PTR Championships Begin

Stars Line Up for Family Circle and Bausch & Lomb

Early Big-Name Entries -- See below

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TENNIS E-News

Feb. 16, 2008 Vol. VII, No. 14
South Carolina Tennis 2006 Media Award Winner
Hilton Head Island SC

Winners and finalists of the 2007 TAHHI Championships: If you have not received your award sweatshirts and tee shirts,

they are awaiting your pickup at Palmetto Dunes Tennis Center.

Matches Run through Midweek

HHI Players Seeds in PTR Prize-Money Championships Under Way Today

HILTON HEAD ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News) -- The annual Professional Tennis Registry Championships got started today at Van der Meer Shipyard Racquet Club, with teaching pros from throughout the world competing. Some Hilton Head Island pros are among those seeded in the $25,000 tournament that will run through the middle of next week.

Matches are open free to spectators. Also open to the public is the Tennis Trade Show Thursday (21^st) from 9 a.m. to noon.

PTR pros will be engaged in daylong seminars, workshops and on-court demonstrations Sunday through Friday. Evenings are devoted to cookouts, special dinners and an annual awards banquet.

Hilton Head Island area pros who are singles seeds include: Men's 45 -- Scott Nichols (2); Tom Jilly (3); Men's 50 -- Steve Brady of Bluffton (4); Men's 55 -- Pat Child (2); Ben Hale (4); Men's 60 -- Keith Whitlow (1).

Men's, Women's, Mixed

‘Luck of the Irish' Doubles Ready for its Silver Anniversary at Palmetto Dunes

HILTON HEAD ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News) – It’s silver anniversary time for the “Luck of the Irish” Doubles Tournament, set for Mar. 7-9 at Palmetto Dunes Tennis Center. The 25th annual will be played in rated men’s, women’s and mixed doubles from 2.5 through open.

Sponsored by Giuseppi’s Pizza & Pasta, Hilton Head Mortgage and Adventure Radio, the tournament will begin Friday morning the 7th with the possibility of some Thursday evening matches in large draws. Play will continue all Saturday and start early Sunday so players can make it to the Island's St. Patrick’s Parade.

Entry fee is $40 per person for one event and $50 if playing in two ($10 late fee). Entry deadline is Sunday, Mar. 2. (An entry form is an attachment to this issue.)

Entry forms are available at area racquet clubs. For information, call PD at 785-1152.

Women's Pro Tour

Defending, Former Champions Line Up for Bausch & Lomb, Family Circle in April

(TENNIS E-News) -- Champions Tatiana Golovin and Jelena Jankovic have signed on to defend their respective titles at the Bausch & Lomb Championships and Family Circle Cup women's pro tour events coming up in April at Amelia Island FL and Daniel Island, Charleston. Hilton Head Islanders will be heading for the events by the busload and carload.

Former champion Venus Williams and comeback "kid" Lindsay Davenport are scheduled to challenge 2007 winner Golovin at Amelia Island's Bausch & Lomb Apr. 7-13. For tickets and information, go to http://www.bauschandlombchampionships.com.

A busload of spectators from HHI's Spring Lake Racquet Club will be in the stands Tuesday, Apr. 8. To check if seats are available for the bus trip, call the club at 681-3626.

Daniel Island (Charleston) will be celebrating the 35th anniversary Family Circle Cup Apr. 12-20 with a lineup that includes '07 champion Jankovic, as well as WTA #1 Justine Henin, Venus and Serena Williams, Anna Chakvetadze, Wimbledon finalist Marion Bartoli and Nadia Petrova, among others.

For tickets and information go to http://www.familycirclecup.com.

Standings in USTA League Senior Divisions

HILTON HEAD ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News) -- Undefeated teams are falling and room at the top is getting less crowded in the USTA Leagues Senior divisions.

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

Senior # teams

2.5M -- 6 teams -- Dataw Island Dyna Sores, Country Club of HH tied at 2-0

2.5W -- 3 teams -- Sun City Rally Girls lead at 2-0

3.0M -- 22 teams -- Palmetto Dunes Net Cords, Sea Pines CC Cardinals tied at 3-0 in Flight I; Country Club of HH Hustlers, Shipyard Rockets tied at 3-0 in Flight II

3.0W -- 19 teams -- Dataw Darlins, Indigo Run Ladies of the Net tied at 2-0 in Flight I; Moss Creek Net Gnats, Sea Pines CC Meem's Team tied at 2-0 in Flight II

3.5M -- 19 teams -- Indigo Run Gold Bear Claws, Sun City Spin Doctors tied at 2-0 in Flight I; Palmetto Dunes Wannabees, Sea Pines CC Cardinals, Sun City Nationals tied at 2-0 in Flight II

3.5W -- 24 teams -- Port Royal Glory Girls, Palmetto Dunes PDQ, SC Yacht Nauti-Gals tied at 4-0 in Flight I; Spring Lake Roaring Rackets lead at 4-0 in Flight II

4.0M -- 6 teams -- Sun City Sun Strokes, Port Royal tied at 2-0

4.0W -- 6 teams -- Sun City Sunsationals lead at 3-0

4.5M -- 2 teams -- TBA

Finishing the Job at Chaplin Public Tennis Center

HILTON HEAD ISLAND SC (from The Chaplin Chatter) -- Work by the Town of Hilton Head Island will soon begin to complete the two new courts at Chaplin Public Tennis Center. The courts were opened for play last February.

Improvements to the courts will include completion of the concrete walking paths as well as a concrete pad that will house a covered awning and two new sets of bleachers. New benches for the courts are on the center's wish list. There is currently no seating available during changeovers.

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A message from USTA Southern: HELP US MAINTAIN THE INTEGRITY OF LEAGUE TENNIS!

(Excerpted from the USTA Southern's NTRP rating information.)

The USTA Southern Section asks all players, captains, coordinators, tennis professionals and volunteers to join the campaign to keep the NTRP levels intact and maintain the integrity of league tennis!

Current Concerns:

In many cases, captains have instigated self-rating abuses by players.

Players and captains mistakenly believe that self-rating one level too low is somehow “okay.”

All players who are self-rating to enter a USTA Southern Section league program are instructed to consider their on-court performance, tennis background, age, physical condition and comparisons to current league players when determining their self-ratings. They should choose the higher level when unsure of where they will be most compatible and competitive.

The great majority of league players would NEVER intentionally or knowingly self-rate too low, “tank” matches or try to gain an unfair advantage. The small number of players and captains who will resort to these tactics seem to believe they “are getting away” with this form of cheating. Our existing league players need to help us create a culture where this is not encouraged but truly seen as a detriment to league tennis.

Concerned players, captains, etc., should email Marilyn Sherman, USTA Southern Section Director of Adult Tennis at sherman@sta.usta.com

TENNIS E-News FootNote

ooooO

( ) Our favorite comment seen/heard over Uno's win at the Westminster:

( ) "… besides, he beat out two of those X#%$*X@*&# poodles."

(___) You've heard of "freaks of nature". Well, show poodles are "freaks of man". Let the freakin' hair grow out!!!

-- Dennis Malick