Yesterday, Friday, was a washout, though it wasn’t super windy or particularly cold. Today was a sunny, cool and very windy day with gusts up to 40 mph (maybe more, I’m guessing a bit). Tables and chairs blew over but no players. At times the gusts were so strong my racquet was moving around on its own while I was waiting to return serve. Fortunately, the courts at BallenIsles are hydro courts (with underground watering); if not, the clay would also have blown off the courts and the courts would have dried out and continuous all-day play wouldn’t have been possible.

I played two singles matches. First I played Pat Hirsch from Ohio, and indoor player. She also tops out at just over five feet tall and probably 105 pounds but she kept her feet on the ground while we played. I won 60 60, and the wind probably helped me some as I was much more used to it. Then I played Becky Timmis from Georgia who was the #3 seed. She won a good match in the quarter against Meg Barclay, rebounding from a 52 second set deficit, and holding off three set points to win 64 75. I play Kathy Foulk, who had a tough match with the improving Birgitte Hostrop from Denmark, winning 63 64. She then beat Debbie Antoine 61 61 to reach the final (and won a doubles match later with Frances O’Sullivan to reach the doubles final).

In the 40s, Kim Jones beat #2 seed Daniela Esswein 62 62 but the match took nearly 2 hours. She plays Paula Myslivecek in the final tomorrow. Myslivecek and Christina Sirianni edged Ligia Bottinelli/Stacey Williams 10-8 in the match tiebreak to reach the doubles final against Cheryl Keller/Susan Kirby in the 40s.

In the 50s, Erin Boynton reached the final the hard way, dropping the first set of both her matches before rebounding to win in three. First she upset #2 seed Julie Farina 16 62 62. Then, playing Rene Tharpe (who ousted #4 seeded Terri Gaskill) she went down 60 41…had Tharpe right where she wanted her apparently, because she reeled off five straight games. Tharpe got a bit too tentative and Erin did a great job of combining patience and aggressiveness in the wind to take the set which featured many lengthy games. Tharpe took a 3/1 lead in the third…and again Erin then took five games in a row, to reach the final against Shelly Works. Works beat Mariana Hollman, her doubles partner 64 64 in the same time it took Erin to beat Tharpe in three sets.

The top four seeds in the 50s reached the doubles semis with Keller/Kirby the only ones to drop a set (to Bottinelli/Williams, who again lost a match tiebreak).

In the 70s, Brenda Carter/Betty Wachob are in the singles and doubles finals (against Lee Delfausse/Sue Kimball).

In the 80s, Judy Smith scored a big upset, beating Burnett Herrick 64 76 (3) and plays Canada’s Inge Weber in the final. Weber beat Carol Wood. In doubles, Libby Keenan/Mimi Donegan beat Wood/Muffie Grieve and play Herrick/Smith in the final.

Weather tomorrow is supposed to be very cold (low 40s at match time) but not so windy.