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Greetings!
While traditionally a slow month, this past May had its share of interesting stories and events. USCTA President, Greg Van Schaack successfully defended his US 60's Singles title for the fourth time and partnered with Peter Clement to capture their fourth US 60's Doubles title!
On the other side of the spectrum, Georgian Court played host to several novice events. In addition to hosting the annual Jay Gould Novice Doubles, Georgian Court also ran clinics for the students at the University, under the direction of Neil Smith. The year of clinics concluded with the 2012 Intercollegiate Challenge between the women of GCU and Philadelphia.
In Washington, the club hosted an exhibition in honor of Diana and Fred Prince, benefactors of Prince's Court. One of the pictures from the day shows a few of the players that learned the game at Prince's Court. And, on another day, they hosted a "potential" Basque player!
In Chicago, the court renovation is well under way with the grand opening planned for the fall. The Court Tennis Charleston Committee continues to work on their new court plans.
Washington, Georgian Court and now Chicago and soon Charleston - based on the results from Washington and Lakewood, just think of the potential for new players!
Be sure to read Barney Tanfield's piece on "What's the Scenario" in the Tips from the Pro's section. His last line: "Remember serving is a unique opportunity, not an opportunity to be unique" is classic! Also of interest is the video link to a story on MSNBC entitled "The Ball - Discovering the Object of the Game",
Finally, mark your calendars for the upcoming events in June - US Pro Singles playing for the Schochet Cup, the US Parent/Child (suitable for all levels) and the Newport Handicap Doubles. Summer may be just around the corner, but it is not time to put away the tennis racquets...yet!
Sincerely,
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CHICAGO UPDATE
The court restoration is moving along very well at the Racquet Club of Chicago. Under the direction of Bill Bickford with help from John Cashman and Ally Bulley and other RCOC members, work has gone well all spring. Chris Ronaldson, Colin Lumley and Peter Lucke-Hille have been providing expert advice on the proper detailing of such elements as bandeau height, tambour angle and gallery and dedans openings. The Middlesex University court in London has been used as a model.
To read Jim Zug's full story, click here.
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JAY GOULD
The Jay Gould Handicap Novice Doubles was played on May 5th at the Georgian Court in Lakewood, NJ. After a day of competitive round robin play, Gary Barnes & Chris Bernabei prevailed over Paul Monaghan & Schuyler Wickes. For the results and story, Jay Gould 2012
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PRINCE REUNION
On Tuesday May 22 there was a lunch/exhibition at Prince's Court in honor of Diana and Fred Prince, benefactors of Prince's Court. For the full story and pictures, click here.
Note: The majority of players pictured above learned the game at Prince's Court!
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2012 COLLEGIATE CHALLENGE
In April, five women who participated in the yearlong clinics at Georgian Court University traveled to Philadelphia to take on the Racquet Club of Philadelphia's women. By all accounts, it was a fun day of tennis. Kudos to Neil Smith for his efforts in introducing new players to the game! For the full story, click here.
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US 60's
Tuxedo hosted the US 60's Singles & Doubles in May. Greg Van Schaack claimed his fourth 60's singles title, defeating Charlie Johnstone in straight sets. Van Schaack teamed up with Peter Clement to take the doubles title over Johnstone & Chris Cline. The win was their fourth title as well! For complete results .
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BASQUE VISITOR
Let's proceed with this story on the assumption that the average court tennis player probably doesn't speak much Basque. If so, most will stumble over at least the middle one of these three names: JOSEBA ETXEBESTE OTEGI.
But what if you are given the hint that the "X" sounds like "CH"? It becomes the Spanish Basque version of Etchebaster. Read on for Haven Pell's story on the Basque visitor to Prince's Court!
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TIPS FROM THE PRO
by Barney Tanfield
What's the Scenario?
It is not often that you get to make an impression on something at its inception. Serving is an opportunity to try and control something which will inevitably become sporadic and sometimes chaotic. Serving in Real Tennis is substantially more complex than in any other racquet sport. The myriad of possibilities is spectacular with profoundly different approaches, styles and strokes. The practice of serving takes us across a complex set of tasks and objectives.
The Real Tennis serves begs for imagination, unfortunately at times this is as destructive as it is opportunistic. Serving is too often looked at as a novelty or experimental exercise. The sheer absurdity of some serves is enticing enough to get players to recklessly venture into ineffective repetition. Players attempt to hit very particular serves to generate results that are over-ambitious. The appeal of being exotic with the serve can sometimes supersede its effectiveness. Once this occurs, statistically the success rates can be atrocious. Unfortunately, life is not a set of highlights, and we must apply this insight to our serving games. For the solution, continue reading here
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2011/12 ANNUAL REPORT
The 2011/12 USCTA Annual Report will be distributed in September. The 80-plus page, full color report is a summary of the playing year and includes club reports, tournament draws, historical information, feature stories and lots of great photos. You can show your support for the USCTA and the Annual Report by taking out an advertisement. For more information, read the attached flyer.
Want to check out past annual reports? Click here!
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United States Court Tennis Association
c/o The Racquet & Tennis Club
370 Park Ave. New York, New York 10022
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JUNE
4 - 10
NEWPORT, RI
9
USCTA ANNUAL MEETING
MIDDLETOWN, RI
21-24 NEWPORT, RI JULY 6 - 7 VAN ALEN CUP LONDON Junior Team Competition 20-22 VELVET ROPE NEWPORT, RI Doubles open to players between ages 21 & 40 AUGUST 16-19 THE PELL CUP NEWPORT, RI Doubles
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USCTA ANNUAL MEETING
All USCTA members are invited to attend the
2012 Annual Meeting.
June 9, 2012
The Clambake Club
Middletown, RI
9:30 AM
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TENNIS ON MSNBC
Author John Fox was on MSNBC recently talking about his book, "The Ball - Discovering the Object of the Game." and he mentions Jeu de Paume and Fontainebleau.
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VIRGONA TO CHICAGO
Steve Virgona has been named Head Tennis Professional at the Racquet Club of Chicago.
To learn more, click here.
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US PRO SINGLES- SCHOCHET CUP
The US Pro Singles starts on Sunday, June 3 in Newport. The top four seeds are Steve Virgona, Bryn Sayers, Camden Riviere, and Tim Chisholm. The finals will be held on Sunday, June 10. For information on the tournament and draws,
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RTO FORUM - The Goggles Question
Phil Shannon recently got hit in the eye with a ball which resulted in a lengthy trip to the emergency room. He's fine, but cannot play tennis for 8 weeks. Question of the month - "Should protective eye wear be encouraged and/or required?
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VAN ALEN CUP
The Van Alen Cup is a biennial team event between the US and UK. The team consists of players under the age of 25. It will be played this year at The Queen's Club on July 6 & 7.
Congratulations to the following players on being selected for the USA team: Pat Winthrop, Clayton Vaughters, Zach Sacks, Dylan Ward and Amanda Avedissian.
GOOD LUCK!!!!!
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CHARLESTON WEBSITE
Keep abreast as to what's going on with the Charleston Court and The International Court Tennis Hall of Fame by visiting their website.
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USCTA FACEBOOK GROUP
The USCTA is on Facebook!
Interact with other players.
Get the latest news, photos, results and more!
Click here to have a look
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