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Sam
Querrey (USA) - 2009 LA TENNIS OPEN CHAMPION |
QUERREY GETS IT DONE
By Kelly Richards
Los Angeles - It was a true Southern California
celebration at the Los Angeles Tennis Open Sunday. Four of the
six finalists at the annual UCLA tournament were locals: Sam
Querrey from Thousand Oaks, Bob and Mike Bryan from Camarillo
and newcomer Carsten Ball from Newport Beach.
After competing as juniors, Querrey and Ball faced off
in their first ATP singles final. Ball needed to win three
qualifying matches before advancing into the main draw. “I thought of it as a
regular old juniors match and just went out to have fun,” he
said.
In the first set, there were three breaks. First Querrey, then
Ball and then Querrey again. Querrey came out ahead after an
amazing exchange at the net in the ninth game. From there the
21-year-old grabbed the first set 6-4. But, Querrey faltered in
the second. A lefty, Ball simply served better and took
advantage of Sam’s weaker second serves to win 6-3. “I was
worried,” said Querrey, “He got a good read on my second serve.”
“I knew Carsten had a huge serve. He’s got weapons. You just
can’t break him one game after the next.” Querrey said he took a
deep breath and regrouped for the third. “ I didn’t want to lose
a third final,” he said referring to his recent two losses in
the last two weeks at Newport, Rhode Island and Indianapolis.
“Sam got a break in the third and that gave him confidence,”
Ball said. “He had the better serve.” Back to back aces finished
off Carsten Ball 6-1.
This is Querrey’s second ATP title and he’ll take home a
paycheck of $100,000. Ball, the son of Australian tennis legend
Syd Ball, got pushed into a new tax bracket, winning $50,000.
But he wasn’t going to spend it all at once. “I’m going to put
it into the bank and think about it.”.
BRYAN TWINS TAKE THEIR FIFTH
LA TENNIS OPEN TITLE
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Bryan Brothers hold up 5 for 5-time Doubles Champions |
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Photos by
Adam Davis |
Mike and Bob Bryan are going to need a bigger sign at the Los
Angeles Tennis Open next year. They are officially the "winningest"
players at the annual UCLA tournament. A final ace cemented
their record fifth title in a second set tiebreaker, 6-4, 7-6.
“We’ve never lost a final here,” said Bob. The
Bryan brothers have won the most titles in the history of the
tournament including singles and doubles.
It wasn’t a walkover for the Bryan brothers. Opponents Benjamin
Becker and Frank Moser gave up only one break in the first set
and none in the second. However, the German team lost a couple
of key points early in the tiebreaker and were just never able
to recover. Becker said the Bryans were just “too good.” This is
the first time Moser has matched up against the twins and he’s
“hoping to get a chance to play them again.”
“They were playing clutch,” Mike said of Moser and Becker. Bob
thought they edged ahead when they broke in the first set. “We
like to be the frontrunners.”
Disappointed after recent losses in Europe, the twins were
especially happy to play close to home. This LA tournament holds
special memories. “They gave us our first chance on the tour
when we were 16,” said Bob. “We’ll keep coming back until we’re
50.”
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Bryans
celebrate their victory. |
A large contingent of family,
friends and neighbors, 80 strong, came from Camarillo in nearby
Ventura County, including mother Kathy who they say “gets too
nervous” to watch often.
“We have extra focus when we’re
playing in front of friends and family. We never get down when
they’re rooting for us,” they said. “We like to show them how
good we are.”
The 54th title of their career, the twin tennis terrors are
working their way up to being the most successful doubles team
in tennis history. Currently, the famous Australian duo “the Woodies” Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde hold the record with
61 titles.
Their record fifth win at the Los
Angeles Open this week isn’t the only record the Bryan Brothers
are making. They’re also making an actual record.
“Let It Rip” is scheduled to be released coinciding with the
U.S. Open in New York the end of August.
“It’s mostly fun for us. We’re just hoping the critics don’t rip
us to shreds,” said Mike Bryan. The brothers say music is their
second passion after tennis.
Mike plays the drums. Bob is on keyboards and bass. And good
friend David Baron at vocals, piano and guitar. The dynamic duo
of tennis met Baron at one of their charity events and have
become fast friends.
The Bryan Brothers say they’d like to play gigs and sell records
at tournaments. “We’re having a great time doing it.”
Winning $31,900 in Los Angeles this week will help defray costs
for studio fees they are incurring simultaneously. With Baron,
the brothers have written six original songs for the album. They
sing lead on one and background on the others.
“It’s upbeat, happy music,” describe the Bryans. “They’re tennis
oriented songs, but you can take them anyway.”
The highly successful doubles team says they use music to relax
between matches on the tour.
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ABOUT THE LA TENNIS OPEN PRESENTED BY FARMERS INSURANCE
The LA Tennis Open Presented by Farmers Insurance has been played every
year since 1927, making it the longest-running annual professional
sporting event in Los Angeles. Played since 1984 at the LA Tennis Center
on the campus of UCLA, the tournament is part of the Olympus US Open
Series, the six-week summer tennis season linking 10 ATP World Tour and
Sony Ericsson WTA Tour events to the US Open that in 2008 drew a record
of more than 50 million television viewers. Proceeds from the LA Tennis
Open benefit the grassroots programs of the non-profit Southern
California Tennis Association (SCTA) and UCLA. The SCTA offers programs,
leagues, and tournaments involving 300,000 juniors and 50,000 adults and
seniors. Information on tickets and the tournament can be found at
www.LATennisOpen.com. |
