By Gary Curreri
Sun Sentinel Correspondent
May 28, 2021 1:19 PM
Jonathan Burns, left, of Delray Beach, and Mike Harmon, of Sarasota, recently won the Eustis Long Wall outdoor championships at the Sunset Island Complex in Eustis. (Jonathan Burns/Courtesy)
Delray Beach’s Jonathan Burns and Sarasota’s Mike Harmon are longtime foes on the racquetball courts.
The duo decided to team up and recently won the Eustis Long Wall outdoor championships, sponsored by World Outdoor Racquetball at the Sunset Island Complex in Eustis.
Burns, 42, and Harmon, 40, two of the top indoor players in the state and country, won the Men’s Pro Draw Division with a 15-8, 15-5, victory over West Palm Beach’s Carlos Bravo and Joe Young for the title.
Over 90 players from Florida, the East Coast and beyond traveled to Central Florida and enjoyed the greater Orlando area for a couple of days, including 17 teams in the Men’s Pro Draw.
“We are not outdoor specialists but do very well playing outdoor especially in long wall tournaments, which is closer to the indoor game than any other type of outdoor courts,” said Burns, who along with Harmon are 35-5 in long wall tournament matches with six first-place finishes.
They often battle for Open singles championships in Florida and also at the US Open, which will again be held in October for the 40+ national title.
“It was great to be back in a racquetball tournament,” Burns said. “I missed the competition and hope tournaments continue as normal now that more and more people are getting vaccinated.”
Burns and Harmon started playing some outdoor tourneys together about six or seven years ago. Burns said there was a mutual respect from their indoor battles on the court.
“We both knew that strong effort and intelligent play could make us a great outdoor team,” Burns said. “We don’t play indoor doubles together. We have different partners inside.
“Mike and I have great chemistry on the court,” he said. “We really complement each other and can both hit shots from anywhere on the court.”
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