A Senior Tennis (USA and International) & Travel website by Carolyn Nichols
NEW DATES: September 20-26, 2021 for the Women’s 35-90 Clay Courts at the Houston Racquet Club
Sue Bramlette TD off the Houston Women’s Clay Court Championships reported today that the USTA has confirmed the dates of September 20-26 for the National Women’s Clay Courts in Houston.
The dates changed due to the delay in the vaccine distribution, making the original mid-April too risky for the players and club.
From the ITF website: https://www.itftennis.com/en/news-and-media/articles/2020-itf-seniors-world-championships-dates-locations-information/
2020 ITF Seniors (50-55-60) World Team & Individual Championships
*POSTPONED*
Updated April 23, 2020: Postponed till 2021, dates TBA
Location
Team Championships: Boca Raton, Florida, USA
Individual Championships: Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA
Dates
As of 17 March 2020, the ITF Seniors (50-55-60) World Team & Individual Championships is postponed as a precautionary measure linked to the potential impact of the COVID-19 virus on the event.
Every effort will be made by the host organisers, USTA and ITF to reschedule the event for a later date in 2020 provided a safe, viable date can be identified. Further updates relating to this will follow in due course.
Venues
Team Championships: Boca Raton, Florida, USA
Individual Championships: Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA
Fact Sheet
The fact sheet for both the Team & Individual Championships are available below should they be helpful to you in contacting hotels in the City. They will remain until the end of March for this purpose.
| Maria Esther Bueno Cup Women's 50 | Fred Perry Cup Men's 50 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andrea Rice | Bethesda | MD | Art Hernandez | Huntington Beach | CA |
| Jenny Klitch | Palm Beach Gardens (captain) | FL | Dana Gill | San Jose | CA |
| Julie Cass | Austin | TX | Eoin Collins | Houston | TX |
| Vesna McKenna | Hollywood | FL | Oren Motevassel (Captain) | Boynton Beach | FL |
| Maureen Connolly Cup Women's 55 | Austria Cup Men's 55 | ||||
| Fran Chandler | Jackson | TN | Bill Moss (captain) | Malibu | CA |
| Mary Dailey | Delray Beach | FL | Eric Luxembourg | Sarasota | FL |
| Shelly Works (captain) | San Antonio | TX | Leo Young | Eagle | ID |
| Vicki Buholz | Dallas | TX | Wilie Alumbaugh | Leawood | KS |
| Alice Marble Cup Women's 60 | Von Cramm Cup Men's 60 | ||||
| Robin Harris | San Diego | CA | Daniel Waldman | Washington | DC |
| Pat Purcell | St. Louis | MO | Mark Vines | Naples | FL |
| Shannon Gordon-Carney | St. Louis | Mo | Mike Fedderly | Palm Desert | CA |
| Susan Wright | Orlando | FL | Mike Tammen (captain) | Portland | OR |
From USTA.com: (note that Robin Harris has replaced Diane Barker on the Women’s 60s team; Barker is injured.)
From itftennis.com:
2020 ITF Seniors (50-55-60) World Team & Individual Championships
Location
Team Championships: Boca Raton, Florida, USA
Individual Championships: Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA
Dates
Team Championships: Sunday 26 April to Friday 1 May 2020. If there is inclement weather, matches may be played on Saturday 2 May
Individual Championships – Saturday 2 May to Saturday 9 May
Venues
Team Championships: Boca Raton, Florida, USA
Individual Championships: Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA
Fact Sheet
The fact sheet for both the Team & Individual Championships are now available. Please note that the listed venues for the individual world championships may change.
Bordeaux, France
It was another lovely day in Bordeaux. Sue Bartlett and I were rescheduled to the 6th match after 8:30 (not before 2pm)…we got on around 5pm. We played two Spaniards, Encarnacion Gomiz and Carmen Lang and won 60 60, (and there were 3 no-ad games we played). We played on Court 7, which is basically concrete with a bit of red clay on top, painted lines, dangerously slippery.
Sue and I play the singles final tomorrow 4th match after 9am, not before 1:30pm but on Court 1, the first time either of us has played a match on the main bank of courts. It’s unlikely I’ll see much if anything of Bordeaux this trip but I’ve seen a lot of Villa Primrose, which is a lovely old club.
Don’t forget to sweep the court after play!
Ross Persons finds himself in three finals; he won the mixed 55 with Luisa Gouveia of Portugal; and he’s in the 60 men’s final vs Belgian Pierre Godfroid and the men’s doubles final with Fritz from the Netherlands.
Darren Price from USA and Andrew Moraghan GBR are into the QF of the men’s 45 doubles, beating two Brits to reach the semis.
And that’s a wrap on today’s action. Final tomorrow then on to the next stop Sunday morning.
Previous posts:
Bordeaux Thursday; Singles Success; Slippery Clay!
June 24th is the deadline for this new Indoor Cat III which will feature some fast 4 and match tiebreak formats. It will take place in July in Denver.
Dates, Locations of 2020 World Championships
The ITF Seniors Committee are very pleased to communicate the following dates and venues for the 2020 World Team & Individual Championships.
2020 Young-Seniors World Championships (35/40/45)
Location: Umag, Croatia
Team Event: Sunday 13 September up to Saturday 19 September 2020
Individual Event: Saturday 19 September to Saturday 26 September 2020
2020 Seniors World Championships (50/55/60) April 23 update: postponed to 2021
Location: Boca Raton & Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA
Team Event (Boca Raton) – Sunday 26 April up to Saturday 2 May 2020
Individual Event (Palm Beach Gardens) – Saturday 2 May to Saturday 9 May 2020
2020 Super-Seniors World Championships (65/70/75/80/85)
Location: Mallorca, Spain
Team Event: Sunday 11 October up to Saturday 17 October 2020
Individual Event: Saturday 17 October to Saturday 24 October 2020
Read more at https://www.itftennis.com/news/302706.aspx#8zoTXWLXAlHrkmWP.99
Les Grandes Dames Palm Beach Gardens Cat II/ITF Grade I Finished with a Blast of Air
Fort Lauderdale, FL
I’ll start today’s blog by wishing my dad a happy 94th birthday. He’s a tennis player and when I called to wish him a happy birthday he naturally asked how the tournament went….so this is how it went.
It was WINDY today…the Palm Beach Gardens Tennis Center is a wonderful public facility but doesn’t have a lot of breaks from the wind. It rained for several hours starting around 7am but stopped about 10…and the wind continued.
I played Diane Barker. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve lost to her over the past 25 or so years and I lost again today but it was a good and long match, 64 76 (3). The first three games of the second set took about 45 minutes! On one point I hit (attempted to hit) a crosscourt forehand and saw the ball change directions 90 degrees in the air and land on the line…and bounce over the side fence! (Diane didn’t win that point). On another, I set up to hit a forehand and I think whiffed when the wind pulled the ball an entirely different direction. Despite these challenges, we had long points and overall the match was of good quality. In the tiebreak Diane tightened up her game and didn’t make an error…too good. (Thanks Brad Sprayberry for the photo below.)
The 3/4 playoff between Kathy Vick and Wendy McColskey was even longer than ours, and was at 5-5 in the third when we finished. McColskey won 75 57 75. Kathy is definitely getting her court time this week, this was her second singles three-setter and she’s had two three-set doubles matches too.
Bunny Allare won the 5-8 playoff group with a 63 76 (8) win over Frances O’Sullivan.
Suzanne Siegler finished 9th.
In doubles, Ligia Bottinelli and Abi Neuthaler beat Ann Jacobs/Betsy Savitt to claim the title, 76 75. Foulk/Allare beat Vick/Kim Jones to place third.
And that’s a wrap on the first tournament of the year. The odd divisions will be played in February in Fort Lauderdale and the evens will reconvene in Naples at the end of February.
Kraujina, Klitch, Novack, Weber Win Singles Titles Saturday
Kristin Kraujina of Florida won the 30 singles on a sunny, breezy Saturday. Kraujina lives in a town called Sunny Isles Beach, which sounds awfully pleasant! She won the four player round robin without dropping a set.
Jenny Klitch of Florida dominated the 50 singles, dropping only two games (routing her opponents en route to the title one could say). She beat Yvette Kruger who is a very good tennis player, 60 61, playing steady, aggressive and smart tennis. Alice Stubbs of NC placed third, winning a tough three-setter over Canadian Adrienne Simmons.
Toni Novack, also currently residing in Florida (there’s a theme here), upset top seeded Molly Hahn of MA 64 62, hitting her usual (for her) magical dropshots to take the 70s title. Susan Kimball placed third over Brenda Winstead.
Inge Weber, of Canada (but spending the winter in, you guessed it, Florida) beat Dorothy Wasser, her doubles partner 75 62 to take the 80s crown. Burnett Herrick took third over Lucille Kyvallos.
The 60s had a larger draw so only the semis were played today. I beat a tired Kathy Vick 61 62 and in the upset of the day, Wendy McColskey won a set from Diane Barker. Then Diane, according to Wendy, changed her strategy, which was a very effective adjustment since Diane won the next two sets 61 61. Their match lasted only a few minutes longer than our match.
Klitch and Andi Piski won the 40 doubles over Stacey Williams/Mariana Hollman 61 62 in an entertaining match.
Susan Harris/Patricia Randolph from Alabama won the 50 doubles, beating Williams/Hollman in a marathon match 76 (5) in the third!
Ellen Goodman/Winstead upset Hahn/Kimball in the 70 doubles final, 64 67 64. Hahn/Kimball rallied from 15 down in the second to force a deciding set, but Goodman/Winstead played awfully well to get the win. It was really windy in the afternoon (I saw a tent blow over) which affected the 70s doubles match a lot but overall the quality was very good.
Wasser/Weber won the 80s round robin doubles over Carol Wood/Herrick in three sets.
In semifinal action, the 60s doubles semis were both decided by a third set. Ann Jacobs/Betsy Savitt took out Kathy Vick/Kim Jones in three sets while Ligia Bottinelli/Abbi Neuthaler beat Kathy Foulk/Bunny Allare 61 in the third.
USA Women’s 50 Advance to Final; USA Women’s 55, Men’s 55 Fall in Semis
The USA Women’s 50 had a terrific win versus France today. Jenny Klitch got the team off to a positive start with a 75 60 win at #2 singles (against a player to whom she’d lost in 2014). That set the stage for a big battle at #1 singles with Debbie Spence Nasim playing for the USA. Debbie rallied from 15-40 down at 6-5 in the first set to take the opening set. An hour or more later, her opponent took the tiebreaker to level the match. The third set was another long battle, finally won by Nasim 75. Debbie had been sick and her breathing at times was labored but she fought so hard, hit great backhands and propelled the USA team into the final with her win. They play home team Germany in the final.
The USA women’s 55 team fell to Germany in the semis, with Vicki Buholz at #1 and Tracy Houk at #1 losing very tough and competitive matches.
The USA men’s 55 fell 2/1 to Germany, with Bill Moss picking up a win at #2 but then losing the #1 singles and the doubles points in straight sets.
The USA men’s 50 team fell 2/1 to defending champion Italy in the 5-8 playoff with Eoin Collins supplying the sole point for the USA team.
The USA Men’s 60s, Von Cramm Cup, are still playing, tied at 1 match apiece and having lost the opening set of the deciding doubles.
Please click on the following links to view the Draws and Results:
2018 ITF Seniors Teams Fred Perry Cup (M50)
2018 ITF Seniors Teams Maria Esther Bueno Cup (W50)
2018 ITF Seniors Teams Austria Cup (M55)
2018 ITF Seniors Teams Maureen Connolly Cup (W55)
2018 ITF Seniors Von Cramm Cup (M60)
2018 ITF Seniors Alice Marble Cup (W60)
Draws for the individual world championships are here.
Practice Day & Hunting for Ice
I practiced today again with Nora Blom and Annelies Simons from Netherlands. We had a chance to practice with the Prince balls they use here (not for sale in the US); but the altitude of 4000+ feet has more of an impact on play than the balls I think. We had a nearly two hour practice and it was fun.
The lines here are again different from those in Germany, Spain or France. The German lines were thicker, smoother and didn’t meet at the corners, there was a gap. The Spanish and French lines were painted on the courts.
After practice I was able to get ice from my hotel for my shoulder, but still wanted some ice for my small cooler. I looked all over the Coop and didn’t see any. I finally asked and was told it was by the butcher. I still didn’t see any but asked the butcher and it turns out they sell ice by the kilo (about $2 a pound). Then they wrap it up and seal it. I guess there’s not a lot of demand for ice here.
I relaxed in the afternoon. Tomorrow I’m hitting early with Nora, and will watch my potential opponents play in the afternoon, weather permitting. The weather has been nice but there have been frequent afternoon thunderstorms.
Nora and Annelies are below…note the Dutch flag in the background between them (it wasn’t an accident).
Flowers are at most windows and are beautiful. August 1 was Swiss national day and there are still a number of Swiss flags around town.
Düsseldorf Shopping Expedition
Today Jenny Cerff and I had a plan (well I had a plan) to go to Düsseldorf, walk the full length of the Konigsallee and then go to the Rhine and walk along it and possibly visit a castle. We made it to Konigsallee and a few streets around it and not much further. We did however cross the Rhein in the car several times due to missing turns! Fortunately it’s not a toll road.
It was another lovely day, and there were again hoards of people out shopping and watching World Cup soccer.
We arrived about 11am in Düsseldorf and left after 9pm when shops were closing. Jenny is a shrewd bargain hunter and found some nice work and tennis clothes and I got a dress. We actually had to talk one dress (for Jenny) off of a mannequin since it was her size and the last one in the store. Below are the before and after photos of the mannequin. The mannequin’s arms had to be removed to remove the dress. Many years ago my Cup teammates and I attempted to undress a mannequin in a German sporting goods store to buy the clothing it was wearing. It was a hilarious moment in a “you had to be there” way (we removed a leg but not the shorts, finally a store employee helped us out). This time it was a smoother process…
We found a huge sports store, the Decathalon. It had everything from girls ballet leotards to bowls to camping gear to tennis clothes under one roof.
It was a fun day and we do plan to make it to the Rhein tomorrow after a morning tennis practice.
Thursday began with Thunder (donner) and lightning (blitzen) followed by scattered showers The courts got wet at the club but many people worked hard to dry them off, mostly by dragging mats around to get rid of puddles. No fancy clay court dryers here!
The 9am consolation matches were farmed out to other clubs and main draw 10:40 matches started by 10:30. Sabine and I got on at 11:15 for our 10:30 match (the one that was scheduled for 1:30, then 6pm then 10:30!
I won 62 60, but the first set was closer than that, many back and forth long games. Our match lasted about 75 minutes; the other semi between Gundi Weiland and Lyn Mortimer went over 3 hours. I saw some of the first set and both players were playing well, long rallies and deep slices. Lyn prevailed 57 64 62. We play tomorrow, presumably at 10:30.
Jenny Cerff won the consolation singles and is playing mixed now at 6pm. There’s a player dinner later.
Draws and Results (click on order of play first).
Mittwoch Victory in Essen
Today, Wednesday (Mittwoch in German), I played my quarterfinal match against Sabine Robertz, a German player who lives about an hour from the tournament site. She is a quick, steady player, but I played well and beat her 60 61. We played on Center Court again and once again the stands were empty! I play next the winner of Sabine Schmitz, the #2 seed (and tournament director) or Annelies Simons from the Netherlands. They started late, after 6pm, since Annelies drives after work from the Netherlands to play). Update: Now the top half of the draw (with a local club team member) is scheduled for 10:30 am and the bottom half at 6pm with the final at 10:30 am! Originally both were scheduled for 1:30.
The top seed in my division, Australian Lyn Mortimer, took on Jutta Boekmann, who took out Jenny Cerff yesterday. Lyn prevailed in three sets, winning the third set decisively 61 after splitting two tight sets earlier. And speaking of Jenny, she won her consolation match today handily to put her in the consolation final tomorrow. Fortunately Jenny checked the draw one last time before going to sleep. She was surprised to find out she played at 9am! Not as surprised though as her opponent who didn’t have internet access and showed up at 11.
The match of the day was that between Nora Blom and Heidi Eisterlehner. Heidi won the first set; Nora attacked the net in the second successfully and continued her success in the third, going up 5-2 before Heidi changed tactics and drove the ball more, keeping Nora back. Nora had one match point at 65 before Heidi won the match 76 (5) in the third (62 36 76). It was a nice match between two outstanding players.
After I finished my noon match, Jenny and I did the rounds…of grocery stores. We stopped first at Edeka to get ice (the Edeka was the only store which carried ice of the three we visited today) and chocolates (Ritter Sport, 59 cents this week!); Aldi (apples), and Netto (owned by Edeka) (feldsalat, what we call Mache, a type of lettuce). We also learned many new words, to go with our new favorite saying Gute Fahrt (Bon Voyage or Good Trip).
This is a photo of the bottle recycling machine. Leergut hier means “empties here”, and of Jenny with our ice, a rare commodity here.
At the Aldi, we saw this sign that said Kundenparkplatz and parkdauer: customer parking and parking time (1 stn = 1 hour) respectively. (Since there was a photo of a car being towed, we wanted to know what the sign said.) In the stores, the chocolate and sweets aisles are long and fully stocked…similar to the chips aisles in an American store.
The last word of the day is ankunftszeit which means arrival time; it was on this placard which was in the rental car. We figured out that it was something to put o the dashboard showing what time we arrived in the parking lot.
Draws are here (go to order of play, then click on draws).
After a day off , Jenny Cerff and I hit the practice court today for a final tune-up before the tournament. We had a solid practice. It was another warm sunny day, marred only by the racket of a grass mower cutting several feet of growth off the levee behind the courts. I thought they were grinding wood, it was so loud! Then music began over the PA system. It was a good challenge to our concentration.
I found out a bit about my opponent today. She’s a marathon runner, very fast and left handed, it’s a bit of a tricky opener. Jenny plays a woman who is on the German Cup team this year, also a challenge.
After tennis, as usual we bought ice from the Edeka, then hit Tennis Point (so I could get my racquet strung), and Penny Market.
The recycling of bottles here is interesting. There’s a deposit of 15-25 Euro cents on most cans and bottles. At most stores there’s a machine where customers can insert bottles they purchased at that chain and get a refund to use at the store. It’s fast and easy.
We returned to the club and they have put flags up from many countries including South Africa, which Jenny appreciated. There’s no USA 🇺🇸 flag though, so I stood in front of the German Open sign instead.
Top 65s players Nora Blom and Heidi Eisterlehner were in action on the 2 center courts today. Nora is shown below (iPhone photo). 
German words of the day:
Platz = Court
Trinke = drink
Eis = ice cream
Sundaze or The Calm Before the Tournament
It was a mellow sunny Sunday in Essen today. The calm before the tournament.
Germany: Practicing on the Red Clay
Jenny Cerff and I had a good practice this morning at the ETUF club. The weather has been quite nice, with highs in the low 80s and lows in the upper 50s-low 60s, and a slight breezes, perfect for tennis. Sabine, the TD took a few photos of us from the club balcony overlooking the courts.
The draws are out and I play a good German p
