Just plugging along? An understatement typical of the understated Gonzalez. Last December in Memphis, he just plugged along to the quarterfinals of the Promus U.S. Open Racquetball Championships, the premier tournament on the pro tour. To advance that far, Gonzalez beat No. 9 Andy Roberts, who was playing in his hometown and on his home court, and No. 8 Mike Guidry, who, at 29, is a mere three years older than Gonzalez's oldest son. In Memphis, Gonzalez's run ended against No.1 Sudsy Monchik, who is closer in age to Gonzalez's two grandchildren than to Gonzalez himself. Grandpa Ruben gives little thought to his longevity. He did most of his aging long before he began to play racquetball. He grew up in Harlem, street tough. His daily routine through most of his teen years was as simple as it was immutable. He hustled for money during the afternoon, drank beer in the evening, and slept wherever he ran out of energy, which was often in a public park or some flop house with drug addicts shooting up in the hallway. "That never seemed strange to me because that was all that I knew, " he says. "I was always getting into fights. If you saw me on the street, you would have gotten out of my way. I don't know why I escaped that and so many others didn't." Pause. "I just don't know."
ABOVE: '99 CHAMPS! WITH DOUBLES PARTNER MIKE GUIDRY. BELOW: LATER DEFEATING GUIDRY AT THE U.S. OPEN.
If Gonzalez hadn't dropped out of school after ninth grade, he could have been a star running back or third baseman. His athletic ability was unquestioned, as was his competitive drive.
"He dove on cement," says Russ Mannino, who got to know Gonzalez from one-wall handball tournaments in and around New York City in the 1970s. "He would just get up and continue to play. He wasn't hurt at all. No one could play with Ruben. He was the champ. The best." But being the best in one-wall handball paid for coffee and perhaps a danish. Gonzalez was in his mid-20s, married for the second time, and the father of two boys. He badly needed of a career change. Mannino, (father of IRT No.4 Jason), was about to open a racquetball club in Staten Island. He suggested to Ruben that he move his family there, work at the club, and give racquetball a try.
March - April 2000
It was legendary fifteen years ago, and it's still remembered today. With $15,000 on the line in a final aga inst Marty Hogan at the Crystal Racquet & Health Club in Arlington, Virginia on October 5, 1985, Ruben Gonzalez earned a reputation for fair play that has followed him to this day. In the December '85 issue of National Racquetball, editor Drew Stoddard described it ... The match was capped with one of the most stunning displays of sportsmanship ever seen on the men's tour. With Hogan serving at match point and Gonzalez trailing by only two, Ruben ended a furious rally with a mid-court forehand kill, called good by referee Corey Brysman. Instead of stepping up to serve, however, Gonzalez overturned the call himself saying the shot had skipped and offered his hand to Hogan in congratulations. It was a courageous ad which cost Gonzalez the only real shot he has ever had at winning a major tour event. It skipped," said Ruben later, "and that was the only thing that really mattered. I don't think anybody else saw it, but I thought 'If I'm going to win it, I'm going to win it the right way; there will be another time. ' I just couldn't take it, because I knew I would have to live with that for a long time. "
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