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TOURNAMENT NOTES

as of October 28, 2015

2015 CHARLOTTESVILLE MEN’S PRO CHALLENGER CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA • OCT. 31 - NOV. 8

USTA PRO CIRCUIT MEN’S RETURNS TO CHARLOTTESVILLE; TOURNAMENT INFORMATION KICKS OFF WILD CARD CHALLENGE

Site: The Boar’s Sports Club The 2015 Charlottesville Men’s Pro Challenger Charlottesville, Va. is taking place in Charlottesville for the seventh consecutive year. It is the only USTA Websites: www.boarsheadinn.com Pro Circuit men’s event held in Virginia. procircuit.usta.com Charlottesville also holds a $50,000 women’s Facebook: Charlottesville Men’s Pro Challenger event in April. Dishman USTA/Ned Twitter: @CvilleTennis Charlottesville is the first of three consecutive Qualifying Draw Begins: Saturday, Oct. 31 men’s hard-court tournaments that make up the USTA Pro Circuit Australian Open Wild Monday, Nov. 2 Main Draw Begins: Card Challenge, which will award a men’s and Main Draw: 32 Singles / 16 Doubles women’s wild card into the . The USTA and Tennis have a Surface: Hard / Indoor reciprocal agreement in which wild cards into Prize Money: $50,000 the 2015 US Open and 2016 Australian Open are exchanged. The other tournaments in the Tournament Director: men’s portion of the wild card challenge are Ron Manilla, (434) 960-3364 the $50,000 events in Knoxville, Tenn., held [email protected] the week of Nov. 9, and Champaign, Ill., held Tournament Press Contact: the week of Nov. 16. peaked at No. 68 in the world Jacob Stuckey, (904) 687-6495 this April after qualifying for the main draw of the Australian Open and winning his first-round [email protected] The three men’s tournaments join three women’s tournaments—the Tennis Classic of match. Smyczek has won six USTA Pro Circuit USTA Communications Contact: Macon in Macon, Ga., held the week of Oct. Challenger singles titles. Amanda Korba, (914) 697-2219, [email protected] 26; the Bush’s $50,000 Waco Showdown in Waco, Texas, held the week of Nov. 2; and Matches from Charlottesville will be streamed the Copperwynd Pro Women’s Challenge in live on www.procircuit.usta.com. PRIZE MONEY / POINTS Scottsdale, Ariz., held the week of Nov. 9. SINGLES: Prize Money Ranking Points To follow the tournament, download the USTA Winner $7,200 80 The American man who earns the most ATP Pro Circuit’s new phone app by searching Runner-up $4,240 48 ranking points at two of the three USTA Pro “procircuit” in the app store. Semifinalist $2,510 29 Circuit hard-court events will receive a USTA wild Quarterfinalist $1,460 15 card to compete in the main draw of the 2016 Notable players competing in the main draw Round of 16 $860 7 Australian Open, which will be held Monday, Jan. include: Round of 32 $520 - 18, through Sunday, Jan. 31. Only players who did not receive direct entry into the Australian DOUBLES: Prize Money (per team) Tim Smyczek, who peaked at No. 68 in the Open are eligible for the wild cards. Winner $3,100 world this April after qualifying for the main Runner-up $1,800 draw of the Australian Open and winning his Semifinalist $1,080 first-round match. In the second round, he Quarterfinalist $640 became a top storyline after facing Rafael Round of 16 $360 Nadal and almost pulling off an upset, falling Jacob Stuckey to the Spaniard in a five-set thriller, 6-2, 3-6, 6-7 (2), 6-3, 7-5. During the match, Smyczek COMMUNITY EVENTS Sunday, November 1 USTA Mid-Atlantic Kids’ Day, 2:00 p.m. Teenager won his first USTA Pro Circuit singles title earlier this year and competed Sunday, November 1 in the US Open and as a wild card. Pro-Am to benefit Special Olympics Virginia, 5:30 p.m. As a junior, he peaked at No. 2 in the ITF World Junior Rankings last year and reached the boys’ singles semifinals at the 2014 junior US Open.

*Player field subject to change TOURNAMENT NOTES was heralded for his sportsmanship after giving Nadal a first serve when a USTA Pro Circuit, reaching the semifinals of the $50,000 Challenger fan yelled out during Nadal’s service toss in the final game of the fifth set. in Tallahassee, Fla., and quarterfinals at the $100,000 Challenger in Following the Australian Open, Smyczek won his fifth USTA Pro Circuit Sarasota, Fla., and the $50,000 Challenger in Savannah, Ga. He also singles title at the $100,000 Challenger in Dallas and, this October won matches at three ATP events over the summer (Newport, Cincinnati won his sixth title at the $100,000 Challenger in Tiburon. Smyczek has and Atlanta). Last summer, Donaldson won back-to-back USTA Pro played in all four Grand Slam tournaments in his career, advancing to the Circuit singles titles at $15,000 Futures events in Tulsa, Okla., and second round or better at the US Open from 2012-14, highlighted by a Oklahoma City for the first USTA Pro Circuit singles titles of his career. third-round showing in 2013. Smyczek regularly trains at Saddlebrook As a junior player, he competed in the US Open Junior Championships Resort in Tampa, Fla., and once lived with fellow American and represented the United States in Junior (16 and under). for a year while training there. He is coached by former Top 30 player Taylor Dent and has trained with in Dubai. Frances Tiafoe, 17, who won his first USTA Pro Circuit singles title earlier this year at the $15,000 Futures in Bakersfield, Calif. Tiafoe, Bjorn Fratangelo, who made his Grand Slam main draw debut at who recently turned pro, also reached three additional USTA Pro Circuit the 2015 US Open after winning the USTA Pro Circuit’s US Open singles finals (in Tallahassee, Fla., in May, in Calabasas, Calif., in March Wild Card Challenge this summer. Fratangelo finished the challenge and in Weston, Fla., in January). He made his Grand Slam debut at the with 83 points after reaching the final of the $50,000 Challenger by winning the Har-Tru USTA Pro Circuit Wild Card in Binghamton, N.Y., and semifinals at the $100,000 Challenger in Challenge and then competed in the 2015 US Open as a wild card. Aptos, Calif., and the $50,000 Challenger in Lexington, Ky. In 2011, Tiafoe also served as a practice partner for the U.S. Davis Cup team Fratangelo became the first American since John McEnroe in 1977 against Great Britain in Scotland this March. As a junior, he peaked at to win the French Open boys’ singles title. He peaked at a career-high No. 2 in the ITF World Junior Rankings last year and reached the boys’ No. 106 in the world this August in large part to his results on the singles semifinals at the 2014 US Open. He also won the prestigious USTA Pro Circuit. In addition to his results during the US Open Wild International Tennis Championships in December 2013 Card Challenge, Fratangelo also reached a final and semifinal at ITF in Plantation, Fla., becoming the youngest boys’ champion in the 67- Pro Circuit Challengers in Italy this spring. Overall, Fratangelo has won year history of the event; took the title at the 2014 Easter Bowl junior nine USTA Pro Circuit and ITF Pro Circuit singles titles over the last tournament; and reached the final of the 2014 USTA International three years. He also reached three USTA Pro Circuit/ITF Pro Circuit Spring Championships. In 2012, he won two significant 14-and-under quarterfinals this fall. Fratangelo competed in US Open qualifying in tournaments (Les Petits As in Tarbes, France, and Teen Tennis in 2011 and 2013 but did not win a match. He has also competed in Bolton, England) and helped lead the United States to a gold medal Wimbledon and French Open qualifying. As a junior player, Fratangelo in World —the premier 14-and-under team competition. ranked as high as No. 2 in the ITF World Junior Rankings and competed Tiafoe is a product of the Junior Tennis Champions Center in College on the Junior Davis Cup team. He is coached by USTA National Coach Park, Md., a USTA Certified Regional Training Center, where his father, Stanford Boster. an immigrant from Sierra Leone, worked as a custodian. Mitchell Krueger, who was the top-ranked American junior boy in , who earned a spot on the U.S. Olympic team for the 2012, peaking at a career-high No. 5 in the world junior rankings. 2012 Games in London and has been a member of the U.S. Davis Cup Krueger advanced to the boys’ singles semifinals at the French Open team. He also has enjoyed success on the ATP World Tour, reaching and Wimbledon in 2012 and turned pro that July. He captured his first three semifinals in 2012 to peak at No. 43 in the world. (At the time, pro singles title in 2013 while competing overseas at a clay-court ITF he and Bernard Tomic of Australia were the only players aged 20 or event in the Netherlands, and this year he won his second title—and younger in the Top 100.) This year, Harrison earned a wild card into the first USTA Pro Circuit crown—at the $15,000 Futures in Los Angeles. US Open and competed in Wimbledon qualifying. He put together two He also had a strong spring on the USTA Pro Circuit, reaching the strong performances on the ATP Tour earlier this year, qualifying and quarterfinals at $50,000 Challengers in Savannah, Ga., and Tallahassee, reaching the second round at the Memphis Open, pushing eventual Fla., and the final at the $15,000 Futures in Wichita, Kan., this June. champion to three sets, and then qualifying and reaching Krueger spent the last quarter of 2014 competing in Canada and the semifinals in Acapulco, before falling to . In 2013, Australia, winning a doubles title in Australia and reaching the singles Harrison reached the semifinals of the Emirates Airline US Open quarterfinals or better at six events. Krueger comes from a tennis-playing Series event in Atlanta, advanced to the quarterfinals of the Australian family; his father played college tennis at Texas A&M University, and his Open tune-up event in Sydney and reached the second round of the mother is a tennis coach and played at Louisiana Tech. Australian Open and the French Open (losing to in five sets in Paris). Harrison has played in the US Open main draw each of Tennys Sandgren, a former Top 200 player who is back on the court the last six years. In 2010, he qualified and upset No. 15 seed Ivan after missing much of 2014 due to injury. Sandgren did not play from Ljubicic in the opening round, and in 2012, he also advanced to the February 2014 through the 2014 US Open, as he recovered from second round, losing to 2009 champion Juan Martin del Potro. surgery on his hip. This year, Sandgren, whose first name is pronounced like the sport, has played on the USTA Pro Circuit and in ITF Pro Circuit Jared Donaldson, who is ranked a career-high No. 135 after reaching events in China, Australia and Canada as he continues to work his way the final of the $100,000 USTA Pro Circuit Challenger in Sacramento, back into form, winning two titles this year. He climbed to a career- Calif., and the quarterfinals of the $50,000 Challengers in Fairfield, high No. 183 in the world in 2013, when he won the USTA Pro Circuit Calif., and Las Vegas this October. Donaldson made his Grand Slam season-ending Challenger in Champaign, Ill. Also in 2013, Sandgren main draw debut as a wild card at the 2014 US Open, where he served as a Davis Cup practice partner for the U.S. team as it prepared faced eventual quarterfinalist Gael Monfils in the first round. This to face Serbia in Boise, Idaho, and he nearly qualified for the main year, the teenager won his first USTA Pro Circuit Challenger title at the draw at the , falling to former NCAA champion $50,000 event in Maui, Hawaii, where he also won the doubles title in five sets in the final of the USTA Australian Open Wild with Stefan Kozlov. Donaldson had a strong spring this year on the Card Playoffs. Sandgren turned pro following his sophomore season at

*Player field subject to change TOURNAMENT NOTES the University of Tennessee after reaching the semifinals of the 2011 world. In 2014, he qualified for and reached the quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament. He has won nine USTA Pro Circuit/ITF Pro Circuit ATP event in Memphis, Tenn., qualified for the main draw at Wimbledon singles titles and 12 doubles titles. His brother, Davey, was a two-time and reached the quarterfinals or better at three USTA Pro Circuit All-American for Tennessee, lettering from 2007-10. Challengers. This year, Kuznetsov has reached the quarterfinals of the $100,000 USTA Pro Circuit Challenger in Dallas and competed in , who competed in qualifying at the Australian Open, Australian Open qualifying. As a junior, he was the 2004 French Open French Open and Wimbledon this year. He peaked at No. 152 in the boys’ singles runner-up (to Gael Monfils). Kuzetsov is a native of Kiev, world this June after strong results in USTA Pro Circuit and ITF Pro Ukraine, where his grandfather was a handball champion. In 2005, he Circuit Challenger events. Last year, Buchanan competed on the USTA was involved in a car accident that broke his right femur and required Pro Circuit and overseas, reaching the singles semifinals or better at the insertion of a titanium rod and screw. He came back to play in his five events and qualifying for the Emirates Airline US Open Series first US Open main draw in 2006 and has played in all four Grand Slam event in Cincinnati. He also won three ITF Circuit events last fall— tournaments in his career, reaching the second round of the Australian one in Ecuador and two in Bolivia. As a college player for Ohio State Open in 2007. University, Buchanan won the NCAA doubles championship in 2012 with Blaz Rola, earning a wild card into the main draw of the US Open Notable players competing in qualifying include: men’s doubles event that year. In singles, Buchanan reached the final of the 2009 junior US Open. He also earned a wild card into the men’s Stefan Kozlov, 17, who peaked at No. 2 in the world junior rankings singles main draw of that year’s US Open—his only Grand Slam main last year. Kozlov reached the junior boys’ final at both Wimbledon draw appearance to date—as the USTA Boys’ 18s champion, losing in and the Australian Open in 2014, as well as the quarterfinals at the the first round to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Buchanan has won three USTA junior US Open and French Open. At the All England Club, he fell to Pro Circuit singles titles in his career. He has been training at the USTA 2014 USTA Boys’ 18s champion in the first all-American Training Center – West in Carson, Calif., working with USTA collegiate Wimbledon boys’ final since 1977. Also last year, Kozlov won the coach Stephen Amritraj. prestigious Orange Bowl singles and doubles titles, and in the pro ranks, he reached the final of the $100,000 USTA Pro Circuit Challenger in Dennis Novikov, who represented the United States in the 2015 Sacramento, Calif., losing to current Top 50 player . In Pan American Games in Toronto this summer, where he won the reaching the Sacramento final at age 16, Kozlov became the youngest bronze medal in men’s singles. This fall, Novikov won two ITF Pro American to reach a Challenger final since Andre Agassi in 1986. In Circuit singles titles in Cary, N.C., and Columbus, Ohio, as well as the 2015, Kozlov has competed in the main draw of the ATP’s Memphis semifinals in Las Vegas (these were not USTA Pro Circuit events) to Open, won his first USTA Pro Circuit Challenger doubles title (in Maui, peak at No. 142 in the world. Novikov was the 2012 USTA Boys’ 18s Hawaii), reached the singles final of the $10,000 Futures in Orange national champion in singles and doubles. Those victories earned him Park, Fla., and served as a practice partner for the U.S. Davis Cup team wild-card entries into each main draw at the 2012 US Open, where he in Glasgow, Scotland. He also won his first ITF Pro Circuit singles title became just the second USTA Boys’ 18s champ in 15 years (the other in Belarus this fall. In April, he participated in the White House Easter being ) to advance to the second round in singles; he defeated Egg Roll, where he met President Obama. Kozlov trains both with his 2013 Wimbledon semifinalist in the first round. Novikov father, Andrei, at his dad’s tennis academy in Pembroke Pines, Fla., completed his sophomore year at UCLA in 2013 and turned pro that and at the USTA Training Center Headquarters in Boca Raton, Fla., summer. He won his first career USTA Pro Circuit title soon afterward, with coach Nicolas Todero. Kozlov has also practiced, on occasion, with at the $10,000 Futures in Amelia Island, Fla., and had a strong 2014, and other top pros. winning three USTA Pro Circuit doubles titles and claiming four ITF singles titles. This year, he won his second USTA Pro Circuit singles Noah Rubin, who completed a standout freshman year at Wake Forest title at the $15,000 Futures in Calabasas, Calif., and captured his sixth in May, finishing the year at No. 5 in the collegiate rankings and and seventh USTA Pro Circuit doubles titles at the $50,000 Challenger advancing to the 2015 NCAA singles final. He also became the first in Tallahassee, Fla., and the $15,000 Futures in Los Angeles. Born player in ACC men’s tennis history to earn ACC Player of the Year and in Moscow, Novikov moved with his family to the United States as a Freshman of the Year honors in one season, and the first ACC men’s 1-year-old and chose tennis over hockey, swimming and gymnastics. tennis Player of the Year in Wake Forest men’s tennis history. He was He is coached by his father, Vladimir, and occasionally trains out of the also the ITA Rookie of the Year and earned All-America honors. Rubin, USTA Training Center – West in Carson, Calif. who recently turned pro, was also a standout junior player, winning the 2014 USTA Boys’ 18s national singles title and the Wimbledon junior Kevin King, who graduated from Georgia Tech in 2012 with All-America title. At the All England Club, Rubin won the first all-American boys’ and All-ACC honors. King has ranked as high as No. 114 in doubles, singles final at Wimbledon since 1977, topping Stefan Kozlov in the winning nine USTA Pro Circuit and ITF Pro Circuit doubles titles. He title match. Rubin then made his Grand Slam men’s singles debut at also competed in the doubles draws at the US Open and Wimbledon the US Open, having earned a wild card through his victory at the USTA in 2014. King won his first career USTA Pro Circuit singles title at the Boys’ 18s. This summer, Rubin has reached the final of the $15,000 $15,000 Futures in Champaign, Ill., this year and also spent much Futures in Tulsa, Okla., and the semifinals at the $15,000 Futures in of the year competing in France and Canada, where he reached the Wichita, Kan. He also received a main draw wild card into the ATP’s doubles quarterfinals or better at seven events, winning one title in Hall of Fame Tennis Championships in Newport, R.I., this summer and Canada. competed in US Open qualifying. Rubin is a protégé of John McEnroe’s at his Randall’s Island, N.Y., academy. Alex Kuznetsov, who won the 2013 Har-Tru USTA Pro Circuit Wild Card Challenge to earn a spot in the French Open main draw. Following Eric Quigley, who was the 2012 NCAA singles runner-up for the Roland Garros, Kuznetsov qualified for Wimbledon and won the University of Kentucky. Quigley is one of the most decorated tennis $50,000 USTA Pro Circuit Challenger in Binghamton, N.Y. Those players in Wildcats history, earning five All-America honors between results drove Kuznetsov’s ranking up to a career-high No. 120 in the singles and doubles. In 2008, he became the first player from the

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state of Kentucky in 34 years to win four consecutive high school state ITF Pro Circuit doubles title in Mexico at the end of the year. This year, singles titles. In 2014, Quigley reached the singles final at the $15,000 he qualified for the ATP event in Delray Beach, Fla., and won two USTA USTA Pro Circuit clay-court event in Boynton Beach, Fla., and won the Pro Circuit doubles titles, as well as a doubles title at an ITF Pro Circuit first two USTA Pro Circuit doubles titles of his career. He also won an event in Nigeria.

*Player field subject to change

CHARLOTTESVILLE PAST WINNERS Singles Doubles Year Winner Runner-Up Year Winner 2014 (AUS) (GBR) 2014 Treat Huey (PHI) – Frederik Nielsen (DEN) 2013 Michael Russell (USA) Peter Polansky (CAN) 2013 Steve Johnson (USA) – Tim Smyczek (USA) 2012 Denis Kudla (USA) Alex Kuznetsov (USA) 2012 John Peers (AUS) – John-Patrick Smith (AUS) 2011 Izak van der Merwe (RSA) Jesse Levine (USA) 2011 Treat Conrad Huey (PHI) – Dominic Inglot (GBR) 2010 Robert Kendrick (USA) Michael Shabaz (USA) 2010 Robert Kendrick (USA) – (USA) 2009 Kevin Kim (USA) (IND) 2009 Martin Emmrich (GER) – Andreas Siljestrom (SWE) TOURNAMENT NOTES

USTA PRO CIRCUIT YOUTH TENNIS With approximately 90 tournaments hosted annually throughout the country and prize money ranging The USTA is making it easier and more fun for kids to get into from $10,000 to $100,000, the USTA Pro Circuit is the pathway to the US Open and tour-level competition for aspiring tennis players and a frequent battleground for established professionals. The USTA launched the game—and stay in the game. Kids are learning to play its Pro Circuit in 1979 to provide players with the opportunity to gain professional ranking points, and faster than ever before through the USTA’s youth initiative, it has since grown to become the largest developmental tennis circuit in the world, offering nearly which is geared toward getting more kids to participate in $3 million in prize money. Last year, more than 1,000 men and women from more than 70 countries competed in cities nationwide. Victoria Azarenka, Eugenie Bouchard, John Isner, , Kei tennis using modified equipment and courts tailored to a child’s Nishikori, Sam Querrey, Maria Sharapova and Caroline Wozniacki are among today’s top stars who size. For more information, visit YouthTennis.com. began their careers on the USTA Pro Circuit.

More recently, the USTA Pro Circuit helped further the careers of two young NJTL Americans—Stefan Kozlov and Nicole Gibbs. Runner-up in 2014 at the junior Amber Alva Founded in 1969 by Arthur Ashe, along with Charlie Pasarell championships of the Australian Open and and Sheridan Snyder, the USTA/National Junior Tennis & Wimbledon, Kozlov reached the final of the Learning (NJTL) network is a nationwide group of more than Sacramento Challenger last October at age 16, becoming the youngest American to 625 non-profit youth development organizations that provide reach a Challenger final since Andre Agassi free or low-cost tennis, education and life skills programming in 1986. That result vaulted Kozlov to to more than 350,000 children each year. Celebrating its No. 443 in the world, making him the 45th anniversary this year, NJTL is one of the USTA’s largest youngest player in the ATP World Tour community-based offerings. Top 500. He concluded 2014 by sweeping Stefan Kozlov the singles and doubles titles at the prestigious Orange Bowl Junior Tennis Championships, locking down a No. 3 US OPEN NATIONAL PLAYOFFS junior world ranking. Gibbs, in her first full season as a professional after capturing The USTA launched the US Open back-to-back NCAA singles championships National Playoffs in 2010, in 2012 and 2013, won the women’s USTA making the US Open “open” Pro Circuit US Open Wild Card Challenge in 2014. After claiming the title at the $50,000 USTA Pro Circuit event in Carson, Calif., Gibbs clinched the to anyone age 14+ and of all US Open wild card by advancing to the final of the $50,000 tournament in Lexington, Ky., her last USTA skill levels. Last year, more Pro Circuit event of the season. Gibbs went on to reach the third round at the US Open, scoring a pair of than 1,200 players competed Top 50 victories along the way. Two weeks after the US Open, as a qualifier at Seoul, she reached her first in 13 Sectional Qualifying WTA quarterfinal, which boosted her into the WTA Top 100 for the first time. Gibbs earned the second-most Tournaments nationwide for WTA ranking points of any American playing the USTA Pro Circuit in 2014. a 2014 US Open Qualifying Tournament wild card. A mixed doubles element also was PLAYER DEVELOPMENT held, with the winning team earning a main draw mixed doubles wild card. This year, players again competed in The USTA Player Development program identifies and develops the next generation of American champions singles and mixed doubles, but also had the chance to play by surrounding the top junior players and young pros with the resources, facilities and coaching they need in the new men’s and women’s doubles competition to earn to reach their maximum potential. The Player Development program is based at the USTA Training Center main draw doubles wild cards. The US Open National Playoffs Headquarters in Boca Raton, Fla., and also utilizes Training Centers in Carson, Calif., and Flushing, N.Y., as Championships are Aug. 21-29. For more information and the well as a series of Certified Regional Training Centers located throughout the continental United States. complete schedule, visit www.usopen.org/NationalPlayoffs.