Sydney
8th to 14th August: Australian Open, Canberra.

For more information go to www.squash.org.au

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