From NSMTA.net.
- Category Archives Category I Nationals
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USTA Women’s 40-80 Clay & 35-85 Hard Court Nationals Cancelled for 2020
Andi Polisky, the tournament director of the 35-85 Women’s Hard Courts scheduled for October in Rancho Mirage, CA has cancelled this event.
Trish Faulkner, the tournament director for the Women’s 40-80 Clay Courts scheduled for October in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, has cancelled this event.
Both tournament directors expect their events to resume in 2021.
Both tournaments were ITF Grade A events, all of which have been cancelled for 2020 (unless granted a downgrade to a Grade 2, 3, or 4).
Update: All USTA Category I Family, Age Division and Open tournaments have been cancelled for 2020. Tournaments have the option to hold these events as Designated Sectional tournaments with Category II points.
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ITF Seniors Tournaments to Resume August 31st: Grade 2, 3, 4 ONLY to Resume; Rankings Changes through 2021
The ITF has announced a resumption of play for the ITF Seniors Circuits of August 31, 2020.
Grade 2, 3, and 4 tournaments only shall resume in 2020; Regional, Grade A and Grade 1 tournaments can apply to take place as Grade 2 tournaments if the ITF approves the change.
Rankings:
Best 4 tournaments from the period of March 18, 2019-March 14 2021 will be used.
Starting March 15, 2021, results from 2019 or 2020 will start to drop, replaced by their 2021 points. This is subject to change if the pandemic continues to restrict travel or for other reasons determined by the ITF.
Through at least December 31, 2020, players can only add to their point total, they cannot have their frozen point total reduced.
The ITF plans to return to the 52 week ranking period in December 2021.
Read below for exact details. This is subject to change if ongoing travel restrictions and lack of tournaments warrants it.
NOTE: All tournaments must adhere to the new ITF Covid-19 protocols which can be found here: https://www.itftennis.com/en/news-and-media/articles/itf-outlines-initial-plans-for-resumption-of-play-on-junior-senior-wheelchair-tennis-and-beach-tennis-tours/ (Links found within article).
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USTA National Senior Women’s Clay Courts (35/45/55/65/75/85/90) Cancelled for 2020; Will Resume in 2021
Sue Bramlette, the tournament director for the National Senior Women’s Clay Court Championships (NSWCCC) in Houston, Texas, after consulting with the COO of the Houston Racquet Club (HRC) and the membership director of the HRC has concluded that the HRC will not be able to host the NSWCCC in 2020.
There were a number of issues related to the Covid-19 pandemic that would or could impact the hosting of the tournament this year.
The HRC plans to host the tournament in 2021.
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Recent Category I Champions
Husband/Wife Grass: 100: Kathy/Paul Settles; 120: Mai Ichikawa Abel/Brent Abel; 140: Dean Corley/Randi Reznik
50/60/70/75/80 Hard Mixed: 50: Pat Crow/Tracie Currie; 60: Jonathan Fears/Shannon Carney; 70: Kathy Bennett/Jimmy Parker; 75: Suella Steel/Dean Corley; 80: Wilbur Jones/Roz King
40 Hard Court/Father/Son/GF/GS: M40S: Francisco Clavet; M40D: Ross Duncan/Simon Chen; W40S: Hiromi Sasano; W40D: Debbie Spence Nasim/Tracie Currie; Mxd: Spence Nasim/Duncan; F/S: Bruce & Bruce Man Son Hing; GF/GS: Ethan Smith/James Stelson
Men’s 60/75 Grass: 60S: Mark Vines; 60D: Mike Fedderly/Mike Tammen; 75S/D: Jimmy Parker (with Ken Robinson)
Husband Wife Indoors: Open: Kathy/Trung Nguyen; 100: Kathy/Paul Settles; 120: Peggy Kirkeeng/Michael Sperling; 140: Dean Corley/Randi Resnik
30 Clay: WS: Charlotte Sikora; WD: Katrina Barnes/Marissa Chapin; MS: Christian Guevara; MD: Kriegler Brink/Cameron Nash; Mxd: Guevara/Abika Sperl:
Father/Son Clay: Sr: Brett/Jerry Morse Karzen; SSr: Scott/P Estes; 80+: Alan/Robert Croll
Men’s 35 Clay: S: Rodrigo Pacheco; D: Darrin Cohen/Ryan Sablan
W90Grass: S/D: Rita Price (with Jane Lutz)
M/S, F/D Clay: FD Open: David/Karly Friedman; SrFD: Steve/Jordan Vaughn; SSr FD: Julia/Richard Cohen; 80+ FD: Sheldon/Chance Fechtor; M/S: Caryn/Jordan Krasner; Sr M/S: Kyle/Anni Collette
Women’s 35-85 Hard: 35S:Laura Graff; 35D: Jennifer Lyons/Julie Shapiro; 45S/D: Dina McBride (with Debbie Nasim); 55S: Fran Chandler; 55D: Rainy Miller/Shelly Works; 65S: Tina Karwasky; 65D: Andrea Barnes/Kandy Chain; 75S/D: Carolann Castell (with Heather Fiscalini); 85S/D: Margaret Canby (with Rose Austin)
Men’s 75/80 Clay: 75S/D: Jimmy Parker (with Ken Robinson); 80S: Lester Sack; 80D: Wilbur Jones/William Woflf
Men’s 60/65 Clay: 60S: Dan Waldman; 60D: Mike Fedderly/Mike Tammen; 65S:Fred Robinson; 65D: Stanley Mescon/Alan Turner
40-70 Mixed Clay: 40: Ben Cook/Liz Kotz; 50: Garth Thomson/Laurie Yarbrough; 60: Shannon Carney/Jon Fears; 70: Ann Bradley/Bernie McGuire
M/D Clay: open: Michelle/Caitlyn Williams; Senior: Sheila/Nicole Chiricosta; SSr: Brenda Humpheys/Shelly Stillman Scott
Men’s 55 Clay: Erik Luxembourg; D: Scott Works/Willie Alumbaugh
Men’s 50 Clay: S: Oren Motevassel; D: Johan Hoegstedt/Fredrik Skoglund
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USTA Extends Suspension of USTA Sanctioned Tennis Events
April 1, 2020
USTA has suspended ITF sanctioned Senior events till July 13, 2020.
USTA has suspended tournaments and programs including leagues which are not ITF sanctioned till June 1.
The full statement from USTA.com is below:
Updated Statement – March 23, 2020:
Due to the continued situation surrounding the COVID-19 virus, and after discussions with the USTA Medical Advisory Committee, effective immediately the USTA will extend the suspension of USTA sanctioned products and events, including Adult and Junior Tournaments, USTA League, Junior Team Tennis, Team Challenge, Team Tournaments, USTA Schools programs, Tennis on Campus and Wheelchair events, through May 3.
Additionally, recognizing the evolving and fast-changing nature of this situation, the USTA will continue to monitor and assess conditions to make future determinations about events and activities taking place after May 3.
All Category 1 and Super Category 2 National Adult Tournaments with an ITF status, all ITF Junior events and all USTA Pro Circuit and professional events will align with the same calendar as the ITF, ATP and WTA, and be suspended through June 7.
Both the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, N.Y., and the USTA National Campus, in the Lake Nona area of Orlando, Fla., will remain closed for play and instructional opportunities through May 3. Any patron who wishes to cancel participation in a scheduled activity should contact the specific location for refund information. These policies will be in effect pending additional guidance or directives from each local governmental agency and the CDC. The USTA will continue to monitor and assess conditions to make future determinations about all activities at these facilities.
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Houston Women’s Tournament (ITF Grade A/USTA Cat I) Postponed to September (Updated March 14th)
- The ITF has cancelled all tournaments including all seniors tournaments till April 20th
- The notice today on the Houston website is: New tournament dates!! Due to the COVID-19 virus and with an abundance of caution, we have made the difficult decision to postpone this event. All entree fees will be refunded. Our new tournament dates will be September 19-25 2020. NOTE NEW DATES! We will celebrate the 50th year then!! Wash you hands and stay safe!
- Tournament website remains the same.
- To get a refund of your entry fee for the original dates go to the website and withdraw. You will need the email (which I’m sure everyone saved) which has your confirmation numbers. If you didn’t save the email their are instructions on how to withdraw. You will get a refund of the entry fee minus the USTA tennislink fee.
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2020 Category I Mixed Doubles Schedule
For official updates check USTA.com. Note that all Category I Mixed doubles tournaments except for the 30s are ITF Grade A tournaments as well as USTA Category I tournaments and are open to all ITF players.
Age Division Clay Hard Indoor Grass 30
Dec. 4-9
Lauderdale Tennis Club
Fort Lauderdale, FLJune 5-7
Plaza Tennis Center
Kansas City, MOPostponed or suspended: May 22-25
Lexington Tennis Club,
Lexington, KY40 Oct 8-11
Seabrook Isl Club
Johns Island, SC11/30-12/6
La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club
La Jolla, CA45 Oct. 23-28
Lauderdale TC
Ft. Lauderdale, FL50 Oct 8-11
Seabrook Isl Club
Johns Island, SCWilson World Tennis Classic
Shadow Mountain Resort & Club, Palm Desert, CA60 Oct 8-11
Seabrook Isl Club
Johns Island, SCWilson World Tennis Classic
Shadow Mountain Resort & Club, Palm Desert, CA8/17-8/22
Seattle Tennis Club
Seattle, WA70 Oct 8-11
Seabrook Isl Club
Johns Island, SCWilson World Tennis Classic
Shadow Mountain Resort & Club, Palm Desert, CA75 Wilson World Tennis Classic
Shadow Mountain Resort & Club, Palm Desert, CA80 Wilson World Tennis Classic
Shadow Mountain Resort & Club, Palm Desert, CA
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2020 Family Schedule
Updates will be made when tournaments are added by the USTA to its tennislink site.
2020 USTA Category I & 2 Family National Championships
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2020 USTA Men’s Category I National Schedule
Note that this is incomplete and until links are added is tentative. Dates taken from USTA.com. Check tennislink for up to date information. I will be adding links in the next few weeks.
Official schedule published on USTA.com
2020 USTA Men's Category I Natonal Champioships
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2020 Women’s USTA Category I Schedule
Note that this is incomplete and until links are added is tentative. Dates taken from USTA.com. Check tennislink for up to date information. I will be adding links in the next few weeks.
The dates for the 40-80 clay differ on tennis link and the USTA.com schedule. I have posted the tennislink dates. The USTA.com schedule (without a link) shows dates of April 7-12.
Official Category I Schedule from USTA.com.
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2020 USTA Category I & II Schedules
Check seniortennisblog.com for updates…but most tournaments have been cancelled; all category II are now sectional events; ITF has cancelled all but Grade 2, 3, 4 for 2020 but will resume play August 31st. USTA will not begin National play before September.
From carolynnichols.com and seniortennisblog.com:
Continue reading Post ID 21199
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January/February/March/April Tentative Tournament Dates 2020 (Some Men’s Events Added)
Last Update: Nov. 3, 2019
Please go to seniortennisblog.com and click on the relevant schedule. This post will no longer be updated.
THIS IS NOT AN OFFICIAL CALENDAR! PLEASE CHECK THE USTA TENNISLINK SITE FOR THE OFFICIAL SCHEDULE ONCE IT’S POSTED! Anything with a link is final (but click on the link for official information and to enter).
January 7-11, NSMTA Super Senior Doubles, USTA Cat III (Men’s 55 & up); Sanchez-Casal Academy, Naples, FL
Wilson World Tennis Classic: Shadow Mountain Resort, Palm Desert, CA January 18-26, 2020: 35-90, S/D/MXD Super Cat II
January 19-26, Men’s West Coast Super Seniors Grand Prix, USTA Super Category II, 55 and up, Sanchez-Casal Academy, Naples, FL
Grandes Dames, Palm Beach Gardens Tennis Center, Palm Beach Gardens, FL, late January 28-Feb 1, (W 30/40/50/60/70/80) Dates TBA
Grandes Dames, Fort Lauderdale TC, Fort Lauderdale, FL, W 35/45/55/65/75/85); February 5-9) Super Cat II
Grandes Dames, Joanne Russell Cup, Sanchez-Casal Academy, Naples, Florida, Dates: February 18-23 Super Cat II
Raymond James Super Cat II, St. Petersburg, FL (men only), Dates: February 24-March 1
NSWTA Tournament, Daniel Island, SC (near Charleston), March 11-15, EVEN divisions only, Women only
National Clay Courts, Houston, TX, (W 35/45/55/65/75/85/90); Dates: March 30-April 5; ITF Grade A
National Clay Courts, Palm Beach Gardens Tennis Center, Palm Beach Gardens, FL April 14-19 (W40/50/60/70/80); ITF Grade A
Individual World Championships, Palm Beach Gardens, FL M/W 50/55/60; May 2-9, 2020; enter via the IPIN site (ITFtennis.com/IPIN)
National Hard Courts, La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club, La Jolla, CA, May 11-17, 2020; ITF Grade A
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Men’s 55 & 80 Grass Nationals CANCELLED for 2019
From the USTA Adult National Tournament FACEBOOK Page:
Dear All,
Unfortunately, we were not able to find a replacing host venue for the Men’s 55 and 80s Grass Court National Championships.
After contacting many different venues and exploring various options, we are forced to cancel these events for 2019.
These events will be back in the calendar for 2020 with a new hosting venue, and we are looking forward to supporting these National Championships.
Thank you for your understanding and let me know if you have any questions
Milagros Sequera Huss
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Men’s 75 Grass Moves to Rancho Mirage November 19-23 or 24
The Men’s 75 Grass has found at home in Rancho Mirage, CA at the Mission Hills Country Club. Steve Solomon, who runs the 60 Hard Courts will take over this event from the Wesson LTC in Michigan.
Here’s the link to the tournament home page:https://tennislink.usta.com/Tournaments/TournamentHome/Tournament.aspx?T=239813
For questions, go to the home page which has Steve’s phone and email listed and hotel information
Note that the 75s will start on Tuesday the 19th and finish on the following Sunday or Monday according to the website.
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Men’s 60 Grass Will be Held Nov. 17-23 in the Desert
The Men’s 60 Grass has found at home in Rancho Mirage, CA at the Mission Hills Country Club. Steve Solomon, who runs the 60 Hard Courts will take over this event from the Wesson LTC in Michigan.
Here’s the link to the tournament home page:https://tennislink.usta.com/Tournaments/TournamentHome/Tournament.aspx?T=239813
For questions, go to the home page which has Steve’s phone and email listed and hotel information.
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Jane Lutz Wins 90 Singles and Doubles at the La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club Saturday
Jane Lutz, 90, played six sets of tennis today to win the USTA 90 hard court singles & doubles titles. Rita Price also played six sets of tennis today and came away with a singles silver and doubles gold for her efforts.
Jane won the singles 26 75 64 over Price and Jane and Rita won the doubles 75 46 63 over Janet Hubbard/Pat Wiedenmann.
I repeat…Jane is 90, Rita is 92 and they played for over four hours on hard courts no less.
The photos below are courtesy of Mary Johnson
- Photos (more will be added)
Jane Lutz and the class fun maker Rita Price Rita Price 
Jane Lutz
- Photos (more will be added)
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Finals Day, National Women’s Hard Courts, La Jolla: Two Marathons in One Day!
- Friday was finals day at the USTA National Hard Courts at the La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club. I didn’t get to see much tennis because I was on court most of the day from about 11:30 till about 8pm. Susan Wright and I played our second marathon in a month, and it was a tough match. I came away with the 26 75 76(4) win in about 3.5 hours (was down 41 in the third but kept on fighting). Susan is as gracious in defeat as in victory, the sign of a champion. About 90 minutes later Robin Harris and I took on Susan and Shannon Carney in the doubles final. Three hours later Susan and Shannon came away with a well deserved 57 63 62 win.
- Shannon won the 3/4 playoff over Cindy Johnson in a match tiebreak 14-12. Their tiebreak (they were playing next to us) seemed to go on forever, though I think their match was shorter than ours. Erin Boynton/Abbi Neuthaler won the bronze over Una Davis/Tracey Thompson. Kathy Vick took 5th and Erin Boynton took 7th. (The tournament had a quarterfinal playoff and then a 7/8 playoff for the quarterfinal losers who lost their first match in the playoff, a first.
- Jen Dawson was the only double gold winner of the week, edging top seeded Andrea Rice in a grueling 75 75 win. I saw a little of the beginning of the match and it was fantastic tennis. Jen is a rock at the baseline and Andrea played athletic all court tennis. You won’t find two nicer competitors anywhere (Shelly Works, you have competition for this title in these two!). Dawson teamed with Jenny Rens Keller to win the doubles over Rice/Anna Zimmermann 62 62. It was Jenny Keller’s first gold ball.
Conan Lorenzo, Andrea Rice and Jen Dawson with TD Bill Kellogg, photo courtesy of Mary Johnson - Kristen Kepler won the 50 singles bronze over Keller; Deb Higa/Jennifer Lyons took the bronze over Kepler/Neuthaler.
- Judy Dixon won the 70 singles with an emphatic 63 60 win over #2 seeded Molly Hahn. I believe it was her first singles gold ball. Liane Bryson/Kathy Bennett won the doubles over Dixon/Vicky McEvoy 64 63. Sue Kimball edged Carol Gay in three sets for the singles bronze but Carol Gay/Sheila Johnson came away with the doubles win against Hahn/Kimball to win the doubles bronze.
- Lorna Brooks, unseeded, won the 80 singles 62 64 over top seeded Dorothy Wasser. She did it the hard way too, beating the #3, #2 and #1 seeds en route to the title. Brooks is from Wyoming now but used to live in Exeter, in the Central Valley of California and we used to practice together about 35 years ago… I knew how good she was then and so wasn’t too surprised when she won. She was one of the top 2 juniors in SoCal as a youngster (Sally Huss was the top junior). She played with her hair down, which amazed some of the spectators (it doesn’t move). Lola O’Sullivan/Barbara Oldfield were the surprise doubles winner. For Barbara it was her first USTA ball of any color! They beat Claudia Giacommini/Dorothy Matthiessen 76(4) 63 for the gold.
- Burnett Herrick won the 80 singles bronze by default (injury) over Carol Wood; Herrick/Wasser beat Lynn Tietz/Wood for the 80 doubles bronze.
- The 90s final is this morning at 9am between Rita Price and Jane Lutz, followed by the de facto doubles final (it’s a three team round robin between the two undefeated teams) scheduled for 1pm.
- Draws are here.
- Day 1 Blog
- Day 2 Blog
- Day 3 Blog
- Day 4 Blog
- Photos (more will be added).
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Semifinal Day: Loooong Day on Court
I was on the court at least 6 hours today playing matches…started singles around 1:30, finished at 5pm then played doubles from about 6:15 to 9pm. That’s a lot of tennis. We started late because of morning rain, but as predicted it stopped around 11 or 11:30 and the courts were dry by 12:30. We had to wait a bit for a consolation match to finish. I played Shannon Gordon Carney from St Louis. She’s a former All American from UCLA and currently coaches a college team in St. Louis. She’s a counter puncher, I’m a counter puncher, we had long rallies despite a very stiff and persistent cross wind. I won 63 36 61…took five match points though in the last game. Susan Wright dispatched Texan Cindy Johnson 61 60. In doubles Robin Harris and I had a long battle which began in sunlight and finished under the lights. We won 36 61 64 against Una Davis/Tracey Thompson and it was a tough match with a lot of excellent points. We play Wright/Carney in the doubles final tomorrow…they took out Abbi Neuthaler/Erin Boynton 76 62.
In other divisions, Lorna Brooks (my pre tournament dark horse pick in the 80s) reached the final with a 61 76 win over #2 seed Burnett Herrick. She plays top seeded Dorothy Wasser in the final; Dorothy edged Carol Wood in two tight sets.
In doubles, Lola. O’Sullivan/Barbara Oldfield, the #3 seeds, upset #2 seeded Lynn Tietz/Carol Wood and take on #4 seeded Claudia Giacommini/Dorothy Matthiessen in the final. Claudia/Dorothy upset Wasser/Herrick in a long tough three setter.
In the 70s Judy Dixon advanced to the final with a tough 3-setter over Carol Gay. I am not sure who won the other semi; the tournament website says Molly Hahn, but another press release says Sue Kimball…stay tuned. Update: Hahn won 63 62.
I do know though that Dixon/Vicky McEvoy are in the doubles final against Kathy Bennett/Liane Bryson.
In the 50s, the top 2 seeds, Andrea Rice and Jennifer Dawson advanced in straight sets to the final; Rice/Anna Zimmermann upset #1 seeded Deb Higa/Jennifer Lyons 62 75 and Dawson/Jenny Rens Keller ousted Kepler/Neuthaler.
As expected Jane Lutz and Rita Price are in the 90 singles final.
Live cam from ct 2: Court 2: https://www.ipcamlive.com/ljbtc
Draws: https://m.tennislink.usta.com/TournamentHome/tournament.aspx?t=222471
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Quarterfinal Day at the USTA National Women’s 50-90 Hard Courts
There were a lot of great matches at the La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club today in La Jolla, CA.
In the 50s, Kristen Kepler edged #4 seeded Anna Zimmermann in three sets, a reversal of their result last month on clay. La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club member, and an altogether great person (I mean, her nickname is “Bubbles” because of her bubble personality…she’s never met a stranger), Jenny Rens Keller upset #3 seeded Michelle Saunders 62 46 61; in the second set Jenny stopped attacking but she rectified that in the third. She joins her doubles partner Jen Dawson, and Andrea Rice in the semis.
Rice/Zimmermann lost the first set to Krista Oconnor/Lisa Traylor before rallying for the win; Oconnor/Traylor play together a lot whereas it’s Rice/Zimmermann’s first tournament together. They face Deb Higa/Jennifer Lyons in one semi while Abbi Neuthaler/Kepler take on Dawson/Keller.
In the 60s, the match of the day was that between Tina Karwasky and Cindy Johnson. Johnson quickly won the first set 60 and seemed on the way to a straight set win, leading 3-0 in the second; but Karwasky, the consummate professional, fought back strongly, forcing a third set, which was tight all the way. Johnson prevailed 64, using all of the court to earn the win. Kathy Vick played a good first set, and lead 5-3 but came up just short against Susan Wright, 5-7; Susan played a flawless second set winning it 60. Shannon Gordon Carney outplayed Colleen Ferrell Clery 61 62 and I beat Erin Boynton in a tough match (the score doesn’t reflect the quality of the points and games) 62 62. I play Shannon tomorrow.
In doubles, Johnson was also involved in the match of the day. She teamed with Vick to take on Una Davis/Tracey Thompson. Johnson/Vick won the first set 62 and seemed on the cusp of victory after rallying from 3-5 down in the second to level it at 5-5, but Davis/Thompson relaxed, changed their strategy a bit and won 26 75 61. Robin Harris and I won 60 60; Wright/Gordon Carney won a tough match against Karwasky/Carolyn Lane 64 76 and Boynton/Neuthaler beat Sherri Bronson/Kim Dean.
In the 70s, Carol Gay of San Diego blitzed Ann Loose (who played consecutive 3-set singles the past 2 days) 60 60; Judy Dixon won in straight sets; Molly Hahn overcame a set deficit to beat Mary Alice Pisani and Sue Kimball also rallied from a set down to beat Barbara Hubbard. In doubles, the top four seeds advanced; only Gay/Sheila Johnson dropped a set (to Diana Kitt/Pisani).
In the 80s, Lorna Brooks knocked off Dorothy Matthiessen 63 60 to set up an interesting semi with Burnett Herrick. Carol Wood beat Kathie Meyering in a first time meeting and faces Dorothy Wasser next.
In doubles, all four seeds prevailed though Tietz/Wood and O’Sullivan/Oldfield had tough three set wins to reach the semis; they face each other tomorrow. Wasser/Herrick beat Palmer/Brooks and take on Giacommini/Matthiessen in the semis.
Lutz and Price sailed past Sally Fuller/Joyce Vanderpol; both Joyce and Sally had very long three setters yesterday.
All draws and results are here.
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National Women’s 50-90 Hard Courts: Tuesday, Day 2
Let’s start with the 80s…Lorna Brooks from Wyoming (but a SoCal native), playing her annual national tournament (where she meets up with friends from the Central Valley of California where she lived for many years) aged up to the 80s this year (you’d never know it). Lorna played #3 seed Lola O’Sullivan (also hard to believe she’s in her 80s) and won 61 61. Next up, the legendary Dorothy Matthiessen…talk about a tough quarter! In contrast, top seeded Dorothy Wasser from Florida won 2/1 today (Bonnie Champion pulled a hamstring…ouch!) and then takes on Betty Hill tomorrow…Betty won a marathon 3-setter today, lasting well over three hours. Carol Wood will play Kathie Meyering, who had a three setter as well today. Burnett Herrick won over Sheila Palmer who withdrew with an injury.
In doubles there are some intriguing matches tomorrow; Wasser/Herrick face Brooks/Palmer; Meyering/Smith play Tietz/Wood; and Katie Koontz making her return to national play after over a decade’s absence faces O’Sullivan/Barbara Oldfield.
In the 90s, the co-#1 seeds, Jane Lutz and Rita Price lounged while their semifinal opponents both played three-setters to get to the semis; fortunately they have tomorrow off from singles. Jane plays local Sally Fuller while Rita will play Joyce Vanderpol. Sally and Joyce will play Rita and Jane in doubles though tomorrow in the first of 3 round robin doubles matches in the 90s.
In the 50s #3 seeded Michelle Saunders had a challenging second set from Yumi Hansen but prevailed 62 75. She faces local star Jenny Rens Keller in what should be a good counterpunch/punch match. Jennifer Dawson will make her singles debut against Yvette Kruger. And Anna Zimmerman, the #4 seed has a rematch with Kristen Kepler; they played a month ago at the clay courts and had a good match.
In doubles there were two upsets of 5-8 seeds; locals Anna Palmer and Tammy Stephens cruised past #5 seeds Andrea Wiggins/Andrea Thomason. Mary Graber/Trina Lee Molatkly edged another #5 seeded team, Darice Carneje/ Monica Sweet, getting stronger with each set.
In the 70s, Ann Loose played and won a three setter for the second straight day, upsetting #5 Gwenda Ward 64 in the third. The remaining seeds won easily. Diane Kitt/Mary Alice Pisani upset #5 seeded Ward/Loose (maybe Loose finally ran out of gas) in two close sets. The remaining seeds dropped very few games.
And finally the 60s. I beat Leslie Murveit, who played very well after she warmed up…the second set we had some long games and long points, but I prevailed 60 63. All eight of the seeds advanced without losing a set; several lost no games including Shannon Gordon Carney who won today and yesterday 60 60.
In doubles, the match of the day once again featured Leslie Murveit, who with Colleen Clery Ferrell took on Cindy Abel/Kristen Stanton. It was also the last match of the day and Abel/Stanton were able (see what I did there) to come back from a 1-set deficit to finish off the upset 64 in the third…they had many remarkable points, especially the one on set point in the first set where Leslie came out of the back field to run down a sharp angle and return it for a winner. Cindy was a backboard; Kristen has nice hands and Colleen made some super volleys and overheads. Kim Dean/Sherri Bronson were pushed to 3 sets to win; the other seeds won in straight sets.
There was a player dinner tonight. Those seagulls were not aimlessly flying around, they were periodically pouncing on untended plates. The dinner was on the beach and very nice.
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National Women’s 50-90 Hard Courts/ITF Grade A/USTA Cat I; La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club
The USTA Hard Court Women’s 50/60/70/80/90 National Championships began today at the La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club in La Jolla, California.
This year it’s also an ITF Grade A (for those who have an IPIN; if you don’t, go to itftennis.com/ipin to sign up. It’s $25 for 2019).
There weren’t many singles seeds in action today except in the 60s which had six; they all advanced without complication. The match of the day was that between NSWTA (National Senior Women’s Tennis Association) president Leslie Murveit and Sherri Bronson. They played a marathon here two years ago, won by Sherri; this year Leslie avenged that loss with a 63 26 63 win in just over two hours. I play Leslie tomorrow.
The 80s has a full 16 draw and is super strong…former world champion Dorothy Matthiessen is unseeded; Lorna Brooks, new to the 80s and flying under the radar, takes on third seeded Lola O’Sullivan who hits a hard ball; and Dorothy Wasser is the top seed for the first time in singles.
The round of 16 takes place in all divisions tomorrow followed by doubles. Consolation matches start at 8am.
There’s a player dinner on the beach in the early evening.
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Todo, Cass, Barker, Novack, & Weber Win Singles Gold at National Clay Courts
Palm Beach Gardens, Florida
Mika Todo of Japan won the 40 singles in Palm Beach Gardens on Saturday, beating top-seeded Lizl Kotz in the final in straight sets. However, Kotz won the gold in singles, combining with Tabatha Waddell to win the three team round robin.
Julie Cass put on a masterful display of attacking tennis to win the 50 singles, beating Jenny Klitch 64 62 in the final. The rallies were fantastic, but Cass controlled enough of them to finish victorious on a windy, warm day. Klitch and Andrea Rice though earned the doubles gold, beating Cass/Vesna McKenna to take the doubles gold. Alissa Finerman/Natalie Herreman won the doubles bronze and Rice beat McKenna for the singles bronze.
Diane Barker beat me 63 64 to win the 60 singles for the third straight year. It was a pretty good match, but she stayed on track with her aggressive play. Susan Wright beat Kathy Vick 61 61 to win the bronze. Ligia Bottinelli won her first gold ball, combining with Pat Purcell to win the 60 doubles over Susan Wright and me. They stayed aggressive throughout the match, winning 64 76. Kris McDonald/Kathy Zanon won the bronze in three sets, and were the last match finished for the second day in a row.
Toni Novack used her dropshot and guile well to beat Judy Dixon in a tight two-setter to win her FIRST singles gold ball. They have both been playing great tennis all year. Dixon didn’t go home though without some gold, winning every doubles match, with Vicky McEvoy convincingly. In the final they beat Donna Fales/Betty Wachob. Neither bronze ball match was played in the 70s; Brenda Winstead won the singles bronze by default and Molly Hahn/Sue Kimball took the doubles bronze (both playoffs involved Gwenda Ward, who was injured).
Inge Weber beat Dori DeVries to take the 80s gold; Dorothy Wasser beat Lola O’Sullivan for the singles bronze. Wasser/Weber won the 80s doubles round robin and Carol Wood/Burnett Herrick were finalists.
Photos (contributed by Kathy Foulk and others)
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National Clay Courts Friday: All Day on Court
Palm Beach Gardens, Florida
Friday, Day 4 at the National Clay Courts at the Palm Beach Gardens Tennis Center was semifinal day and for Susan Wright and I it meant playing from around 11:30 to just shy of 7pm (with a break between singles and doubles of about 90 minutes). Susan and I played a see-saw marathon match for about 3 1/2 hours…two matches came and went on the court next to us and the third match was started before we finished! I ended up winning on a hot, breezy day, 64 36 63, We beat #4 seeded Kris McDonald/Kathy Zanon 63 64 (though it was over two hours…Susan said it was the longest straight set doubles she’d ever played). Susan played great and definitely made more winners than anyone else on the court. We play Pat Purcell/Ligia Bottinelli in the final…they took out the #2 seeds, Betsy Savitt/Ann Jacobs 61 62. In singles I play Diane Barker who beat Kathy Vick 60 62.
In the 50s, Julie Cass beat Andrea Rice 61 75 and faces Jenny Klitch, who took out Vesna McKenna 61 61. Klitch/Rice beat Jami Patterson/Anna Zimmermann in straight sets and face Cass/McKenna in the final. They were leading Alissa Finerman/Natalie Herreman 32 when Finerman/Herreman had to retire with illness.
In the 70s Toni Novack stopped Gwenda Ward’s run (though no doubt Ward did a lot of running in the match…after drop shots). Novack won 63 61 and faces #2 seeded Judy Dixon a 60 62 winner over Brenda Winstead. In doubles Betty Wachob/Donna Fales beat Ann Loose/Ward in three sets and play Dixon/Vicky McEvoy in the final…they edged Molly Hahn/Sue Kimball 75 64 in the semis.
The 80s singles is between Inge Weber (who beat her doubles partner Dorothy Wasser) and Dori DeVries, who beat Lola O’Sullivan in a tough 2-setter 64 75. Wasser/Weber won the doubles round robin.
In the 40s, Lizl Kotz plays a player from Japan, Mika Todo. There were only three teams in doubles; the de facto final is tomorrow.
There are also lots of consolation matches, both for players who lost before the quarters and for players who lost in the quarters.
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National Clay Courts: Drama Free Thursday
Palm Beach Gardens, Florida
The 40-80 Clay Courts continued at the Palm Beach Gardens Tennis Center Thursday. It was warm, breezy and SUNNY…no clouds at all for the afternoon matches, which made serving a challenge at times.
In the 60s, the seeds all prevailed. I played Sally Smith from Charleston and won 62 62, but the second set in particular was much closer, just a couple of points and in the last game, just a couple of shots out and in by inches, in my favor. The sun was tough on one side for serving too. Diane Barker, Susan Wright and Kathy Vick all won in straight sets. I play Susan, my doubles partner, tomorrow and Diane plays Kathy.
There were only consolation doubles matches today in all but the 80s (which is a round robin).
In the 50s, the top four seeds all advanced to the semis in straight sets; Vesna McKenna will face Jenny Klitch while Julie Cass takes on Andrea Rice.
Gwenda Ward continued her fine play in the 70s, upsetting another seed, Sue Kimball, in a tightly contested three-setter. She faces Toni Novack who bested Betty Wachob; Wachob commented that Toni played great and had improved her play…and of course, that dropshot… Judy Dixon faces Brenda Winstead in the other semi.
In the 80s, Dori DeVries blew past Burnett Herrick and Inge Weber also won easily; Lola O’Sullivan won by default over Roz King (leg injury); the match of the day was between Carol Wood and Dorothy Wasser. Carol is from Maryland and Wasser from Palm Beach Gardens…which may have been the difference, because it was hot! Carol won the first set and had a match point or two according to O’Sullivan; once Wasser fended those off, Carol wilted, Wasser didn’t and she won in three sets; she takes on her doubles partner Weber in the semis while DeVries plays O’Sullivan.
In doubles, Herrick/Wood ousted DeVries/King…
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National Clay Courts Day 2: Never in Doubt
It was a long day on the courts in Palm Beach Gardens today at the USTA National Clay Courts/ITF Grade A.
I played Carolyn Franca…we knew going in both that Carolyn would win and Carolyn would lose today. I was the victor, rallying from 1-3 in the first to win 63 60. The result first posted online showed Franca winning which resulted in a number texts to one of the other Carolyn’s of “what happened” or “congratulations, great win” till it was sorted out. However, our match was still in the first set when Susan Wright had already finished, even though she played only one more game than us, winning 60 62. The tightest match played in the round of 16 was that between Kim Dean and Bunnie Allare, which went three sets. Allare prevailed. I play Sally Smith tomorrow at 12:30pm EDT.
Our doubles prompted the second part of the headline…we played Vicky and Mary and were winning comfortably, up 5-2, 15-0, serving when it poured for a short while. We resumed 30 or so minutes later and everything changed. We did serve out the set ok, but that was the last bit of comfort we had till the last game of the match…in between…well we went down 4-1, leveled at 4-4, then lost 64…then it was tight in the third till 3-3, when they pulled ahead 5-3. We won the next game at love, then it was my serve…and we went down 15-40. We had a crazy point and Vicky had a chance to put away an overhead (though it was about her 7th one in the point…she was pooped!). Mary missed her return off my serve which could have been outpaced by a balloon punched over the net…then we won the next nine points, and I hit an overhead to finish off the match. Susan held us in…and an “Alexa” tennis joke loosened it up. We play the semis on Friday afternoon.
In the 50s there were a couple of upsets of the #5 seeds; Kristen Kepler beat #5 Daniela Esswein, though since Kepler won the indoors last year it wasn’t a huge upset. Sandy Mills upended #5 Andrea Wohlschlager. Mills takes on #4 Vesna McKenna and Kepler faces #1 Julie Cass.
In the 70s, Gwenda Ward upset #3 Molly Hahn and Barbara Hubbard took out #5 Leslie Pixley.
Roz King withdrew from the women’s 80s with a leg injury allowing Lola O’Sullivan (who won her first round match) to advance to the semis.
In 70 doubles, Vicky McEvoy and Judy Dixon survived the decimation of the seeds; Top seeds Liane Bryson/Kathy Bennett fell to Ann Loose/Gwenda Ward (having an awfully good tournament!); Donna Fales/Betty Wachob upset #4 Goodman/Winstead; and Hahn/Kimball edged Hubbard/Watanabe.
Addendum: Bennett and Bryson retired mid-match vs Loose/Ward; Bennett fell and hurt her right hand/fingers, we wish her a speedy recovery.
The 80 doubles is a round robin…Dori Devries/King barely avoided an upset, edging Sheila Palmer/Ingrid Rehwinkle 64 in the third.
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USTA National Women’s Clay Courts: 40/50/60/70/80, DAY 1, Palm Beach Gardens Tennis Center, Florida
The women’s 60/70/80 National Clay Courts have a new location for the fourth time in the last five years and hopefully have found a more permanent home in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida! Trish Faulkner is the Tournament Director and Bill McDermott and the staff at the Palm Beach Gardens Tennis Center will be onsite at all times running the desk; Bill also sends out very informative emails.
In the 60s the match of the day was a first round between Leslie Murveit and Ann Young. It was a high quality, physical match which Ann won 75 64. There were six seeds playing today with only Diane Barker and Susan Wright having byes, and all advanced. I played Hiko Fritz Krakow from Colorado (a terrific veterans’ skier) and won 61 60. It was supposed to rain starting around noon…it’s 2:30 now and so far the tournament has dodged the rain, which is clearly all around us (no sun in sight).
Both seeds in action in the 50s advanced; the 70s are still playing.
There are 18 courts here; 2 “stadium” sized courts and 16 others in two lines of 8 courts. All are underground watered courts and are quite good. It does tend to be very windy here though. Today was pretty calm, not too hot due to the cloud cover but very humid.
The day after the tournament the clubhouse is set to be demolished and rebuilt as a much bigger edifice, 2-stories with more lounge room, better lockers etc.
All for now…Susan and I play doubles tomorrow afternoon and both play singles in the morning.
Thanks @shopluckyinlove for the nice tennis outfit!
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Smashey, Parson Siegel, Chandler, Karwasky, Orth, Kyvallos & Lutz Win Clay Singles Titles in Houston
April 4, 2019
Palm Beach Gardens, Florida
The 49th National Women’s Clay Court Championships took place at the Houston Racquet Club last week. This is the best women’s senior tournament and this year, was not only a USTA National (gold ball) Championship, but a Grade A ITF Championship which added to the character and prestige of the tournament.
Tournament directors Sue Bramlette and Cathy Lassiter along with Harriet the referee and Judy Job did their usual stellar job running the event.
Kaysie Smashey won the 35 singles and doubles (with Julie Thu), avenging her loss earlier in March to Heather Nobler when she beat her in three sets in the final.
Amanda Parson Siegel took out Patricia Zerdan in the semis in a grueling 75 76 encounter before she beat #2 seed Julie Cass 62 60 to win the 45s title. Zerdan took out top-seeded Nancy Hilliard in the quarters. Jenny Klitch edged Zerdan for bronze.
Cass and Tracie Currie, top seeded, won the 45 doubles with a straight set win over Tammy Morris/Jill Toney, the 2nd seeds.
Fran Chandler won the 55 singles and did it the hard way, beating #2 seed Shelly Works in three sets before taking out top seed and defending champion Vicki Buholz in the final in straights. Works took the bronze. Buholz/Gayle Prejean won the doubles with an emphatic win over top seeded and defending champions Mary Dailey/Erika Smith.
