FAYEZ SAROFIM & CO. U.S. MEN’S CLAY COURT CHAMPIONSHIP: PREVIEW & DAY 1 MEDIA NOTES Monday, April 4, 2016 River Oaks Country Club, Houston, Texas, United States | April 4 – 10, 2016 Draw: S-28, D-16 | Prize Money: $577,860 | Surface: Clay ATP Info: Tournament Info: ATP PR & Marketing: www.ATPWorldTour.com http://www.mensclaycourt.com/ Joshua Rey: [email protected] @ATPWorldTour @mensclaycourt Press Room: +1 713-874-6356 facebook.com/ATPWorldTour facebook.com/mensclaycourt FAYEZ SAROFIM & CO. U.S. MEN’S CLAY COURT CHAMPIONSHIP TALKING POINTS FAYEZ SAROFIM & CO. U.S. MEN’S CLAY COURT CHAMPIONSHIP: This year's event will mark the 82nd tournament hosted at River Oaks Country Club. The last four winners are in the 28-player field, with reigning champion Jack Sock, 2014 titlist Fernando Verdasco, 2013 champ John Isner, who is the top seed for the second time in three years, and 2012 titleholder Juan Monaco. The other seeds are: No. 2 Benoit Paire, No. 3 Feliciano Lopez, No. 4 Sock, No. 5/two-time finalist Sam Querrey, No. 6 Steve Johnson, No. 7 Marcos Baghdatis and No. 8 Denis Kudla. Overall, there are seven players in the Top 50 Emirates ATP Rankings in the draw. DAY 1 PREVIEW: There are five matches (3 singles, 2 doubles) scheduled on opening day at the U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship. In the first singles match on Center Court Victor Estrella Burgos of the Dominican Republic, the first player to win a clay court title in 2016 by defending his unbeaten record in Quito (d. Bellucci in final, 10-0 career), meets 19-year-old Hyeon Chung, playing the fifth main-draw clay court match of his ATP World Tour career. Then No. 8-seeded American Denis Kudla goes in search of his first Tour-level clay-court match win (0-3) against German qualifier Mischa Zverev. Kudla comes into the match with a 2-1 head-to-head record at the Challenger level, but all three encounters have gone three sets. In the last match of the day, Gerald Melzer meets 2012 champion Juan Monaco. The Austrian is playing his first ATP World Tour match of the season having claimed three Challenger titles already in 2016, while Monaco hasn’t lost in the 1R here since his debut in 2006 (l. 1R to Fish). ISNER TOP SEED: U.S. No. 1 John Isner is four match wins away from reaching 300 in his career (296-183). The 30-year-old American comes in with an 8-6 match record on the season. He helped the U.S. to the Davis Cup quarter-finals (vs. Croatia) with a pair of wins in Australia. Each of his last four losses have come in a third-set tie-break; he is 9-9 in tie-breaks on the season. Isner is making his ninth straight appearance in Houston (11-7 record) and he won his first clay court title in 2013 (d. Almagro). The last two years he lost in his opening match (after bye to D. Brown, Gabashvili). Last season Isner finished a year-end best No. 11 in the Emirates ATP Rankings. CHAMP SOCK RETURNS: Last year Jack Sock defeated countryman Sam Querrey 76(9) 76(2) to earn his maiden ATP World Tour singles crown. It was the first all-American final in Houston since 2003 (Agassi d. Roddick). Sock came in unseeded and ranked No. 46 before winning 10 straight sets (lost the opening set 1R to Souza). Sock went on to reach the fourth round at Roland Garros (l. to Nadal), his best career Grand Slam singles result. He finished a year-end best No. 26. This season he reached the Auckland final (ret. vs. Bautista Agut) and afterwards reached a career-high No. 22 on January 18. NEXT GENERATION TO WATCH: There are three members of the ATP World Tour’s Next Generation in the main draw: last year’s ATP Most Improved Player of the Year, 19-year-old Hyeon Chung of Korea along with 18-year-old wild cards Tommy Paul and Frances Tiafoe. Paul won the Roland Garros boys’ title last year and was runner-up at the US Open boys’ tournament. He is up to a career-high ranking of No. 200 (from No. 215) after qualifying at the Miami Open.Tiafoe reached a career-high No. 167 Mar. 21. SPANIARDS RETURN: Madrid natives Feliciano Lopez and Fermando Verdasco are both playing in Houston for the fourth time. Lopez has a 4-3 record, reaching the SF in his 2012 debut while Verdasco won the title two years ago and SF last year. Verdasco has an 8-2 record at River Oaks Country Club. QUERREY STARTS STRONG: No. 3 American and 2010 & last year’s runner-up Sam Querrey is off to a 12-6 start this season, having captured his eighth career ATP World Tour title in Delray Beach (d. Ram) in February. Querrey has an 11-6 career record in Houston and along with his two runner-up finishes, he advanced to the semi-finals in 2014. Fayez Sarofim & Co. U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship Day 1 – Monday, April 4, 2016 Page 2 of 7 www.ATPWorldTour.com BRYANS BACK IN HOUSTON: Five-time U.S. Clay Courts champions Bob and Mike Bryan, who have finished No. 1 on the ATP World Tour in 10 of the last 13 years, are making their 12th appearance in Houston. They have won five titles (2007, ‘09’-10-11, '14) in their last seven visits (did not play 2008, 2012) and have compiled a 24-2 mark since 2007. Their best result in 2016 is a runner-up finish in Delray Beach. Their last title came at ATP Masters 1000 Montreal last August. TITLE WATCH: Four former champions – Jack Sock (2015), Fernando Verdasco (2014), John Isner (2013) and Juan Monaco (2012) – take their place in this week’s draw. Since the event relocated to Houston in 2001, Americans have won eight of the past 15 titles. Andy Roddick is the only multiple champion in this span (2001-02, 2005), and the last player to defend the title. Roddick reached five consecutive finals between 2001 and 2005. SINGLES HONOR ROLL (since 2006): BOLD - Players in singles draw YEAR WINNER FINALIST SCORE 2015 Jack Sock Sam Querrey 7-6(9), 7-6(2) 2014 Fernando Verdasco Nicolas Almagro 6-3, 7-6(4) 2013 John Isner Nicolas Almagro 6-3, 7-5 2012 Juan Monaco John Isner 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 2011 Ryan Sweeting Kei Nishikori 6-4, 7-6(3) 2010 Juan Ignacio Chela Sam Querrey 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 2009 Lleyton Hewitt Wayne Odesnik 6-2, 7-5 2008 Marcel Granollers James Blake 6-4, 1-6, 7-5 2007 Ivo Karlovic Mariano Zabaleta 6-4, 6-1 2006 Mardy Fish Jurgen Melzer 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 DOUBLES WATCH: No 1 seeds the Bryan brothers are five-time champions in Houston, having reached six of the last nine finals. Germany’s Philipp Petzschner and Alexander Peya of Austria, the No. 2 seeds, are making their team debut in Houston, as are Eric Butorac and partner Scott Lipsky, who reached the 2015 final (w/Huey). Sam Querrey and Steve Johnson are the No. 4 seeds; Querrey has reached the final on two previous occasions, losing (w/ Isner) to the Bryans in 2011 before winning (w/Blake) over Huey and Inglot in 2012. It is 10 years since Julian Knowle reached the final (w/Melzer, l. to Kohlmann/Waske); the Austrian is back with Slovak Igor Zelenay. DOUBLES HONOR ROLL (since 2006): BOLD - Players in doubles draw YEAR CHAMPION RUNNER-UP 2015 Ricardas Berankis / Teymuraz Gabashvili Treat Huey / Scott Lipsky 2014 Bob Bryan / Mike Bryan David Marrero / Fernando Verdasco 2013 Jamie Murray / John Peers Bob Bryan / Mike Bryan 2012 James Blake / Sam Querrey Treat Huey / Dominic Inglot 2011 Bob Bryan / Mike Bryan John Isner / Sam Querrey 2010 Bob Bryan / Mike Bryan Stephen Huss / Wesley Moodie 2009 Bob Bryan / Mike Bryan Jesse Levine / Ryan Sweeting 2008 Ernests Gulbis / Rainer Schuettler Pablo Cuevas / Marcel Granollers 2007 Bob Bryan / Mike Bryan Mark Knowles / Daniel Nestor 2006 Michael Kohlmann / Alexander Waske Julian Knowle / Jurgen Melzer Fayez Sarofim & Co. U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship Day 1 – Monday, April 4, 2016 Page 3 of 7 www.ATPWorldTour.com SEEDS TO WATCH THIS WEEK SINGLES: SEED PLAYER RECORD BEST FINISH 1. John Isner (USA) 11-7 Winner 2013 2. Benoit Paire (FRA) 0-0 DEBUT 3. Feliciano Lopez (ESP) 4-3 SF 2012 4. Jack Sock (USA) 8-2 Winner 2015 5. Sam Querrey (USA) 11-6 F 2010, ’15 6. Steve Johnson (USA) 2-3 R16 2014-15 7. Marcos Baghdatis (CYP) 1-2 R16 2006 8. Paolo Lorenzi (ITA) 3-3 QF 2013 WILDCARDS (3): YOUNGEST: Tommy Paul (USA) Frances Tiafoe (USA) – 18 years, 2 months Tim Smyczek (USA) Frances Tiafoe (USA) OLDEST: Michael Berrer (GER) – 35 years, 9 months QUALIFIERS (4): Matthew Barton (AUS) TOP COUNTRY BREAKDOWN: Carlos Berlocq (ARG) USA (9), Argentina, Germany (4 each) Nicolas Kicker (ARG) Countries in total: 13 Mischa Zverev (GER) PROTECTED RANKING: Dmitry Tursunov (RUS) DOUBLES: SEED PLAYERS BEST FINISH 1. Bob Bryan / Mike Bryan Winner 2007, 2009-11, 2014 2. Philipp Petzschner / Alexander Peya DEBUT 3. Eric Butorac / Scott Lipsky DEBUT 4. Steve Johnson / Sam Querrey R16 2014 EMIRATES ATP RANKING POINTS AND PRIZE MONEY W F SF QF R16 R28 SINGLES RANKING POINTS 250 150 90 45 20 0 SINGLES PRIZE MONEY ($) 91,630 48,260 26,140 14,890 8,775 5,200 DOUBLES RANKING POINTS 250 150 90 45 0 — DOUBLES PRIZE MONEY ($) 27,840 14,630 7,930 4,540 2,660 — Fayez Sarofim & Co.