Business student goes pro in jai alai

Jai alai has been a major part of sophomore business major Daniel Spinner's life. After spending his childhood watching the game and playing it relentlessly for the past three years, he can now call himself a professional jai alai player.

Two weeks ago, the 19-year-old Boca Raton native was offered a contract as a jai alai pro at Orlando Jai-Alai. The eight-week contract runs the length of the jai alai season, which ends on Feb. 26, and has the ability to be renewed after the season's end.

Jai alai, which means "merry festival," is a sport that was developed in the Basque region of Spain more than 400 years ago and was first introduced to the U.S. in 1904.

Spinner was first exposed to jai alai when he was 12 years old, watching a performance at Dania Jai-Alai in Fort Lauderdale. Spinner asked one of the players for a cesta when he was 16 and began practicing with a tennis ball at home.

"I would take him and his brother to jai alai matches when they were kids," said  Spinner's father, Willy. "Needless to say I'm very proud of him for making it as a pro. He's just walking on air now."

Though the popularity of jai alai has declined in recent years and the sport can only be seen in Florida, Mexico and Spain, there is still a loyal following that seeks to teach the game to the next generation.

"It really is a fascinating sport," Spinner said. "It's very up-tempo. Having played basketball my whole life and being interested in up-tempo sports, I really enjoy watching and playing it."

The game of jai alai is played on a court that is about half the size of a football field and has three walls: a front wall, a back wall and a left wall. Spectators sit to the right and are shielded by a fence.

Similar to racquetball, the object of the game is to throw the ball against the front wall in a way that makes it difficult for the opponent to catch and return. Using a woven, hook-shaped basket glove called a cesta, the players must catch the ball before it hits the ground or after it bounces once and launch it back at the wall.

After his early experiences in Fort Lauderdale, Spinner went on to play in North Miami at an amateur court about half the size of a normal jai alai court, which is called a fronton. Before going pro, he returned to Dania Jai- Alai this past summer and played four amateur tournaments, three of which he won.

During his freshman year at UCF, he began playing at Orlando Jai-Alai.

Santi Echaniz, the player manager for Orlando Jai- Alai, has been recruiting jai alai players for the past 32 years. He offered Spinner a pro spot after watching his improvement over the past six months. Echaniz was also once a pro himself, reaching the pro level at the age of 14 and spending 20 years playing professionally in the States.

"I gave the kid a chance to become a professional because I believe in him," Echaniz said. "I think he's going to become a good player. He still has a way to go, but in the next couple of years I see him becoming one of the really good players."

Unlike many other sports, the only way for  players to get noticed and recruited as pro in jai alai is to constantly play with professionals until they are able to hold their own.

"You just show up to the practices," Spinner said. "If you fit in and are able to compete, then you'll get taken into consideration."

Gino Schmid, who has been a pro for 15 years, has been working closely with Spinner for the past year to build him up to the professional level. Schmid said that jai alai is a sport that is difficult to progress in, but that Spinner is well on his way to becoming a great player.

"You either sink or swim in jai alai," Schmid said. "Spinner has a lot of ability and he's aggressive; he goes to the ball. The only thing he needs now is time and experience."

One skill that will come with time and experience is trying to avoid getting hit by the ball, called a pelota, which nears speeds of 150 mph, making jai alai the fastest ball sport in the world. Due to the ball's extraordinary speed, injuries are common and players must be constantly aware of their surroundings.

"[The ball] barely touched me here and it split it wide open," said Schmid, pointing to the side of his right eye. "I've seen a lot of bad injuries; that ball can really hurt you."

Though jai alai has become a tremendous aspect of his life and he intends to play at Dania Jai-Alai again this summer, Spinner plans on continuing his education at UCF.

"There's no super rush to graduate, but I do plan on taking courses and playing jai alai simultaneously so I can keep moving forward in the right direction," Spinner said. "I intend on finishing my school and enjoying jai alai as well."

Orlando Jai-Alai holds events Thursday through Sunday and encourages anyone who is interested in the sport to come check it out.  

For more information, visit their website at www.orlandojaialai.com.