<<

TOURNAMENT NOTES

as of July 30, 2015

2015 FORT WORTH WOMEN’S PRO CLASSIC FORT WORTH, TX • AUGUST 1-9

USTA PRO CIRCUIT WOMEN’S TENNIS RETURNS TO FORT WORTH TOURNAMENT INFORMATION The 2015 Fort Worth Women’s Pro Tennis Site: Bayard Friedman Tennis Center Classic is taking place in Fort Worth for the Fort Worth, Texas fourth consecutive year. The tournament is Websites: www.fwprocircuit.com one of four USTA Pro Circuit women’s events Dave Kenas procircuit.usta.com taking place in Texas this year—El Paso was held in late June, Austin was held last week Facebook: Fort Worth Pro Tennis Classic and Waco will be held in November—and : @FWProCircuit is the third of four consecutive hard-court events to begin the summer hard-court Qualifying Draw Begins: Saturday, Aug. 1 season in preparation for the US Open. Main Draw Begins: Tuesday, Aug. 4 To follow the tournament, download the Main Draw: 32 Singles / 16 Doubles USTA Pro Circuit’s new phone app by searching “procircuit” in the app store. Surface: Hard / Outdoor Prize Money: $10,000 Notable players competing in the main draw include: Tournament Director: Linda Cappel, (817) 257-5352 Tori Kinard, who competed all over the world Nicole Frenkel, 17, has competed in the [email protected] US Open Junior Championships at the last year in USTA Pro Circuit events and USTA National Tennis Center Tournament Press Contact: in ITF Pro Circuit events in Japan, Korea, in New York. Abby Norman, [email protected] Taiwan, Australia, Mexico and Canada. She reached the singles finals at events in USTA Communications Contact: Canada and Australia and peaked at of her career on the USTA Pro Circuit in Amanda Korba, (914) 697-2219 No. 341 in the world in October 2014. This 2011 at the $50,000 event in Lexington, [email protected] May and June, she competed again in Japan Ky., and the $25,000 event in El Paso, and Korea. Texas. Those results jump-started her PRIZE MONEY / POINTS career, and she peaked at No. 164 in the Seventeen-year-old Nicole Frenkel, who world in singles in October 2011. She has SINGLES: Prize Money Ranking Points reached the final of an ITF Pro Circuit competed in qualifying at all four Grand Winner $1,568 12 event in France this winter, as well as one Slam tournaments. Last year, Scholl reached Runner-Up $980 7 semifinal. This summer, Frenkel reached the the quarterfinals or better at two USTA Pro Semifinalist $490 4 semifinals of the $10,000 USTA Pro Circuit Circuit doubles events. This June and July, Quarterfinalist $245 2 event in Bethany Beach, Del., and qualified she competed in ITF Pro Circuit events in Round 16 $196 1 for two $50,000 USTA Pro Circuit events. Switzerland and Germany. Round 32 $98 0 As a junior player, Frenkel has competed DOUBLES: Prize Money (per team) in the US Open Junior Championships at Marie Norris, who will compete for TCU this Winner $637 the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis fall. She has reached one USTA Pro Circuit Runner-Up $343 Center in New York. final, in doubles at the $10,000 event in Semifinalist $196 Gainesville, Fla., in March. She has also Quarterfinalist $98 Alexa Graham, 17, who reached the first ranked in the Top 150 in the ITF World Round 16 $49 USTA Pro Circuit singles final of her career Junior Rankings. earlier this year at the $10,000 event in Bethany Beach, Del. Also this year, she Jessica Ho, who will be a freshman at Duke reached the singles final at an ITF Pro this fall. As a junior player, she competed in Circuit event in France. the US Open, and juniors, and reached the singles Chiara Scholl, who goes by the nickname quarterfinals of the 2014 Easter Bowl—a “Chi Chi” and won the first two singles titles prestigious junior tournament.

*Player field subject to change 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, , John Isner, , Kei tennis using modified equipment and courts tailored to a child’s Nishikori, Sam Querrey, and 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 . In her first full season as a Founded in 1969 by Arthur Ashe, along with Charlie Pasarell professional after capturing back-to-back and Sheridan Snyder, the USTA/National & NCAA singles championships in 2012 and Learning (NJTL) network is a nationwide group of more than

2013, Gibbs won the women’s USTA Pro A. Clary/Getty Images Timothy Circuit US Open Wild Card Challenge in 625 non-profit youth development organizations that provide 2014. After claiming the title at the $50,000 free or low-cost tennis, education and life skills programming USTA Pro Circuit event in Carson, Calif., to more than 350,000 children each year. Celebrating its Gibbs clinched the US Open wild card 45th anniversary this year, NJTL is one of the USTA’s largest by advancing to the final of the $50,000 community-based offerings. tournament in Lexington, Ky., her last USTA Pro Circuit event of the season. Gibbs went on to reach the third round at the US Open, scoring a pair of Top 50 victories along the US OPEN NATIONAL PLAYOFFS way. Two weeks after the US Open, as a qualifier at Seoul, she reached her first WTA Nicole Gibbs The USTA launched the US Open quarterfinal, which boosted her into the National Playoffs in 2010, WTA Top 100 for the first time. Gibbs earned making the US Open “open” the second-most WTA ranking points of any to anyone age 14+ and of all American playing the USTA Pro Circuit in 2014. Kozlov, runner-up in 2014 at the junior championships of the Australian Open and Wimbledon, reached the final of the Sacramento Challenger last October at age skill levels. Last year, more 16, becoming the youngest American to reach a Challenger final since Andre Agassi in 1986. That result than 1,200 players competed vaulted Kozlov to No. 443 in the world, making him the youngest player in the ATP World Tour Top 500. He in 13 Sectional Qualifying concluded 2014 by sweeping the singles and doubles titles at the prestigious Orange Bowl Junior Tennis Tournaments nationwide for Championships, locking down a No. 3 junior world ranking. 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 can again compete in The USTA Player Development program identifies and develops the next generation of American champions singles and mixed doubles, but also will have the chance by surrounding the top junior players and young pros with the resources, facilities and coaching they need to play in the new men’s and women’s doubles competition to reach their maximum potential. The Player Development program is based at the USTA Training Center to earn main draw doubles wild cards. Registration for all Headquarters in Boca Raton, Fla., and also utilizes Training Centers in Carson, Calif., and Flushing, N.Y., as divisions opens on March 15. 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.

FORT WORTH PAST WINNERS Singles Doubles Year Winner Runner-Up Year Winner 2014 (GER) Hayley Carter (USA) 2014 Hayley Carter (USA) – Stefanie Tan (SIN) 2013 (USA) Miyu Kato (JPN) 2013 Roxanne Ellison (USA) – Sierra Ellison (USA) 2012 Elizabeth Ferris (USA) Dianne Hollands (NZL) 2012 McCall Harkins (USA) – Dianne Hollands (NZL)