The 2018 Windy City Open presented by the Walter Family and EquiTrust Life Insurance Company is in line to host repeats of both the 2017 men’s and women’s PSA World Championship finals after the draw for the PSA World Series tournament was released today.
This year’s instalment of the Windy City Open – which takes place inside the University Club of Chicago’s stunning Cathedral Hall between February 22-28 – will become the most lucrative PSA World Series tournament of all time, with $500,000 worth of prize money split evenly between the men’s and women’s draws.
In the women’s event, defending champion Raneem El Welily is seeded to meet World No.1 Nour El Sherbini in the final, with the duo having contested three successive PSA World Tour finals – a run that included last month’s World Championship final in which El Welily prevailed.
El Welily is the most successful woman ever at the Windy City Open and has won the last three editions in a row, including back-to-back final victories over El Sherbini in the 2016 and 2017 finals.
The 29-year-old Egyptian is seeded on the same side of the draw as 2015 runner-up Nicol David and 2014 winner Laura Massaro, while El Sherbini also has a difficult path to the final, with the likes of U.S. Open champion Nour El Tayeb and World No.3 Camille Serme lying in wait.
The winners of the tournament will pocket $38,000 – a record amount for a World Series tournament – while points for the men’s and women’s PSA World Series Standings, which are currently headed up by Mohamed ElShorbagy and Nour El Sherbini, respectively, are also on offer as the battle for a top eight place – which guarantees participation in June’s PSA World Series Finals – intensifies.
