TournamenT noTes as of may 2, 2012 EAGLE LANDING TENNIS CLASSIC ORANGE PARK, FL • MAY 4–13 USTA PRO CIRCUIT CELEBRATES 10TH ANNIVERSARY IN ORANGE PARK TournamenT InFormaTIon The Eagle Landing Tennis Classic is celebrating its 10th anniversary in Orange Site: Eagle Landing – Orange Park, Fla. Park this year. It is the second of three consecutive $10,000 USTA Pro Circuit Michael Baz Websites: procircuit.usta.com Futures tournaments held on clay courts Qualifying Draw Begins: Friday, May 4 in Florida that develop players on clay and lead up to the 2012 French Open. Overall, Main Draw Begins: Tuesday, May 8 there are 14 USTA Pro Circuit men’s Main Draw: 32 Singles / 16 Doubles events (Futures and Challengers combined) scheduled to take place in Florida, the most Surface: Clay / Outdoor of any state. Prize Money: $10,000 Those competing in the main draw are: Tournament Director: five-time University of Florida All-American Mark Arrowsmith, (904) 534-6440 and defending doubles champion Gregory [email protected] Ouellette, who captured the bronze medal Defending doubles champion Gregory Ouellette Tournament Press Contact: in men’s doubles with 2005 Orange Park won the bronze medal in doubles at the 2011 Mark Arrowsmith, (904) 534-6440 doubles champion Nicholas Monroe at the Pan Am Games and was a University of Florida [email protected] 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara, All-American. Mexico; and former University of Tennessee USTA Communications Contacts: All-American Tennys Sandgren, whose first Amanda Korba, (914) 697-2219, [email protected] name is pronounced like the sport, and Other players set to compete in Vero Beach Eric Schuster, (914) 696-7260, [email protected] who turned pro after capturing consecutive are: former University of Hawaii standout USTA Pro Circuit Futures in Illinois last year. Dennis Lajola, who successfully qualified Sandgren has climbed nearly 200 spots in for his first ATP World Tour event in San PrIze money / PoInTs the ATP World Tour rankings in 2012 due Jose, Calif., in February; Jeff Dadamo, who in large part to his success on the USTA captured the 2011 NCAA men’s doubles SINGLES: Prize Money Ranking Points Pro Circuit; he won the $15,000 Futures in title as a senior for Texas A&M to earn Winner $1,300 17 Calabasas, Calif., in March and the $15,000 a doubles main draw wild card into the Runner-up $900 9 Futures in Little Rock, Ark., last month. 2011 US Open, and who reached his first Semifinalist $480 5 professional final in 2011 at the USTA Pro Quarterfinalist $290 2 Circuit Futures in Indian Harbour Beach, Round of 16 $200 1 Fla.; Joshua Zavala, a former college Round of 32 $117.5 - standout for the University of Texas who DOUBLES: Prize Money (per team) Bette Salmon reached his first professional final in 2011 Winner $630 at a Futures in Brazil; Bjorn Fratangelo, who Runner-up $330 in 2011 became the first American since Semifinalist $260 John McEnroe in 1977 to capture the boys’ Quarterfinalist $180 singles title at the French Open; and Jordan Round of 16 $0 Cox, who reached the boys’ singles final at Wimbledon in 2009. Players competing in qualifying include: Alexios Halebian, who reached the final of the 2012 Easter Bowl and trains full-time at the USTA Training Center Headquarters Bjorn Fratangelo won the 2011 French Open boys’ singles title, becoming the first American since John McEnroe in 1977 to do so. *Player field subject to change TournamenT noTes in Boca Raton, Fla.; and Christian Harrison, the younger brother Savannah and reaching the second round in Sarasota. The USTA and of American rising star Ryan Harrison, who reached the semifinals the French Tennis Federation have a reciprocal agreement in which of a Futures in Mexico in December 2011 and the quarterfinals at wild cards into the 2012 French and US Opens are exchanged. the $15,000 Futures in Little Rock, Ark., last month. This is the younger Harrison’s fourth USTA Pro Circuit event of the year. 2006 singles champion Tim Smyczek made his first appearance in the main draw of the US Open in 2010 after winning an eight-man Many current standouts have found success in Orange Park. 2003 USTA wild card playoff, and backed that up by winning a similar doubles champion Brian Baker earned a wild card into the 2012 six-man USTA playoff to earn a wild card into the 2011 French French Open this May with his combined results at the USTA Pro Open. Smyczek also won the $50,000 USTA Pro Circuit Challenger Circuit Challengers in Sarasota, Fla., and Savannah, Ga., last month. in Tallahassee, Fla., last month for his first USTA Pro Circuit singles This year, the USTA awarded the men’s French Open wild card to the title since Orange Park. 2010 doubles champion Denis Kudla went American player who finished with the best combined results at the on to reach the boys’ US Open final that year and also qualified for two events. Baker earned a combined 88 points, winning the title in the Australian Open earlier this year. *Player field subject to change ORANGE PARK PAST WINNERS Singles Doubles Year Winner Runner-Up Year Winner 2011 Gerald Melzer (AUT) Daniel Garza (MEX) 2011 Devin Britton (USA) – Gregory Ouellette (USA) 2010 Matteo Viola (ITA) Stefano Ianni (ITA) 2010 Andrea Collarini (USA) – Denis Kudla (USA) 2009 Luigi D’Agord (ITA) Daniel Garza (MEX) 2009 Marcus Fugate (USA) – Todd Paul (USA) 2008 Greg Jones (AUS) Clinton Thomson (AUS) 2008 Thomas Schoeck (GER) – Ross Wilson (USA) 2007 Stefano Ianni (ITA) Adriano Biasella (ITA) 2007 Adriano Biasella (ITA) – Stefano Ianni (ITA) 2006 Tim Smyczek (USA) Nikita Kryvonos (USA) 2006 Travis Rettenmaier (USA) – Robert Yim (USA) 2005 Jose De Armas (VEN) Alex Kuznetsov (USA) 2005 Nicholas Monroe (USA) – Jeremy Wurtzman (USA) 2004 Melvyn Op Der Heijde (NED) Goran Dragicevic (USA) 2004 Levar Harper-Griffith (USA) – Chris Kwon (USA) 2003 Pedro Braga (BRA) Bernard Parun (GER) 2003 Brian Baker (USA) – Phillip Simmonds (USA) TournamenT noTes USTA PRO CIRCUIT 10 AND UNDER TENNIS With approximately 90 tournaments hosted annually throughout the country and prize money ranging from On January 1, the USTA announced that the rules of tennis $10,000 to $100,000, the USTA Pro Circuit is the pathway to the US Open and tour-level competition for have officially changed and require that 10 and Under Tennis aspiring tennis players and a frequent battleground for established professionals. The USTA launched its tournaments be played utilizing smaller, lighter racquets Pro Circuit 33 years ago to provide players with the opportunity to gain professional ranking points, and it and lower-bouncing balls on smaller courts. This rule change has since grown to become the largest developmental tennis circuit in the world, offering nearly $3 million signifies the emergence of 10 and Under Tennis as an integral in prize money. Last year, more than 1,000 men and women from more than 70 countries competed in cities part of the development of young players. The scaled-down nationwide. Mardy Fish, Maria Sharapova, Andy Roddick, Caroline Wozniacki, James Blake, Li Na and equipment and smaller courts better allow kids to rally and Andy Murray are among today’s top stars who began their careers on the USTA Pro Circuit. play the game earlier in their development, and increase the likelihood they will return to the court and continue to More recently, the USTA Pro Circuit improve while having fun doing so. For more information, visit helped launch the careers of two young Ryan Harrison www.10andundertennis.com. Americans—Christina McHale and Ryan Harrison. McHale reached the quarterfinals or better at five USTA Pro Circuit events in NJTL 2010 and climbed more than 100 spots in the WTA rankings that year. Buoyed by those Cities across the country participate in the USTA/National Junior results, she began to compete regularly Tennis and Learning (NJTL) network, a nationwide network of on the WTA tour in 2011 and became the community tennis organizations seeking to develop the character youngest player in the world’s Top 50 after of young people through both tennis and education. Founded defeating No. 8 seed Marion Bartoli en route by Arthur Ashe in 1969, more than 650 registered chapters/ to the third round of the US Open. Three Anthony Behar programs exist throughout the nation with more than 250,000 weeks prior, she upset world No. 1 Wozniacki participants ages 6-18, making NJTL one of the USTA’s largest at the US Open Series event in Cincinnati. community-based initiatives. McHale also was named to the U.S. Fed Cup team for the World Group Playoff in April 2011. Harrison began 2011 by winning US OPEN NATIONAL PlayoffS the singles and doubles titles at the $50,000 USTA Pro Circuit Challenger in Honolulu and subsequently The USTA launched the US Open reached the round of 16 in Indian Wells, where he upset three players ranked in the Top 50. Harrison National Playoffs in 2010, making cracked the Top 100 for the first time in summer 2011—becoming one of just two teenage males in the the US Open “open” to anyone age Top 100—after reaching back-to-back semifinals at the US Open Series events in Atlanta and Los Angeles. 14+ and of all skill levels. Last year, He also played in the main draw of all four Grand Slam events last year, pushing world No. 5 David Ferrer to more than 1,200 players competed in five sets in the second round at Wimbledon. 16 Sectional Qualifying Tournaments nationwide for a 2011 US Open PLAYER DEVELOPMENT Qualifying Tournament wild card.