TENNIS
E-News
*A South Carolina-registered service mark
Saturday, Sept. 10, 2011 Vol. X, No. 124 Winner of the South Carolina Media of the Year Award Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
Revised TV Schedule for USOpen Semifinals and Finals
11 am-Noon
Breakfast at the Open
Tennis Channel
Noon-6pm
Men's Singles Semifinals CBS
8 pm-10 pm
Women's Singles Semifinal CBS
10 pm-12 am Women's Singles Semifinal
Tennis Channel
11 pm-12 am US Open Tonight
Tennis Channel
Sun. 9/11
12 am-1 pm US Open Daily Match
Encores Tennis Channel
1 pm-3 pm
Women's Doubles Final
ESPN2
4 pm-7 pm
Women's Singles Final
CBS
10 pm-12 am SportsCenter at the US
Open ESPN2
12 am-1 am US Open Tonight
Tennis Channel
Mon. 9/12
1 pm-3 pm
Women's Doubles Final
Tennis Channel
4 pm-7 pm
Men's Singles Final
CBS
10 pm-12 am Mixed Doubles Final
Tennis Channel
+++++++++++
Florence for Adults, Seniors
Adult 9.0 PD, 7.0 Long Cove Go 2-0 on Opening Day of South Carolina State Mixed Doubles Championships
FLORENCE SC (TENNIS E-News) -- Hilton Head Island and Coastal Carolina Adult and Senior 9.0 teams went four for four in opening rounds of the USTA League South Carolina State Mixed Championships today. Adult and Senior 7.0s followed suit, but matters didn't go quite so well in the afternoon.
Eight HHI and seven CCTA teams began play early today and will compete through Monday finals. The Super Senior Mixed will play State Championships Oct. 14-16 in Aiken. The Adults and Seniors are initiating -- for state championships -- the new $4 million Dr. Eddie Floyd Florence Tennis Center and its 24 hard and six clay courts that officially opened last month.
Leading the HHI and CCTA early successes was the Adult 9.0 Palmetto Dunes TC, captained by Julie Child, that swept Columbia 3-0 in the opening match, then defeated PeeDee 2-1. The Adult 9.0 CCTA TLC Rebels won 2-1 over PeeDee's TImrod to keep the record perfect for the day. The HHI Adult 7.0 Long Cove A2s, captained by Ann Middleton, added two team wins for the opening rounds.
Come back for HHI and CCTA team results updates via TennisLink throughout the weekend.
Here is the schedule posted on TennisLink for HHI and CCTA teams. NOTE: Schedules sometimes change. Stay in touch with team captain.
(Key to abbreviations: AATL = Aiken Area; CCTA = Bluffton to Beaufort area;
CTL =
Saturday the 10th
8 a.m. -- A6.0 -- CCTA/
8 a.m. -- A6.0 -- HHI/
8 a.m. -- A9.0 -- HHI/
8 a.m. -- S9.0 -- HHI/
9:30 a.m. -- A7.0 -- CCTA/
9:30 a.m. -- A7.0 -- HHI/
9:30 a.m. -- A8.0 -- HHI/
9:30 a.m. -- A9.0 -- CCTA/
9:30 a.m. -- S6.0 -- CCTA/
11 a.m. -- S7.0 -- CCTA/
11 a.m. -- S7.0 -- HHI/
11 a.m. -- S8.0 -- CCTA/
12:30 p.m.
12:30 p.m.
12:30 p.m.
12:30 p.m. -- A10.0 -- HHI/
2 p.m.
2 p.m.
2 p.m.
2 p.m.
3:30 p.m. -- A8.0 -- CCTA/
3:30 p.m. -- S8.0 -- HHI/
4:30 p.m.
4:30 p.m.
Sunday the 11th
8 a.m.
8 a.m.
8 a.m.
8 a.m.
8 a.m.
9:30 a.m.
9:30 a.m.
9:30 a.m.
9:30 a.m.
9:30 a.m.
11 a.m.
11 a.m.
12:30 p.m.
12:30 p.m.
12:30 p.m.
12:30 p.m.
12:30 p.m.
2 p.m.
2 p.m.
2 p.m.
2 p.m.
3:30 p.m.
3:30 p.m.
4:30 p.m.
USTA League South Carolina State Mixed Doubles Championship lineup
Adult Mixed Doubles -- Hilton Head Island
| Rating | Team Name | Captain | Results at States |
|
6.0 |
SC Yacht Club |
Brittany Tarleton |
16 teams in 4 groups |
| 7.0 | Long Cove A2s | Anne Middleton | 16 teams in 4 groups |
| 8.0 | SCYC Brew Crew | Linda Richards | 16 teams in 4 groups |
| 9.0 |
Palmetto Dunes TC |
Julie Child | 12 teams in 3 groups |
| 10.0 | Indigo Run | Pat Child | 3 teams |
Senior Mixed Doubles -- Hilton Head Island
| Rating | Team Name | Captain | Results at States |
| 7.0 | PDTC Mixed Up Swingers | Emmett Diggs | 12 teams in 3 groups |
| 8.0 |
PD Shooters |
Jackie Reynecke | 12 teams in 3 groups |
| 9.0 | HHI Niners | Lori Bergmann | 10 teams in 2 groups |
Adult Mixed Doubles -- Coastal Carolina
| Rating | Team Name | Captain | Results at States |
| 6.0 | Habersham Hornets | Louis Csencsits |
|
| 7.0 | BYSC Shirts and Skins | Laura Achurch | |
| 8.0 |
BYSC Terminetters |
Leigh Ann Pingree | |
| 9.0 | TLC Rebels | Joanna Cahi | |
Senior Mixed Doubles -- Coastal Carolina
| Rating | Team Name | Captain | Results at States |
| 6.0 | Sun City Grand Slammers | Frank Frankel |
|
| 7.0 | Sun City Servivors | Donna Lucas |
|
| 8.0 | Brays Island Major Hits | Scott Christensen | 12 teams in 3 groups |
+++++++++++
Several Area Semifinalists
Whitlow Wins Singles, Arr/Chryst Team Takes Doubles at Topspin
HILTON HEAD ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News) -- Hilton Head Islanders Keith Whitlow and Tim Arr and Norm Chryst of Bluffton captured championships at the Topspin Annual Labor Day Classic at the Topspin Racquet & Swim Club in Lexington.
Whitlow won all three of his matches in the Men's 65 Singles round robin. Arr and Chryst teamed to won the 60 Doubles round robin, with the key match a 7-6 (3), 7-6(3) win over Whitlow and Eddie Goodson of HHI.
In Men's 60 Singles, Goodson and Chryst were semifinalists. Dave Kimball of Bluffton was a semifinalist in the Men's 70 Singles.
Tim and Linda Arr lost in the
final (and only) match of Mixed 55 Doubles.
Georgia and South Carolina Events
HHI Juniors Do Well in Summer-End Area Tournaments
HILTON
HEAD ISLAND SC (TENNIS E-News) -- Hilton Head Island juniors Will Danzell and
Justin Boulais won the Boys' 12 doubles championship in the Papa John's
Georgialina Junior Tennis Classic, a Georgia Level 3 and Southern Level 3
tournament in Augusta.
Danzell placed third in Boys' 12s singles and Boulais, a
9-year-old, was a semifinalist in the 12s singles. Together, they defeated Jack
Sequerin of Charleston and Jeremy Kuan of Johns Creek GA 8-4 in the final.
Another Islander,
Matthew Oliver, finished in fourth place in Boys' 12s singles.
HHI's
Isabelle Boulais, an 11-year-old, was quarterfinalist in Girls' 14s singles and
lost in the finals of the back draw. She and Charlotte Deiss of Mathews NC were
finalist in the 14s doubles.
Meanwhile in the Colonial Family Practice USTA Regional Tournament Segment
in Sumter, HHIslander
Samantha Droop earned a semi-finalist spot in Girls' 18s singles and doubles.
All the above juniors train with
Hy Tennis and KidZone Tennis of Hilton Head Island.
+++++++++++
HHI Trainee Beats #7
Hayley Carter Loses in Second Round at USOpen Junior Championships
In Effect for 2013
The USTA League Restructuring -- Southern "Foot" Anticipated Next
(TENNIS E-News) -- The USTA National meetings during USOpen time deal with all aspects of the tennis game -- USOpen to local kids programs -- and this year the topic of USTA League restructuring is a major part of the discussions.
The 2013 age restructuring format has been established for National championships (see chart below). Now, the restructuring will proceed down the "chain of command" to section, district and area levels. In two weeks, Southern will gather reps from its nine states (including South Carolina) to decide on the formats for section-level competition. That will deal with issues such as continuing straight rating-level divisions (3.0, 3.5, 4.0, etc.) or going to combo as National has done (6.0, 7.0, 8.0, etc.).
Also on the Southern docket will be whether and how to continue upper-age divisions now set at Senior 50 and Super Senior 60, 70, 75. Nationals will go to "Adult" 40 and 55 in 2013 with older divisions listed only as "TBD" -- to be determined. Will Southern continue 70s play? Will it go to a 65s division and drop the 70s? Stay tuned.
Questions hanging in midair for the full 2013 restructuring include:
-- If Adult and Senior 50s now play Spring leagues, will Adult 18s and 40s only be played in the Spring?
-- Might the overall schedule allow for more discretion to districts (i.e., states in Southern) to reconfigure timing of seasons, like possibly having Adult 18s, 40s and 70s in the Spring and 55s and 75s in the Fall?
Directly related but an entirely different ball of wax is the ratings and appeals formats, especially in how those are applied to upper age divisions. Most recently, all 70s league results have been legislated out of the compilation of year-end ratings.
Stay tuned. Stay tuned. Stay tuned.
Once Southern and its league coordinators set that level of formats and rules, the restructuring will drop down to the District (state) level. South Carolina league officials will be conferencing from now until its Annual Meeting Weekend Dec. 9-11 at Wild Dunes, Isle of Palms. Final step then would go to the area/local leagues and Community Tennis Associations (TAHHI, CCTA) that administer them.
Stay tuned. Stay tuned. Stay tuned.
The Q&A on the Restructuring can be found by
scrolling down to and selecting the E-News issue of 8/28/11.
WELCOME TO USTA LEAGUE TENNIS 2013
|
DIVISIONS |
FORMAT |
NTRP LEVELS |
NATIONAL PROGRAM |
|
Adult 18 and Over |
2 singles; 3 doubles |
3.0,3.5,4.0,4.5 |
YES |
|
|
1 singles; 2 doubles |
2.5 & 5.0 |
YES |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Adult 40 and Over |
2 singles; 3 doubles |
3.0,3.5,4.0,4.5 |
YES |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Adult 55 and Over |
3 doubles |
6.0,7.0,8.0,9.0 |
YES |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Adult 70 and Over |
3 doubles |
6.0,7.0,8.0 |
TBD |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Mixed 18 and Over |
3 doubles |
2.5,6.0,7.0,8.0,9.0,10.0 |
YES |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Mixed 40 and Over |
3 doubles |
6.0,7.0,8.0,9.0 |
TBD |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Mixed 55 and Over |
3 doubles |
6.0,7.0,8.0 |
TBD |
YOUR COMMENTS: Direct to USTA SC State League Coordinator Mary Goins at mggoins@charter.net. Also, please cc: banana@hargray.com.
+++++++++++
Lynn Welch of HHI
Working Big Matches, Veteran US Open Umpire
Avoids Spotlight
By Nick McCarvel
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
NEW YORK NY (from
www.usopen.org) -- Lynn Welch is by no means
famous. She knows this, and likes it that way. She is slightly embarrased when
people call her name out on the grounds of tournaments, asking to take a picture
with her or have her sign an autograph. She obliges when away from the courts,
but when she is nearby, she politely declines.
But the notoriety -- however big or small -- has been
dutifully earned. For the past 18 years, Welch, a Maine native who lives on
Hilton Head Island SC, has worked the professional tennis circuit as a chair
umpire, earning Gold Badge status, the highest of ratings for a working
professional in her field.
I meet Lynn on Day 10 of the Open, while rain spits steadily
outside of Louis Armstrong Stadium. She is underneath in a tucked-away corner,
with a group of umpires, some of whom are playing cards to pass time. "I'll be
in white pants and a navy blue sweater," she told me earlier on the phone. "OK,"
I think. "But so will everyone else you're around."
I don't need to know what Welch is
wearing because I've seen her before, of course, working tour matches, including
the US Open final last year between Kim Clijsters and Vera Zvonareva. She has
worked over 10 Grand Slam finals and various other semifinals, oftentimes the
choice because of her experience, especially when no American player has reached
that match (just another precaution for neutrality).
Welch is known by fans at home, as well as those at
tournaments. Her voice has been a steady force -- literally -- in the chair for
nearly 20 years, and she's been under contract with the WTA for the last three
years since earning her Gold Badge in 2003.
"My friends will say that when they're in their kitchen
they'll hear me in the living room and know that I'm on -- they'll hear me
before they see me," Welch says, laughing a little. "Someone told me I should go
into doing voice-over work... for some reason a lot of people will say they love
my voice in the chair. They say they enjoy the clarity of it."
I enjoy it, too, and half expected Welch to great me by
saying "Deuce" or "Advantage, Roddick." But she doesn't, instead saying hello
with a warm smile and dutifully setting out to determine a spot where we can go
and talk.
We walk through the underbelly of Louis Armstrong Stadium and
make our way to an office in Grandstand, where Welch greets familiar faces along
the way. She begins telling me about working her way up from being a linesperson
and Bronze and Silver Badge umpire to eventually sitting where she is today.
I can't help but wonder about crazy moments on court, asking
her what she's seen and experienced over the last two decades.
In 2003, Welch worked a third-round
US Open match between Ai Sugiyama and Francesca Schiavone that was delayed over
four days. On the fourth day, the players had only been on court for a few
minutes when Welch felt a ball hit her in the side of the head -- an errant
throw by a ball person.
"I went to the microphone to say the score and thwop! It hit
me in the side of the head and knocked my glasses to the ground off the chair,"
Welch recalls. "I realized I was bleeding and noticed that the players hadn't
seen what happened. I had to yell out for them to wait for me, "Wait!"
"Ai Sugiyama walked over and made me an ice pack ... but all
I could think was it was Day Four of this match and I was another delay." Welch
was able to start up again, but the rain started up again itself, stopping the
match 10 minutes later.
If blood didn't stop Welch, neither would a broken ankle on
another occasion, she says. That happened at Amelia Island FL.
"I got down to check a ball mark and just missed one of the
rungs of the ladder," she recalls. "The first thing I thought was, 'I broke my
ankle' ... but I got up and kept going."
Later in the match, when Welch went to check another mark,
someone yelled, "Don't get down!" The crowd laughed, she says, but the players
wouldn't let her get down. Instead, they checked the marks themselves.
Welch's perseverance has seen her through a system of peer
review, where umpires will be assigned to help each other along by watching one
another's matches and giving feedback on how each other did.
"We may tell each other, 'You could have tried this,' or ask,
'How did you feel about this?'" she says. "Those reviews go to the ITF. We do it
at all the Grand Slams. You can always learn from how you did."
Welch often watches her matches on
tape afterwards, critiquing the way she handled confrontations or made certain
overrules. "I have high expectations of my performance on and off the court. You
have to be yourself but you don't want to do something that will get people
talking. You have to present a professional demeanor on the court."
Her memory is uncanny. The bleeding match? Sugiyama and
Schiavone. And when she broke her ankle in 2011? That was Jenny Hopkins and Lisa
Raymond.
The meticulousness about Welch is not too surprising; it is
her job to pay attention to details. She has a method to how she approaches each
and every match. She always tries to be aware of the whole court's surrounding,
use preventative umpiring to temper what could be contentious situations and,
her advice to up and coming umpires? "Make sure your umpire bag is packed for
the day," she says, "there's nothing more embarrassing than forgetting something
when you're on court."
On the rainy Wednesday afternoon, Welch is waiting for the
rain to subside, having been moved to the first match on instead of the second.
She notes that she hasn't seen the players much during the Open ("this is one of
the bigger tournaments"), but that she usually just says a passing "hi" -- no
out to drinks or dinner with their families. And what does she love about it
all? "I love my job. I love that I get to travel."
On our way under Armstrong Stadium I wonder if anyone will
recognize Welch, but she stops short with a group of groundspeople, not for
autographs but to get an update on when play might start.
"[It] makes me chuckle. Just because people see me on TV they
think I'm famous, but I'm just a normal person," she says, throwing her small
black umpire's bag over her shoulder. "But it makes me feel good, too, when they
say something like, 'You're my favorite umpire.' It gives me a smile for the
day."
TENNIS E-News editor's note: No, no, Lynn. You are not "just a normal person." Extra normal, extraordinary ... but not normal. Thankfully for us.
+++++++++++
USTA League Teams looking for players --
3.0 Adult Women needed for a 6.5 combo team. Contact Libby O'Regan at libbyoregan@gmail.com.
75s Super Senior Men's 3.0 Wexford Warlords have openings for additional players. Email dermanh@hargray.com. Schedule begins 7 Sep.
60 Men's 3.5 -- Wexford is looking for some 3.5 men over 60 to play on our fall team. If any 3.5 men need a team we would love to have them. Call Paul Miklo at 422-4487 or email at Miklo.paul@yahoo.com.
70s Men's 3.0
-- Moss Creek team could use additional
players for its Super Senior 3.0 team that now has only eight players. The cost
would be $60 including weekly practice. If interested, contact Dave Teschner at
davebarb@hargray.com or call (843) 836-2439.
70s Men's 3.5
-- Hampton Hall
is looking for one or two more players for its Super Senior 70s Men's 3.5 team.
Contact Felix Lowe felo33@yahoo.com.
70s Women's 3.0 -- Super Senior 70s team is forming at Spring Lake Racquet Club and needs 3.0 players for the Fall season. Contact Barbara Kiebler at 682-3375 or email bakiebler@hargray.com.
70s Women's 3.5 Super Senior -- A team forming for the Fall season that begins in September is looking for more players. Contact Lois Hilger at 363-5456 or email loishilger@yahoo.com.
Players looking for a team -- Open listing free
4.0 Woman looking for a team. Contact Terri Beatty at Tbeatty21@hotmail.com.
3.5 Super Senior Woman -- Super Senior 60s player looking for a team on HHI or CCTA. Contact Nancy Volpe 368-9525.
3.0 Super Senior Woman -- Super senior player looking for a Fall team. Steffi Cahn @ stefficahn@hargray.com.
4.0 Senior Man -- Eligible player hoping to join Combo or Senior team. Contact James Malkin -- cell (404) 509-5665 or e-mail is malkanna@gmail.com.
3.0
Man -- Mark Casper is a 3.0 who
played at Sun City. He wants to be on a
team and continue to play. Call Mark
338-4271 (cell) or call D'jean Carter.384-1049
(cell)
8.5 or 7.5 Combo Player -- Looking for a 7.5 or 8.5 (preferably a 8.5) combo team in Bluffton or Hilton Head Island. Contact Tim Roberts 843-476-2574.
7.5 Combo Player -- A 3.5 looking to play on a 7.5 Combo team -- David Ashburner. E-mail is Dashsa5@gmail.com and telephone number is 415-3108.
3.0 Senior Men's -- I would like to join any 3.0 or Combo team. I am a 3.0, age 60, live in Hilton Head Plantation. Steve Ziplow, zip@hargray.com or 686-6089.
+++++++++++
Volunteers Needed
Wheelchair Tennis Championships Sept.15-18 Features
International Players
A call is out for volunteers to assist the players. Needed
are
-- Ball persons to help retrieve
balls on the court for the players (community service project for students)
-- Folks to help serve lunch to the athletes onsite
-- Donations of food, casseroles or desserts for our athletes
each day
-- Donations of items needed for the players such as hats,
sunscreen, towels, wristbands, water bottles, etc.
Tournament Director Julie Jilly outlined plans for a run/roll
event in which wheelchair players are partnered with able-bodied players for a
team consisting of one “runner” and one “roller”. A Run/Roll Round Robin will be
held Thursday, Sept. 16 at 6:15 p.m. at Chaplin Park Tennis Center
For additional information and/or to volunteer for the
tournament, contact Jilly at
julie@ptrtennis.org.
+++++++++++
UPCOMING TOURNAMENTS:
Sept. 10-12: South Carolina USTA Mixed Doubles League State Championships / All levels in both adult and senior divisions / Florence / www.sctennis.com/leaguechamps/ .
Sept. 15-18: Fall Southern PTR $14,000 Wheelchair Championships / Men’s and women’s singles and doubles on various levels / ID #704100511 / Volunteers needed / For information, contact Julie Jilly at 785-7244 of visit www.ptrtennis.org.
Sept. 15-18: SC State Closed Clay Court Championships / Litchfield Racquet Club / Men’s (35-80) & Women’s (35-70) singles & doubles; Mxd 35, 45, 55; Also Father/Son, Mother/ Daughter, Husband/Wife / ID #704103711 / Info at 843-237-3983 and www.litchfieldbeach.com.
Sept. 16-18: Van Der Meer Academy Junior Classic / Van der Meer Tennis Center / USTA-sanctioned Boys' & Girls' 18s-10s singles and doubles, FMLC. / ID #704129111 / For information, call Justyn Schelver 785-8388 ext. 119.
Sept. 30- Oct. 2: 26th annual Palmetto Dunes Resort Banana Open Challenge / Palmetto Dunes Tennis Center / Features winners of local Banana Open tournaments from the East Coast competing in singles, doubles and mixed doubles in divisions 2.5 through open / For information, call Palmetto Dunes 785-1152 or go to www.palmettodunes.com.
Sept. 30-Oct. 2: Fripp Island Fall Clay Court Championships / Fripp Island / Men’s (35-75 odd) & Women’s (35-65 odd) singles & doubles; NTRP Men’s & Women’s 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 4.5 singles & doubles; Combo MxD 6.0, 7.0, 8.0, 9.0 / ID #704137511 / For information, call (843) 838-1504 or www.frippislandresort.com.
Oct. 14-16: South Carolina USTA Super Senior Mixed Doubles League State Championships / All levels of Super Senior Mixed / Site TBA / Information at www.sctennis.com/leaguechamps/ .
Oct. 20-24: South Carolina BMW Combo League State Championships / All levels for both men and women’s adult, senior and super senior divisions / Daniel Island SC. Information at www.sctennis.com/leaguechamps/ .
++++++++++
TENNIS E-News FootNote
ooooO
( ) "Don't try hitting behind a slow-moving player. Chances are she is still standing there."
( ) . -- Martina Navratilova, commenting on the USOpen website
(___)
-- Dennis Malick
++++++++++
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