Top Players Never to have won Year end Championship

Because of the individual dominance of individual players for years at a time, many spectacular players never finished a season #1. This is an elite list of players who routinely finished just below the legends of racquetball in the rankings but never broke through and won a season ending #1 title.

10's
  • Ben Croft: stepped up his game from his first few years on tour to rocket to #3 in 2010-11 (along with achieving a #1 tournament seed at one point during the 2010-11 season). Shoulder injury may have ended his career prematurely.
  • Daniel De La Rosa: rocketed up the ranks on tour as a 21yr old, seems like he's inherited the title of "Player most likely to take over the crown from Kane." Achieved the 9th seed playing part time in the 2012-13 season, then once he committed to the tour full time was ranked 5th and 4th the two subsequent seasons. Got his first tourney win in 2014.
  • Jose Rojas: Solid touring pro who finished in the top 10 his first season touring regularly, then was ranked no worse than #5 for most of the 2010 decade.
    00's
  • Alvaro Beltran: Ranked in the top 6 for 8 straight years, still no breakthrough to the top. Amazingly, despite his consistenly high ranking, has just two tour victories, and one was in a rain-soaked event in Northern Virginia where the wet courts led the players to vote to award equal points to all players involved.
    90's
  • Andy Roberts: Eight straight years in the top-3 without winning a title. Briefly held #1 ranking at various points in career.
  • Tim Doyle: Two #2, two #3 finishes
  • John Ellis: 4 straight years finishing #3 behind Cliff and Sudsy, a decade in the top 10.
    Honorable Mentions: Mike Guidry, Tim Sweeney
    80's
  • Brett Harnett: Seven straight years in the top 8, including three straight years at #2. Arguably should have had at least two titles in late 80s.
  • Jerry Hilecher: Four straight years in the top 4 in the early 80s, active on tour dating to 75.
    Honorable Mentions: Jack Newman, Ed Andrews, Dan Obremski, Egan Inoue, Gregg Peck
    70's
  • Steve Serot: Many wins, many finals in first few years of pro tour; probably would have been the first #1 overall player had there been such a designation in 74. Retired at 25.
  • Steve Strandemo: Several wins in mid 70s, National runnerup in 75.
  • Dr. Bud Muehleisen: A pioneer of Racquetball before the "pro" tour really began.
    Honorable Mentions: Steve Keeley, Rich Wagner, Charlie Garfinkle, Craig McCoy, Schultz and Schmidtke, Craig Finger, Lindsay Myers.