Early Rounds & Rankings

TENNIS E-News

Feb. 29, 2008 Vol. VII, No. 20
South Carolina Tennis 2006 Media Award Winner
Hilton Head Island SC

Just had to have an issue on Feb. 29 … just because it's Feb. 29.

Nothing else of any consequence will be happening this year so we'll take the Leap now. Enjoy.

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EARLY ROUNDS

Van der Meer Open Gets Through Prelims of Prize-Money Singles and Doubles

HILTON HEAD ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News) -- Early rounds were completed today and more under the lights tonight in the first of three Open-division, prize-money tournaments that are set this year at Van der Meer Tennis. Matches will continue all day Saturday, with finals set Sunday morning. Spectators are admitted free.

The men's and women's singles and doubles draws are filled with area teaching pros, top-level juniors heading soon to college teams and some college players.

Here are today's early results:

Men's Open Singles (Round of 32) -- Sutcliffe, Michael (5) def. Leal, Garrett 6-3; 7-5; Stokke, Jonathan (1) def. Shelley, Drew Def (ad); Kleine, Gustavo (2) def. Cooke, Bob; Drake, Ryan def. Odera, Joab 6-3; 7-6; Gilliland, Michael (5) def. Macdermant, Joe 6-0; 6-1; Black, Stephen def. Ayres, Dill 6-3; 6-3; Counts, Wes def. Handy, George 6-4; 7-5; Lodha, Brijesh (5) def. Kelly, Matthew 6-0; 6-0; Bahr, Alex def. bremer, Heinrich 6-2; 6-3; Zenisek, Jeff def. Sprouse, Zachary 6-4; 7-6; Gonzalez, Ricardo (4) def. Kirk, Matt 6-1; 6-1; Lin, Yu Wen def. Clement, Thomas 6-1; 6-3; Kley, Bruno (5) def. Kelly, Kyle 6-0; 6-3; Bonadona, Christophe (3) def. Yavari, Bijon 6-1; 6-1; Pavlov, Vitaly def. Manetti, Alberto 6-0; 6-2; Kelly, Chris def. Jackson, Andrew

(Round of 16) -- Gilliland, Michael (5) def. Black, Stephen 6-1; 6-1; Lodha, Brijesh (5) def. Kelly, Chris 6-2; 6-1; Kleine, Gustavo (2) def. Drake, Ryan 6-1; 6-3; Bonadona, Christophe (3) def. Counts, Wes 6-1; 6-0; Sutcliffe, Michael (5) def. Bahr, Alex 6-2; 6-3; Stokke, Jonathan (1) def. Pavlov, Vitaly 6-2; 6-2; Kley, Bruno (5) def. Lin, Yu Wen 3-6; 6-1; 7-6(4); Gonzalez, Ricardo (4) def. Zenisek, Jeff 6-2; 6-3

Men's Open Doubles (Round of 16) -- Kleine, Gustavo / Bruno, Kley (4) def. Drake, Ryan / Lin, Yu Wen 8-3; Manetti, Alberto / Bremer, Heinrich def. Bahr, Alex / Yavari, Bijon 8-3; Lodha, Brijesh / Justyn, Schelver def. Kelly, Chris / Kelly, Kyle 8-1;

Ayres, Dill / Sprouse, Zachary def. Black, Stephen / Mireles, Chris 8-6; Bonadona, Christophe / Pavlov, Vitaly (3) def. Ardeledge, Gordon / Dudley, Marshall; Gilliland, Michael / Zenisek, Jeff def. Kelly, Matthew / Kirk, Matt 8-0

Women's Open Doubles (Round Robin) -- Brito, Maria / de Guzman, Alexandra def. Drake, Kendal / Mafa, Zeynep 8-0

EARLY ROUNDS

Fripp Island Spring Clay Court Championship -- Women's 3.5 Doubles Set the Competitive Tone

FRIPP ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News via TennisLink) -- Just take a look at the Women's 3.5 Doubles Round of 16 and you can see a weekend of exciting tennis developing at the USTA-sanctioned Spring Clay Court Championship. Three of the matches went to super match tiebreaks. And the tiebreak scores were 14-12, 10-7 and 13-11.

Stay tuned for lots more than action resumes Saturday and rolls through to Sunday finals.

Here are results as posted for today:

Mixed Open Doubles -- Round Robin One -- Mills/Straut d. Delorme/Harvey 3-6; 6-4; 10-4

Men's 3.5 Singles -- Quarterfinals -- Terry Logan d. Pete Galloway 7-6(5); 6-2; Patrick Smith d. Alex Trammell 6-2; 6-3; Bill McDaniel d. James Combs 6-3; 6-4

Women's 3.0 Singles -- Round Robin One -- Katherine Cieplowski d. Elizabeth Schappell 6-3; 6-2

Men's 3.5 Doubles -- Round of 16 -- Kinghorn/Trammell d. Elkins/Norton 7-6(4); 1-6; 10-8; Brannon/Tucker d. Lohr/Mansfield 6-2; 6-2

Men's 4.0 Doubles -- Quarterfinal -- Bishop/Garrett d. Dennison/Riedmayer 6-4; 1-6; 19-17

Women's 3.0 Doubles -- Round of 16 -- Click/Hudgins d. Lohr/Hooker 6-0; 7-5

Women's 3.5 Doubles -- Round of 16 -- Errington/Smith d. Powers/White 6-0; 6-4; Chardukian/Jones d. Bishop/Day-Mitchell 7-6(10); 6-7(5); 14-12; Horton/Thompson d. Knight/Teodosio 6-3; 5-7; 10-7; Burns/Manuel d. Hyatt/Richard 3-6; 6-0; 13-11

Women's 4.0 Doubles -- Round of 16 -- Kocher/McClam d. Newman/Stallworth 6-2; 7-5; Groupe/Lurkin d. Manuel/Sullivan 6-4; 7-5

Men's 60 Singles -- Quarterfinal -- Richard Silver d. Norman Neurell 6-1; 6-1

Men's 70 Singles -- Quarterfinal -- Victor Carlsen d. Ronald Levy 6-2; 6-4

Women's 60 Singles -- Final -- Brenda Neurell d. Judith Shriner 4-6; 6-0; 10-7

Combined Mixed 6.0 Doubles -- Quarterfinals -- McDaniel/McDaniel d. Mansfield/Hooker 4-6; 6-4; 11-9; Tucker/Tucker d. Lohr/Lohr 6-1; 6-0

Combined Mixed 7.0 Doubles -- Round of 16 -- Baldwin/Dennison d. Dabney/Fodor 6-4; 6-4; Kirk/Thorn d. Lindsay/Logan 6-0; 6-2

Combined Mixed 8.0 Doubles -- Quarterfinals -- Dalton/Dalton d. Christensen/Christensen 6-2; 6-3; Josey/Silver d. Day-Mitchell/Garrett 6-2; 6-1

Child/Hunt, McKennas 1^st in Doubles

Jilly, Whitlow, Wiederhorn, Dumpel #1 in State Age-Division Singles Rankings

HILTON HEAD ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News via TennisLink) -- Tom Jilly, Keith Whitlow, Bob Wiederhorn and Frits Dumpel are #1 in their respective age divisions in South Carolina rankings now available on TennisLink. Julie Child/Ann Hunt are #1 in women's doubles and Donna and Pat McKenna are tops in mixed doubles.

You can go to http://www.sctennis.com, then Adult/Senior, then Rankings to see all the state's rankings. For our limited time/space/crossed-eyes, TENNIS E-News is delivering only the cream.

Here are HHI/Bluffton/Beaufort players who are ranked in South Carolina Top 5 in singles and Top 3 in doubles:

Men's 30 Doubles -- Tim Ryan/B.L. Sweeney #3

Men's 45 Singles -- Tom Jilly #1; Bob Cooke #2; Men's 45 Doubles -- Jilly/Cooke #4

Men's 50 Singles -- Pat Child #3; Men's 50 Doubles -- Child/Keith Whitlow #2

Men's 60 Singles -- Keith Whitlow #1; Men's 60 Doubles -- Hank Iannuzzi/Bryce Young #2; Doug Luba/Dave Partington #3

Men's 70 Singles -- Bob Koenig #4

Men's 75 Singles -- Bob Wiederhorn #1; Frank Meade #3; Fred Carillo #5

Men's 80 Singles -- Lee Butler #2; Bob Brown #3

Men's 85 Singles -- Frits Dumpel #1

Women's Open Singles -- Erina Kikuchi #3

Women's 30 Doubles -- Julie Jilly/Francis Kumar #2; Marguerite Williamson/Francis Worthy #3

Women's 35 Singles -- Donna McKenna #2

Women's 40 Doubles -- Julie Child/Ann Hunt #1; Lori Bergmann/Shelley Humes #2; Donna McKenna/Jill Wilson #3

Women's 50 Singles -- Donna McKenna #3; Billie Lindsay #6

Women's 55 Singles -- Chris Littell #3; Janet Watanabe #4; Shannon Lurkin #6

Women's 60 Singles -- Janet Watanabe #2; Patricia Mainard #5; Women's 60 Doubles -- Ann Hunt/Judy Levering #1; Nanci Fitzpatrick/Carrie Randall #2

Women's 65 Singles -- Judy Levering #2; Patricia Mainard #3

Mixed 40 Doubles -- Julie Jilly/Tom Jilly #2; Nancy Christiansen/Scott Christiansen #3

Mixed 45 Doubles -- Donna McKenna/Pat McKenna #1; Pat Child/Chris Littell #3

Mixed 50 Doubles -- Pat Child/Cindy Vander Berg #2

Mixed 60 Doubles -- Roy Austin/Sharon Austin and Hilda Blazewich/Andrei Jakobovits co-ranked #3

Mixed 65 Doubles -- Arnold Bradshaw/Chris Iulo #2; Joe Fodor/Margrit Fodor #3

Southern Section (9 Southeastern states) -- Rankings involving area players in Top 15 in singles and Top 10 in doubles:

Men's 45 Singles -- Tom Jilly #12; Bob Cooke #14

Men's 50 Singles -- Pat Child #4; Men's 60 Doubles -- Child/Keith Belcher #2; Child/Keith Whitlow #6

Men's 60 Singles -- Keith Whitlow #15; Men's 60 Doubles -- Hank Iannuzzi/Bryce Young #6

Men's 75 Singles -- Fred Carillo #12; Frank Meade #14

Women's 40 Doubles -- Julie Child/Ann Hunt #8; Lori Bergmann/Shelley Humes #10

Women's 50 Doubles -- Donna McKenna/Cindy Vander Berg #2

Women's 55 Singles -- Chris Littell #7

Women's 60 Doubles -- Ann Hunt/Judy Levering #2; Nanci Fitzpatrick/Carrie Randall #5

Women's 65 Singles -- Judy Levering #9

Mixed 40 Doubles -- Tom Coulton/Routh Hollman #6

Mixed 50 Doubles -- Pat Child/Cindy Vander Berg #3

TENNIS E-News FootNote

ooooO A 1st grade school teacher gave her 26 pupils the start of well-known proverbs and asked them

( ) to come up with the rest. Here are some answers:

( ) Don't bite the hand that looks dirty.

(___) You can't teach an old dog new math.

If you lie down with dogs, you'll stink in the morning.

-- Dennis Malick

Junior Kitchens SMASH

Luck of the Irish Doubles Deadline Coming Sunday -- Story below

TENNIS E-News

Feb. 26, 2008 Vol. VII, No. 19
South Carolina Tennis 2006 Media Award Winner
Hilton Head Island SC

Front cover TENNIS -- Check out Chris Wuensch's PTR Week coverage in Hilton Head ISLAND TODAY.

Tennis on the front cover … it's about time … or IT's story is about a tennis good time on HHI.

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Gilchrist Just Misses FCC Wildcard

Kitchen Girls Are a SMASH in Family Circle Junior Championships; 2 Other HHI Jrs. Win

DANIEL ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News via TennisLink) -- Four Hilton Head Island juniors won singles championships at the SMASH State Open Clay Court Junior Cup that ended Monday at Family Circle Tennis Center. A fifth came within two games of becoming a wildcard in the women's pro tour Family Circle Cup qualifying in April.

The Kitchen girls -- Ashley in 14s and Natalie in 10s -- held to their respective #1 seedings, winning straight-set matches in the finals. Ashley rolled through four earlier rounds and then took #5 McKayla Zupan of Wilmington NC 6-2, 6-3. Natalie lost only three games in three rounds, then defeated Samantha Schuster of Charleston 6-1, 6-0 for the title.

With 308 players in the combined draws, two other HHI juniors won championships: Unseeded Yu Wen Lin in Boys' 18s over #4 John Karle of Daniel Island 6-3, 7-5 and unseeded Zeynep Mafa over #5 Corin Hallman of Mount Pleasant 7-5, 6-1. The Boys' 18 champion's key win was a 5-7, 6-4, 1-0(8) quarterfinal over #1 Zach Sprouse of Hilton Head Island.

A highlight match of the finals was Girls' 18s top seed Mallory Cecil of Spartanburg vs. #2 Nadja Gilchrist of HHIsland, the winner of which goes into the FCC Qualifying draw. In three hours, Cecil won 6-4, 6-7(2), 7-5. All of the champions will be recognized publicly at the Family Circle main draw events.

Two HHI juniors were semifinalists in the USTA-sanctioned event: #5 seed Kendal Drake in Girls' 16s and Merritt Wilburn in Boys' 12s. Five were quarterfinalists: Ryan Drake in Boys' 18s, #5 Michelle Green and Katie Haught in Girls' 18s, Matt Kirk in Boys' 14s and Jared Woodson in Boys' 12s.

After first-round loses, two HHI area juniors were consolation finalists and one a semifinalist: Alrissa Tobe of Bluffton won two Girls' 18s consolation rounds then lost in the finals; Miranda Martin won four Girls' 16s consolation matches but lost in the final; Trey Hale won three Boys' 16s consolation rounds, then lost in the semifinals.

Adult League Standings

3½ Hours of Singles Is a Lot of Time on a Tennis Court … Even on a Beautiful Day

HILTON HEAD ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News) -- Rob Ellison and Bob Cooke got to see a lot of each other Saturday. In fact, a 3½ hours lot of each other. It was the #2 singles court in a USTA League 4.5 Adult men's match -- Hogg Doggs vs. Beaufort Tidal Wave.

It was the kind of thing you might expect on a 98-degree day when the sun is sapping energy so badly no one can manage to put the ball away. It wasn't that kind of a weather day. Hogg Dogg Ellison and Tidal Waver Cooke went out on court at 2:30 and finished up about 6 p.m. Game, set, match 6-7, 6-3, 6-4 to Ellison. No matter that the Wave already had won the team match with three courts.

Ellison actually may have picked up some pointers on how to play critical points last week when he and partner Patrick Mason dropped a third-set super tiebreak in the PTR Championships 21-19. Ya lives; ya learns.

Here is the rundown of Adult League teams in TennisLink as of Sunday (24^th):

Adult # teams

2.5M -- 1 team --

2.5W -- 5 teams -- Bluffton HS Alley Cats lead at 4-0

3.0M -- 6 teams -- Sun City Sun Devils lead at 4-1

3.0W -- 9 teams -- Beaufort Breeze leads at 4-0

3.5M -- 8 teams -- Bluffton Breeze leads at 3-0

3.5W -- 18 teams -- Palmetto Dunes Dixie Chix lead at 3-0 in Flight I; Long Cove Longcovettes, Indigo Run Volley Girls tied at 3-0 in Flight II

4.0M -- 4 teams -- Port Royal Sundevils lead at 3-1

4.0W -- 6 teams -- Sea Pines Smashers lead at 5-0

4.5M -- 2 teams -- Beaufort Tidal Wave leads at 1-0

4.5W -- 3 teams -- play TBA

5.0M -- 2 teams -- play TBA

Apr. 12-20 WTA Event

Family Circle Cup Builds Its Draws with Lineup of Top 10 Players Already Committed

DANIEL ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News) – Family Circle Cup is a month and a half off, but the Tier 1 event already has a Top 10 lineup, beginning with returning champion Jelena Jankovic. Add to that: Justine Henin, Venus Williams, Serena Williams, former champion Nadia Petrova, Wimbledon finalist Marion Bartoli, Anna Chakvetadze, Patty Schnyder …

This year’s FCC Apr. 12-20, like last, will include four night sessions – Tuesday through Friday. Qualifying rounds ($10 admission price) are Saturday and Sunday. Main draw begins Monday the 14^th at 10 a.m. Tuesday through Thursday will have 10 a.m. starts with night sessions beginning at 7:30. Quarterfinal Friday, semis Saturday and Sunday final all begin at 11 a.m.

The week is full of special days and off-court events, including a Lacoste Fashion Show on the 14^th and USTA Member Appreciation Day Wednesday the 16th.

For tickets and more information, including a stadium seating chart, go to http://www.familycirclecup.com.

Play Mar. 7-9

Deadline Sunday P.M. for Luck of the Irish Doubles at Palmetto Dunes

HILTON HEAD ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News) – It’s entry deadline time for the 25th annual Luck of the Irish Doubles Tournament that will be played Mar. 7-9 at Palmetto Dunes Tennis Center. Deadline is Sunday (2nd) at 5:30 p.m. and you can get an entry form at area tennis clubs or by going to http://www.tahhi.org.

Playing categories are men’s, women’s and mixed doubles in rated levels 2.5 through Open. Fee is $40 if playing one event and $50 if playing two. Watch out for the $10 fee if you are entering late.

Giuseppi’s and HH Mortgage are sponsors. A luncheon plus continental breakfasts are part of the fare. For information, call 785-1152. Don’t try to enter by phone, though. Start times will be available Wednesday the 5th. St. Patrick’s Day parade is after the Sunday finals.

Special Olympics Southeast Championships Set March 10-12 at Van der Meer Shipyard

HILTON HEAD ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News) -- The 9th annual Special Olympics Southeast Region Tennis Championships will be held Mar. 10-12 at the Van der Meer Shipyard Racquet Club. Twenty athletes from the HHI area student and adult programs will be among the 125 from throughout the country competing this year in the Individual Skills Competition and Match Play contests.

Once again the event will be hosted by the Professional Tennis Registry. The championships rely heavily on local volunteers for a variety of services during the event -- everything from being ball"kids" to helping serve lunch. To volunteer, get in touch with Julie Jilly at the PTR 785-7244 or email Julie@ptrtennis.com. For other information, contact Myron Meister 342- 6236.

TENNIS E-News FootNote

ooooO The Darwin Awards -- bestowed, sometimes posthumously, to the person who most creatively removes (or

( ) comes close) his/her DNA from the global gene pool. Top 2007 nominee:

( ) The man who attempted to siphon gasoline from a motor home parked on a Seattle street, but did not realize

(___) he plugged his siphon hose into the motor home's sewage tank. Police found the man very ill and very stinky.

The owner of the vehicle declined to press charges, saying that it was the best laugh he'd ever had.

-- Dennis Malick

Spring Break Tennis Begins

Deadline Tonight for Fripp Island Spring Championships -- Story below

TENNIS E-News

Feb. 23, 2008 Vol. VII, No. 18
South Carolina Tennis 2006 Media Award Winner
Hilton Head Island SC

Deleted a TENNIS E-News that had information you intended to keep? Go on. Try: http://tennisenews.blogspot.com. It's the blog that Justin Jarrett of Island Packet Sports manages -- adding E-News issues as they come out and archiving issues

from the last several months. Go to it. And thank Justin for his time.

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Sunday is deadline for adding players to USTA League Spring Season Rosters
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"Wearing o' the Green" in HHI Bu$ine$$ Pockets

Spring Break Tennis Begins Sunday with More Than 3,000 Intercollegiate Matches on Tap

HILTON HEAD ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News) -- It's Capital (Ohio) vs. St. John Fisher (NY) and Mercyhurst (PA) vs. York (PA) at 11:30 a.m. Sunday at HHI Beach & Tennis Resort … and Spring Break Tennis 2008 is under way. Figure 4,000 individual intercollegiate matches happening through March 29. Is that enough tennis-watching for you? Oh, and it's free to spectators.

(Week One's college teams and the schedule are an attachment to this issue.)

Ho Hum. So what else is new? Hosting some 225 college tennis teams on Hilton Head Island during March has been going on since 1986, bringing thousands of college players and millions of college dollar$ to the Island economy. SBT owner/operator Ray Yost is wearing a couple of hats, resuming coaching duties at Mercyhurst College in Erie PA as well as engineering his sixth year of the college event.

College teams come when their schools have Spring Break and Week One sees relatively few teams. However, with each team match including six singles and three doubles, this coming week will have 189 individual matches played, plus a couple more that might get arranged during the week. (Check The Island Packet Sports Page 2 for daily schedule and results.)

Week Two, beginning Mar. 2, will accelerate action with more than 900 individual matches already on tap. Week Three, starting Mar. 9, will have more than 1,000 matches, getting ready to roll into the busiest Week Four that begins Mar. 16. Figure about 1,500 matches that week, before things wind up during Easter (Mar. 23) Week when 500 or so will be played.

USTA-Sanctioned

Fripp Island Spring Championships Deadline Tonight; Play Next Weekend

FRIPP ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News) -- It's Deadline Day for the USTA-sanctioned Spring Clay Court Championship that will be played next weekend at Fripp Island Racquet Club. Entry closes at 6 p.m. for the tournament that includes men's and women's singles and doubles in age and rated divisions.

Go to http://www.sctennis.com and select TennisLink and then Tournaments and use ID #704132008.

Entry categories are men's and women's singles and doubles and mixed doubles in age divisions of open, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80; rated divisions singles and doubles in 3.0, 3.5 and 4.0; combo mixed in 6.0, 7.0, 8.0.

Play will begin Friday the 29^th and continue through the weekend.

TAHHI Opens Registration for Spring Social Next Month at Palmetto Dunes

HILTON HEAD ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News) -- The postcards are out and Social Chair Pat Leinberger is ready for reservations for the Tennis Association of Hilton Head Island's first-of-the-year social -- The Spring on Saturday, Mar. 29 at Palmetto Dunes Tennis Center.

The event, free and open only to TAHHI members, includes mixed doubles rounds from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. Go to http://www.tahhi.org to register, making sure to include your time preference and rating. Questions? Call Pat at 705-6014.

Future TAHHI events are the Wimbledon Social June 28; U.S. Open Social Aug. 31 and TAHHI Championships in November. Registration deadline for the Spring Social is Mar. 24.

Standings in USTA League Senior Divisions

Here are the Senior standings as they appeared on TennisLink late Friday:

Senior # teams

2.5M -- 6 teams -- Country Club of HH Court Jesters lead at 3-0

2.5W -- 3 teams -- Sun City Rally Girls lead at 3-0

3.0M -- 22 teams -- Sea Pines CC Cardinals lead at 4-0 in Flight I; Country Club of HH Hustlers lead at 3-0 in Flight II

3.0W -- 19 teams -- Dataw Darlins lead at 3-0 in Flight I; Sea Pines CC Meem's Team leads at 3-0 in Flight II

3.5M -- 19 teams -- Indigo Run Gold Bear Claws, Sun City Spin Doctors tied at 3-0 in Flight I; Palmetto Dunes Wannabees, Sea Pines CC Cardinals, Sun City Nationals tied at 3-0 in Flight II

3.5W -- 24 teams -- Port Royal Glory Girls, Palmetto Dunes PDQ, SC Yacht Nauti-Gals tied at 5-0 in Flight I; Spring Lake Roaring Rackets lead at 5-0 in Flight II

4.0M -- 6 teams -- Port Royal leads at 3-0

4.0W -- 6 teams -- Sun City Sunsationals lead at 4-0

4.5M -- 2 teams -- TBA

TENNIS E-News FootNote

ooooO

( ) Tiebreaker, tiebreaker … what do you do?

( ) Serve 1 point from the deuce court

(___) ...first turn's kind of short,

Then it's Ad/deuce, Ad/deuce

... together like glue,

Need to play to 7,

and win by 2.

-- Contributed by Denise Agee, director of tennis, South Carolina Yacht Club

-- Dennis Malick

PTR Champions

TENNIS E-News

Feb. 21, 2008 Vol. VII, No. 17
South Carolina Tennis 2006 Media Award Winner
Hilton Head Island SC

De Boer, Agee Partners in Wins

Cox Takes 2 Doubles Titles at PTR Championships; Brady, Child Singles Winners

HILTON HEAD ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News) -- It was just fun watching. Who needs the Bryan brothers when live and right on our home courts you can have a doubles final like Job de Boer/Gavin Cox vs. Steve Brady/Scott Nichols? The rapid-fire volleys, sharp-angle half volleys and dazzling movement delighted the fans Wednesday afternoon at the $25,000 Professional Tennis Registry Championships at Van der Meer Shipyard Racquet Club.

Yeh, the local pros have aged well into the 45s, but they have sharpened skills they pass along daily to students of all ages. Applauding the 6-3, 3-6, 10-7 final that went to De Boer/Cox were lesson-takers and a bunch of pros who collectively represent a couple centuries of teaching experience. TV seldom shows doubles, but every local tournament displays it grandly. Doubles is fun playing AND watching.

Cox came away with two championships Wednesday, first teaming with Denise Agee of Bluffton in Mixed 45s, defeating former Islander Tom Cutone and partner 10-8 in the third-set super tiebreak. Cox and De Boer worked all angles and sufficient overhead pops to take the Men's 45s in a 10-7 match tiebreak.

Earlier, #4-seeded Brady of Bluffton won the Men's 50 singles championship -- again another match tiebreak -- 10-8 over #3 Luiz Carlos Cruz of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Toss in a first-set tiebreak for extra closeness in that final. Also in a morning 45s singles final, #2 Nichols lost to top-seed John Chatlak of Wheeling WV 6-0, 6-2.

HHI's Pat Child won the Men's 55 singles in an injury walkover. Child and Keith Whitlow were finalists in the 55s doubles, losing 6-4, 7-6 (4) to a top-seed team from Missouri. Whitlow dropped a morning singles final 6-3, 6-1 in Men's 60s.

Other area pros winning championships were Donna McKenna of Bluffton in the Women's 55s round robin, Dennis Van der Meer in the Men's 70 doubles and Christine Damas taking the two-player Women's Open bracket.

Here are Wednesday's results and earlier finals as posted on TennisLink with HHI area players in bold type:

Men's Open Singles -- (1) Zbynek Mlynarik (Chatsworth CA) d. (2) Robert Gates (Kankekee IL) 6-1; 6-4

Men's 30 Singles -- (1) Mattia Ceruti (Milano, Italy) d. Gus Fernandes (Wheaton IL) 7-6(1); 6-3

Men's 35 Singles -- (1) Julien Heine (Laguna Niguel CA) d. Martin Echandi (San Jose, Costa Rica) 6-4; 6-4

Men's 40 Singles --(1) Karl Hale (Toronto ON) d. (3) Patrick Paggeot (Myrtle Beach) 6-1; 6-1

Men's 45 Singles -- (1) John Chatlak (Wheeling WV) d. (2) Scott Nichols 6-0, 6-2

Men's 50 Singles -- (4) Steven Brady (Bluffton) d. (3) Luiz Carlos Cruz (Sao Paulo, Brazil) 7-6(2); 4-6; 10-8

Men's 55 Singles -- (2) Patrick Child d. John Antonas (Nassau, Bahamas) WO(inj)

Men's 60 Singles -- (2) Laurence Hammel (Wayland MA) d. (1) Keith Whitlow 6-3, 6-1

Men's 65 Singles -- (2) Fernando Velasco (Austin TX) d. (1) Thay Butchee (Nashville TN) 6-3; 7-6(7)

Men's 70 Singles -- (1) Bob Helton (Bristol VA) d. (2) Thomas Mancuso (Millsboro DE) WO (emerg)

Women's Open Singles -- Christine Damas d. Christine Dransfield (London, England) 6-0; 6-0

Women's 35 Singles -- Sandra Pester (Piding, Germany) d. Karen Gill (Glenford NY) 6-2; 6-1

Women's 45 Singles -- (1) Hiko Fritz-Krockow (Fairfax VA) d. Sharon Weston (S. Glastonbury CT) 6-2; 6-2

Women's 55 Singles -- Patricia Coffey (Jasper GA) d. May Hines (Freeville NY) 6-2; 6-4

Men's Open Doubles -- (1) Julien Heine (Leguna Niguel CA)/Zbynek Mlynarik (Chatsworth CA) d. (2) Donato Campagnoli/Mattia Ceruti (Milano, Italy) 6-0; 6-1

Men's 35 Doubles -- (1) Eric Burke (Atlanta)/Karl Hale (Toronto ON) d. John Bremner (Wheaton IL)/Bill Dopp (Monroe GA) 3-6; 6-2; 10-6

Men's 45 Doubles -- Gavin Cox/Job de Boer d. (4) Steve Brady/Scott Nichols 6-3; 3-6; 10-7

Men's 55 Doubles -- (1) Phil Carter (Forsyth MO)/Jim Klousia (Springfield MO) d. (2) Pat Child/Whitlow 6-4; 7-6(4)

Men's 65 Doubles -- (1) Peter Collins (Augusta GA)/Bob Helton (Bristol VA) d. (2) Ollen Dupree (Bowie MD)/Alfredo Garcia (Laredo TX) 6-0; 6-1

Men's 70 Doubles -- John Powless (Madison WI)/Dennis Van der Meer winner of round robin

Women's 35 Doubles -- Round Robin 3 -- Hiko Fritz-Krockow (Fairfax VA)/Donna McKenna (Bluffton) d. Ann Miller (Lake Oswego OR)/Sandra Pester (Piding, Germany) 6-3; 6-1; Fritz-Krockow/McKenna winner of round robin

Women's 45 Doubles -- Round Robin 3 -- Diane Deaton (Virginia Beach VA)/Laura Stone (Norfolk VA) d. Bobbie Kim (Suffern NY)/Frances Osei (Suffern NY) 6-0; 7-6(4); Deaton/Stone winner of round robin

Women's 55 Doubles -- (1) Valerie Herendeen (Douglasville GA)/Cheryle Luchene (Roswell GA) d. (2) Patricia Coffey (Jasper GA)/Linda McCollum (Atlanta) 6-2; 7-6(3)

Mixed 45 Doubles -- (2) Denise Agee/Gavin Cox d. Tom Cutone (Old Lyme CT)/Sharon Weston (S. Glastonbury CT) 2-6; 6-1; 10-8

Mixed 55 Doubles -- (1) Debra Broadus (North Potomac MD)/Gary Lyst Sr (Silver Spring MD) d. Valerie Herendeen (Douglasville GA)/Wayne Penniman (Conyers GA) 6-0; 6-1

TENNIS E-News FootNote

ooooO 3 Headlines of the Year Nominees for 2007:

( ) Police Begin Campaign to Run Down Jaywalkers

( ) Panda Mating Fails; Veterinarian Takes Over

(___) Miners Refuse to Work after Death

-- From the Internet, of course

-- Dennis Malick

PTR Finals Wednesday

TENNIS E-News

Feb. 19, 2008 Vol. VII, No. 16
South Carolina Tennis 2006 Media Award Winner
Hilton Head Island SC

Nichols, Brady, Child, Whitlow in Finals Wednesday

So Much for the 10-point Match Tiebreak; Local Pros Play One in 40 Points

HILTON HEAD ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News) -- That so-called "10-point match tiebreak" took on a new meaning today in the $25,000 Professional Tennis Registry Championships at Van der Meer Shipyard Racquet Club. Ask local pros Rob Ellison and Patrick Mason how to play a match tiebreak of 40 points.

Ellison and Mason lost the first set of their Men's 35 Doubles to John Bremner of Wheaton IL and Bill Dopp of Monroe GA, then came back to take the second set 6-2. Thence into the deciding "10-point" breaker. Winning 19 points in a tiebreak would seem to be a winner, but not for the HHI pros. Bremner/Dopp had 21 and advanced to Wednesday's final.

Four area pros, meanwhile, earned their way into Wednesday morning singles finals:

9 a.m. -- #2 Pat Child in Men's 55s vs. John Antonas of Nassau, Bahamas

9:30 a.m. -- #1 Keith Whitlow in Men's 60s vs. #2 Laurence Hammel of Wayland MA.

10:30 a.m. -- #2 Scott Nichols in Men's 45s vs. #1 John Chatlak of Wheeling WV; #4 Steve Brady in Men's 50s vs. #3 Luiz Carlos Cruz of Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Doubles finals will follow in the early afternoon, beginning with 45 Mixed at 12:30. Others will follow, wrapping up the championships that had 196 players in the draws.

Matches are open free to spectators. Also open to the public is the Tennis Trade Show Thursday from 9 a.m. to noon.

Here are the Monday and today's results as posted on TennisLink involving HHI area players (in bold type):

Men's Open Singles -- Semifinal -- (1) Zbynek Mlynarik d. (3) Christophe Bonadona 6-1; 6-3

Men's 45 Singles -- Semifinal -- (2) Scott Nichols d. Eric Parker 6-0; 6-0

Men's 50 Singles -- Semifinal -- (4) Steven Brady d. (2) Patrick Tibbs 6-2; 6-4

Men's 55 Singles -- Semifinal -- (2) Patrick Child d. Jack Barker 6-1; 6-4

Men's 60 Singles -- Semifinal -- (1) Keith Whitlow d. (4) Dennis Posteraro 7-5; 4-6; 10-4

Men's 65 Singles -- Semifinal -- SF (2) Fernando Velasco d. Henry Iannuzzi 6-1; 6-3

Women's 35 Singles -- Semifinal -- Sandra Pester d. Donna McKenna 4-6; 6-2; 10-7

Men's Open Doubles -- Quarterfinal -- (1) Heine/Mlynarik d. Black/Macalester 6-4; 6-2; Semifinal -- (1) Heine/Mlynarik d. (3) Bonadona/Pavlov 6-4; 7-6(2)

Men's 35 Doubles -- SF Bremner/Dopp d. (4) Ellison/Mason 6-4; 2-6; 21-19

Men's 45 Doubles -- Quarterfinals -- Cox/DeBoer d. (2) Chatlak/Vietmeier 7-5; 6-4; (3) Jilly/Jonsson d. Hammel/Parrish 6-2; 6-4; (4) Brady/Nichols d. Begay/Kraft 6-2; 6-7(4); 11-9; (1) Coulton/Schnall d. Cutone/Meek 6-0; 6-2; Semifinals -- Cox/De Boer d. (3) Jilly/Jonsson 6-1; 7-6(1); (4) Brady/Nichols d. (1) Coulton/Schnall 1-6; 6-4; 10-8

Men's 55 Doubles -- Quarterfinals -- (2) Child/Whitlow d. Barker/Cross 6-1; 6-0; (3) Callen/Gray d. Goodson/Hale 6-1; 6-2; Lyst Sr/Scearce d. (4) Dehart/Velasco 6-3; 7-6(3); Semifinals -- (2) Child/Whitlow d. (3) Callen/Gray 6-2; 6-4; (1) Carter/Klousia d. Lyst Sr/Scearce 2-6; 6-2; 10-4

Women's 55 Doubles -- Quarterfinal -- Lopez/MacLennan d. Gleason/Ryan 6-2; 6-2

Mixed 45 Doubles -- Quarterfinals--(2) Agee/Cox d. Butler/Collas 6-0; 6-1; Christensen/MacLennan d. Davis/Davis 6-0; 6-1; Semifinal -- (2) Agee/Cox d. Christensen/MacLennan 6-2; 6-1

Mixed 55 Doubles -- Quarterfinals -- Ransom/Ryan d. Cap/Marsella U. S.P. 6-4; 6-0

Men's 70 Doubles -- Round Robin One -- Powless/Van der Meer d. Hubbard/Pinson Def (ns); Round Robin Two -- Powless/Van der Meer d. Byl/Jenkins 6-1; 6-2

PTI/Chaplin T-Shirts Ready for Pickup

HILTON HEAD ISLAND SC (The Chaplin Chatter) --T-shirts for the Public Tennis Inc. new court fundraiser have arrived and can be picked up at Player's World of Sports, Shoppes on the Parkway near The Fresh Market. Shirts bearing a new logo as well as the PTI logo are available for a $10 donation.

To reserve a shirt, email Tim Ryan at chaplinroundrobin@hotmail.com and include name and size. Anyone who already has ordered can pick up shirts at at Player's World.

TENNIS E-News FootNote

ooooO

( )

( ) In the 1400s, a law was set forth in England that a man was allowed to beat his wife with a stick no thicker

(___) than his thumb. Hence we have "the rule of thumb".

-- From the Internet

-- Dennis Malick