Not a lot of folks get to turn their passion for a particular sport into a successful career but, for Fountain Hills’ Rhonda Rajsich, that’s exactly where a love of racquetball has led her.

Playing racquetball professionally and representing her country on the United States Pan American Team, Rajsich said that she’s been playing the sport for about as long as she can remember.

“My godfather, Mitch, played racquetball and kind of got my dad into it, too,” Rajsich said.

“My parents joined a health club when I was two and I figured out how to sneak out of nursery.”

Rajsich said that if her dad was playing racquetball, she would go to the basketball courts and shoot around. If he wasn’t playing racquetball, though, she’d steal his racquet and start playing on those courts instead.

“To this day, I don’t think they know that I was sneaking out,” she added.

“I think my dad assumed my mom took me out and my mom assumed my dad took me out.

“I have a picture that sums that up nicely,” Rajsich added, showing a picture of her young self surrounded by basketballs and racquets.

“That’s my life in a nutshell.”

Graduating from Thunderbird High School, Rajsich played both basketball and racquetball as a teen, though her school did not actually have a racquetball program.

“I still went to high school nationals every year and, if I won, Thunderbird High School would end up being ranked, say, fourth in the nation, because that’s where I attended,” Rajsich said.

“There are a lot of schools here in the Valley that have courts but, to my knowledge, there’s no organized play. That’s something I’d like to see changed.”

After high school, Rajsich went on to play basketball for a college out of Texas. She said she had the ability to go on and play for the WNBA afterwards, but then a career in racquetball presented itself.

“I had every intention of going on in basketball, but then I made the finals of my first ever U.S. Open, knocking off the number one player at the time,” she continued.

“That was the same year I qualified to be on the U.S. team. They were also starting up a whole new women’s tour, and I had an opportunity to be a part of that.”

Rajsich said this moment provided a real crossroad in her life and, after talking it over with her dad, she made a decision that would set the course for her future.

“He said, you know what, why not give racquetball a shot,” Rajsich said.

“He said I always put basketball first and racquetball second and I still did so well. What if you apply yourself full time to racquetball for a year?”

So that’s exactly what she did and, at the end of her rookie season, she was ranked number three in the world.

Rajsich has accumulated countless honors and awards since then but, most recently, she brought home the bronze in singles, the bronze in doubles and a silver for team at the Pan-American Games.

Back in May, she won the national singles title for the eighth time.

“When I go to work, it’s always a good time,” Rajsich added.

“Even when it’s more like work than play, I’m still having fun.”

Seventeen years into her career, Rajsich has never been ranked below number three. Despite that fact, she said she can see that she still has room to improve and is still making those improvements.

“I’m going to copy Michael Jordan,” she said.

“He said the day he stopped improving would be the day he walks away from the game. That’s how I feel, because I haven’t reached my pinnacle yet.”

Rajsich said that the evolution of the game helps keep her interested. The strategy, technology and skills involved have changed over the years and, as long as there’s room for the game to grow, she plans to keep growing right along with it.

“I love what I do,” she said.

“I’ve been blessed and fortunate enough to make this my career. It takes a lot of work, but getting better doesn’t mean that you have to turn pro. You can still be a weekend warrior or join a local league and just have fun playing. So long as you’re doing it for the right reason, there’s no limit to how much fun you can have or how much better you can get.”

To keep up with Rhonda Rajsich and see where her career takes her next, search for “Rhonda Rajsich Fan Club” on Facebook or follow @Rondeezee on Twitter.