10.0 Mixed Team Finishes Second at Nationals

Congratulations to Richmond’s 10.0 mixed doubles team who represented the Mid-Atlantic Section and finished second in the USTA 10.0 Mixed National Championships in Tucson, Arizona on November 18-21. The team won its round robin with a 3-1 record, defeating Texas, Midwest and Eastern to clinch a spot in the semi-finals. They beat Pacific Northwest 2-1 to advance to the championship final and were narrowly defeated 2-1 by Northern California.

Left to right in photo: Garrett Horsley, David Shay, Ginny Wortham, Julie Ogborne, Kirsten Elim and Chris Blair

Raise a Racket and Celebrate!

Thanks to all of you, the RTA is pleased to announce that Richmond has been awarded third place in the USTA’s 2010 Best Tennis Town in America contest. As a result, the City of Richmond will be the recipient of a $25,000 grant from the USTA. The ceremony took place today during the U.S. Open and plenty of Richmonders travelled to New York to be a part of the excitement in the Arthur Ashe Stadium. Officially representing Richmond were Eric Perkins, RTA Vice President, and The Honorable Ellen Robertson, Vice President of Richmond City Council. The other two finalists were Atlanta, GA, awarded $50,000 for second place, and Charleston, SC, awarded $100,000 for first place.

Eighty-two cities around the country vied for the USTA funds in this competition, so the RTA is proud to have created the video application that secured one of these coveted awards. The RTA anticipates meeting with Richmond City officials in the coming months to allocate the funds, which will go to support community tennis programming and tennis facilities in our area.

Many thanks are owed to all of the RTA volunteers, city officials, and tennis clubs who campaigned so feverishly over the summer. We want to give special thanks to the local media outlets and organizations (local network affiliates, sports radio, Richmond Times Dispatch, Richmond Sports Backers, Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce, Virginia Commonwealth University, University of Richmond, Retail Merchants Association, and others) who helped in this endeavor to bring tennis to the forefront of our community.

Thanks also to the power of social media networking and the Internet, we enjoyed the support of the USTA/Mid-Atlantic Section, USTA/Virginia, the Washington Kastles World Team Tennis organization, and community tennis associations and clubs from around the nation---from the Canyon Creek Women’s Racquet Club in Dallas, TX, to the Roseville Community Tennis Association in Granite Bay, CA.

So, raise your rackets in a salute to Richmond—officially now the third Best Tennis Town in America!

Richmond Mid-Atlantic team named 5.0 Women’s National Finalist

5.0 Women’s Finalists: Richmond, VA
Leslie Butterworth, Lindsey Wyeth, Kirsten Elim, captain Julie Ogborne, Martha Condyles, Ginny Wortham, and Margie Walsh. (Juan Ocampo/USTA photo)

INDIAN WELLS, CA--The Richmond Mid-Atlantic team was named the 5.0 Women’s National Finalist.

At No. 1 singles, Mid-Atlantic’s Ginny Wortham whipped Julie Barrier 6-2, 6-0.

Southern Cal’s No. 1 doubles team of Amy Alcini and Tracie Currie won in straight sets over Kirsten Elim and captain Julie Ogborne 6-3, 6-3.

The Southern California (Malibu) No. 2 doubles team of Deborah Higa and 1977 Wimbledon Women’s Doubles Champion Joanne Russell prevailed over Margie Walsh and Leslie Butterworth 5-7, 6-1, 10-7 in the third-set tiebreak. (Russell beat Martina Navratilova and Betty Stove in that Wimbledon final and reached a career-high No. 22 in singles.)

Ogborne said, “The difference was just a matter of Southern California’s strong doubles teams playing the big points better. Southern Cal executed some key shots at big moments and they deserved the victory. Our team simply gave 100% effort on every point and we are proud to make that final. It was battle to get there and everyone on our team contributed.”

Other Richmond players who contributed to the team’s success this season are Lindsey Wyeth and Martha Condyles.

Ogborne said, “Our friendships with each other make this a special team. We all contributed to the success of this season. In the first three team matches at Nationals, a different player or doubles team clinched the team victories. Four out of the five team matches that we won prior to the final were 2-1 wins, so any of those matches could have gone either way.”

In 2007, Condyles was the captain and directed several members on this team to a National Runner-up finish.

In November, Wortham, Ogborne, and Elim will be going to 10.0 National Mixed Doubles in Tucson.

MAC takes 2010 Anthem Club Challenge Cup

Midlothian Athletic Club (MAC) won the 2010 Anthem Club Challenge, held September 24-26 at the Westwood Club in Richmond, Va. With a score of 110, MAC barely grabbed first place—they had ACAC on their heels with a score of 106. The rest of the field placed as follows: Raintree, Burkwood, Westwood, Salisbury, Woodlake, CCV, Midlothian Tennis Club, Dominion, Hermitage, and Willow Oaks.

En route to their first ever Anthem Challenge win, MAC teams led the scoring each day of the 3 day event. “This was our first time wining so everyone was so excited,” commented Al Thomas, MAC’s head pro. He attributed the club’s first place honors to the tryout process. “Different clubs have their own way of establishing their teams—some are hand picked, some compete. We had a great tryout process and that’s what really made our teams strong. We had a lot of players trying out and there was a lot of great competition. The winners really earned their spots and that’s what made our teams strong going into the event.” He noted that member support was also strong. “Those players that didn’t get a spot practiced with the teams so club support was there.” Overall, he said, it was a terrific event for the players. “It was fantastic and everyone had a great time.”

The Anthem Challenge, now in its 18th year, is the biggest non-USTA tournament/event in VA. With over 600 players competing, this three-day event fields the top players from a dozen tennis clubs throughout the Richmond metropolitan area. Organized by the RTA and sponsored by Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, the event features 12 teams competing over 3 days. Each team has players compete in USTA rated levels of 3.0 to 4.5, as well as an Open level for a men’s and a mixed doubles team. Competition is doubles only, with 2 men’s, 2 women’s, and one mixed doubles teams at each level (except Open, which has 1 men’s and one mixed doubles team). The scoring system awards the winning team 2 points for each individual match, while the losing team receives 1 point and defaults result in no points. The winning team is determined by the club that accumulates the most points over the 3 days of play.

View photos

It's time for the 2010 Anthem Challenge

Get ready for the eighteenth annual 2010 Anthem Challenge at the Westwood Club, Sept. 24 - 25. Read more.

Richmond to host Premier Cup

Richmond and the Richmond Platform Tennis Association have been selected to host the 2010 Premier Cup Oct. 15 - 17. Read more (PDF doc)

Oct. Tournaments Benefit Massey Breast Cancer Research

The Country Club of Virginia will host both women's and men's tournaments in October to benefit VCU Massey Cancer Center Breast Cancer Research.

Women, register for the 2010 Ladies' Tennis Tournament on Monday, Oct. 18 at the Country Club of Virginia. Download the registration form (PDF doc) -- deadline to register is Oct. 11.

Men, register for the 2010 Men's Tennis Tournament on Thursday, Oct. 7 at the Country Club of Virginia. Download the registration form (PDF doc) -- deadline to register is Oct. 1.

RAISE A RACKET AND CELEBRATE!

Thanks to all of you, the RTA is pleased to announce that Richmond has been awarded third place in the USTA’s 2010 Best Tennis Town in America contest. As a result, the City of Richmond will be the recipient of a $25,000 grant from the USTA.

The ceremony took place today during the U.S. Open and plenty of Richmonders travelled to New York to be a part of the excitement in the Arthur Ashe Stadium. Officially representing Richmond were Eric Perkins, RTA Vice President, and The Honorable Ellen Robertson, Vice President of Richmond City Council. The other two finalists were Atlanta, GA, awarded $50,000 for second place, and Charleston, SC, awarded $100,000 for first place.

Eighty-two cities around the country vied for the USTA funds in this competition, so the RTA is proud to have created the video application that secured one of these coveted awards. The RTA anticipates meeting with Richmond City officials in the coming months to allocate the funds, which will go to support community tennis programming and tennis facilities in our area.


Many thanks are owed to all of the RTA volunteers, city officials, and tennis clubs who campaigned so feverishly over the summer. We want to give special thanks to the local media outlets and organizations (local network affiliates, sports radio, Richmond Times Dispatch, Richmond Sports Backers, Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce, Virginia Commonwealth University, University of Richmond, Retail Merchants Association, and others) who helped in this endeavor to bring tennis to the forefront of our community.



Thanks also to the power of social media networking and the Internet, we enjoyed the support of the USTA/Mid-Atlantic Section, USTA/Virginia, the Washington Kastles World Team Tennis organization, and community tennis associations and clubs from around the nation---from the Canyon Creek Women’s Racquet Club in Dallas, TX, to the Roseville Community Tennis Association in Granite Bay, CA. 



So, raise your rackets in a salute to Richmond—officially now the thrid Best Tennis Town in America!

Richmond Junior Circuit Masters Tournament Held Aug. 21

On August 21, The Country Club of Virginia hosted the Richmond Junior Circuit Masters Tournament.

The Masters tournament is for the top 8 players in the RJTC standings in each age group. Players competed throughout the summer in 10 tournaments and received points for each match that they played.

At the end of the series, the top 8 players were invited to compete for the Masters Championship.

Congratulations go out to the players listed below for qualifying for the tournament as well as the winners of the Masters Tournament! Way to go!

Boys 8
Alaister Burke
Michael Zuccaro
Hatcher Butterworth
Harrison Janney
Jacob Kalman
Christopher Shiflett
Link Hammerschmidt
Sachin Sanjay
Winner Alaister Burke

Boys 10
Nathan Zhao
Dorsey Ducharme
Andrew Partington
Spencer Whitaker
William Hobbs
Alston Hackney
Joshua Kalman
Shaan Kapadia
Winner Dorsey Ducharme

Girls 10
Jessica Wills
Claire Davis
Casey Carnohan
Kendall Cray
Anna Soffin
Katie Bauduc
Reilly Phelps
Winner Jessica Wills

Boys 12
Grant Sarver
Michael Wagner
Jacob Stern
Joseph Brown
Wil Venitz
Ben Manspile
Andrew Carey
Daniel Hennig
Winner Grant Sarver

Girls 12
Anne Miller
Rachel Partington
Caroline Hare
Anna Ransone
Madeleine Burke
Erin Farleigh
Winner Erin Farleigh

Boys 14
Patrick Reagan
Andrew Reed
Logan Healy
Grant Rabalais
Parker Allen
Jeremy Price
Michael Darr
Nicholas Grandpre
Winner Patrick Reagan

Girls 14
Ellie White
Olivia Wilson
Lilly Ellick
Elizabeth Dudley
Allyson Kearns
Eleanor Manspile
Jordan McFee
Kara Adams
Winner Lilly Ellick

See photos

Worthams Win National Mother/Daughter Event

National USTA Senior and Open Mother/Daughter Grass Court Championships, New Port, RI

Lindsey Wortham and her daughter Ginny Wortham of Richmond, VA have won the National Senior Mother/Daughter Grass Court Championships at the International Tennis Hall of Fame Tennis Center in New Port, RI.
They defeated Myra and Myra Alyne O’Dell of Kingsport, TN for the title.
The local mother/daughter pair may win another Gold Ball in the Open Division of the Mother/Daughter event, also being played there, as they play their last match Saturday, and are the favorites to win the event.
The Gold Ball is the USTA trophy for winning a USTA National event, and winning one is the dream of any tennis player. Winning two Gold Balls at the National Grass Court event will be a fantastic achievement for the Richmonders.

We did it!!

Thanks to all of you, the RTA is pleased to announce that Richmond has been confirmed as one of the top three finalists in the 2010 Best Tennis Town in America contest sponsored by the USTA. The other two finalists are Atlanta, GA, and Charleston, SC. All three cities will all be participants in a special awards ceremony during the U.S. Open in September (date and time to be determined) where the Best Tennis Town 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners will be officially announced. At best, we will return from NYC with the Best Tennis Town title and $100,000 for Richmond tennis. But with 2nd place receiving $50,000 and 3rd receiving $25,000, we are delighted with our success no matter the final outcome.

Many thanks are owed to all of the RTA volunteers, city officials, and tennis clubs who campaigned so feverishly over the past two weeks, with special thanks to the local media outlets and organizations (local network affiliates, sports radio, Richmond Times Dispatch, Richmond Sports Backers, Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce, Virginia Commonwealth University, University of Richmond, Retail Merchants Association, and others) who helped bring tennis to the forefront of our community.

Thanks also to the power of social media networking and the Internet, we enjoyed the support of the USTA/Mid-Atlantic Section, USTA/Virginia, the Washington Kastles World Team Tennis organization, and community tennis associations and clubs from around the nation---from the Canyon Creek Women’s Racquet Club in Dallas, TX, to the Roseville Community Tennis Association in Granite Bay, CA.

Be sure to check this site in the coming weeks—we’ll post the date and time for the ceremony once we have the information. Meanwhile, please join the RTA in spreading the great news for tennis in Richmond!

MacDonalds Winner and Runner-up vote for Richmond!

McDonalds Clay Court Championship women's singles winner Petra Rampre (top) and runner-up Anna Mamalat (bottom) vote for Richmond as the best tennis town. Don't forget to cast your vote for Richmond!

VOTE NOW for Richmond, the Best Tennis Town!

Richmond has been named one of the top ten finalists in the USTA's Best Tennis town contest. Voting runs from July 16 - July 26. Be sure to vote and tell all your friends to vote! Visit besttennistown.com/ to vote and read more , and read the press release here.

Best Tennis Town!

We find out soon if we are one of the lucky 10! Get ready to vote starting July 16! Get your friends ready to vote! We are down the home stretch! Visit besttennistown.com to vote and see finalists.

1st Annual Keith Mumford Memorial Doubles Tournament

1st Annual Keith Mumford Memorial Doubles Tournament -- June 5, 2010, The Country Club of Virginia

Chris Mumford with Sears Driscoll

"It was a Keith Mumford kind of day ... those are the days he loved the most,” said Keith’s brother, Chris Mumford. It was a day that brought 94 players of all ages to compete in a one-day doubles event. Many more gathered at the cookout that afternoon and were treated to some amazing tennis matches. The atmosphere was full of joy. The weekend festivities continued on Sunday, which featured a junior round robin and clinic, an adult round robin and a brunch.

Proceeds from the weekend were donated to the Keith Mumford Tennis Scholarship at Vanderbilt University. His wonderful spirit lives on through all of us who knew him and those who know of him.

See photos.

First Annual Keith Mumford Memorial Tennis Weekend

The Country Club of Virginia presents the First Annual Keith Mumford Memorial Tennis Weekend on June 5–6, 2010

Please join us during this special weekend! Players may sign up for the Saturday tournament and/or the Sunday adult round-robin and children’s event. If you do not wish to participate in the tennis, you can sign up for the Saturday cookout and/or Sunday brunch.

Complete details and an entry form are available for download. (PDF)

Volley for Tennis offers mentoring opportunity in city schools

A Tennis Topics article by John Packett, RTA Staff Writer

Katherine Whitehead and budding tennis stars from Overby-Sheppard Elementary School

When the Quick Start Tennis program was offered to the city of Richmond’s elementary schools last fall, there was a need for volunteers to set up and help run the new activity.

The Richmond Tennis Association, in conjunction with the generosity of Elizabeth and Michael Frazier, got the ball rolling by paying for each school’s membership fee ($50) in the U.S. Tennis Association so they could have access to the Quick Start format and curriculum.

The community-oriented Fraziers donated the nets and other equipment for the project, which uses smaller courts and racquets with a foam ball – as well as a modified system of scoring -- to make it easier for the kids to learn the game.

But the physical education teachers at each school were going to have to have some help from the tennis community.

That’s where Slater Dunbar entered the picture and solicited help from the Richmond Suburban Ladies Tennis League.

“Elizabeth Frazier and Fred Bruner [past RTA president] asked me to create a volunteer force to help with the Quick Start program,” said Dunbar, who is the club coordinator for the Suburban League at Willow Oaks Country Club and plays on a USTA 3.0 team there.

Dunbar came up with Volley for Tennis, a slogan for volunteers who wanted to give their time to Quick Start in the schools.

“It was something of a play on words for volunteering and being a part of tennis to help the schools,” she said. “I thought the ladies would like it.

“So I approached each club in the Suburban League and asked them to promote this volunteer effort within their clubs and to their friends and neighbors, or anyone else in Richmond involved in tennis who had some time to give to the city school kids.

“It just seemed like a very worthwhile effort to promote tennis among children who hadn’t necessarily been exposed to it before.”

Volley for Tennis started in January and is scheduled to run through at least April 13, when a tournament called the Youth Aces Open is set at Virginia Commonwealth University. Some schools may continue the program after the tournament.

“I’d say the response was terrific for the first year,” said Dunbar. “I set up a web site where people could volunteer. People could pick a school that was close to them and work at that school. Or they could pick a day they had available and go to whatever school could use them.

“They would just go in and help the P.E. teacher. Teach the kids how to hold the racquet, or whatever the teacher had planned for the day.”

Some 40 women – and men -- have donated their time and energy to the effort since January and volunteers are still needed.

The web site is www.SignUpGenius.com/go/available, and anyone with tennis experience is encouraged to register.

With cold and snowy weather dominating the weather earlier this year, Quick Start could be held indoors in a classroom or gym

“That’s the great thing about Quick Start is that it can be taught pretty much anywhere you can set up the little net,” said Dunbar.

Dunbar added that the Volley for Tennis group has been to Fox, Overby-Sheppard, Swansboro, Linwood Holton, Carver, Broad Rock and John B. Cary schools. She’s hoping to expand the program into other schools next year.

“It’s a fantastic feeling,” said Dunbar of her own efforts. “You watch these kids participate in something they’ve never been exposed to before. It’s a brand new learning experience for them, and you quickly see there are some children that are very gifted in their tennis ability.

“They have terrific hand-eye coordination, and they are particularly pleased with each other when they see how well one of their classmates performs at something they know is brand new to everybody. It’s really lovely to see the encouragement the children are showing to each other.

“That’s exactly what the sport of tennis is all about. Encouraging and seeing accomplishments in your friends. It’s so much fun being in a casual role with a child and just showing them, not only the sport of tennis, but everything that goes along with it. Etiquette, the rules, sportsmanship.”

Dunbar believes every volunteer will have the same feeling if they take the opportunity available at Volley for Tennis.

Young Aces Open tournament will create ‘chaos’ on April 13

A Tennis Topics article by John Packett, RTA Staff Writer

Organized chaos. If you happen to be in the vicinity of Virginia Commonwealth University’s Cary Street Field on April 13, be prepared for a wild and crazy scene.

That’s because there will be as many as 168 fourth and fifth graders from Richmond Public Schools --- along with nearly that many volunteers from all over the city --- helping with a Quick Start tournament.

Quick Start tennis, which was introduced to the city’s 28 elementary schools last fall, courtesy of the Richmond Tennis Association, involves smaller courts and racquets with a foam ball, along with a modified scoring system to make it easier for youngsters to learn the game.

The tournament, which is scheduled from 1-5 p.m. on April 13, is called the Young Aces Open and will be held on the Cary Street Field (which is used by VCU’s field hockey team) and the Mary and Frances Youth Center, located next to the field.

There will be 42 Quick Start courts set up on the field and several more at the Mary and Frances Center, so a LOT of kids will be batting the little foam ball back and forth.

“All in all, when you add the volunteers, we could easily have 250 people out there that day,” said Tina Carter, director of the Mary and Frances Center. In other words, mass confusion could easily reign over the proceedings. But maybe not.

“It’s going to be exciting,” said Carter, who will be assisted by a group of four students from VCU’s Center for Sport Leadership working toward their master’s degree.

“I also think it’s going to be very organized,” said Carter with a laugh. “It is a first-time event, but we’re going to have the support of the VCU Center for Sport Leadership and their student volunteers. We’ll have RTA volunteers and P.E. teachers from each school.

“The USTA [U.S. Tennis Association] is going to be here to help us set up and break down and run some other activities. It’s hard to go wrong when you have that much support.”

(Anyone interested in volunteering between 1-5 p.m. that day should contact Carter at 804-827-0802 or cccarter@vcu.edu. Volunteers are needed for greeters, court monitors, and to help with activity stations. Limited parking will be available but car-pooling is recommended).

Each school will be represented by as many as six students --- three girls and three boys --- and they’ll play mixed doubles against other schools. Every point a team wins goes to their school’s team score, and there will be trophies for first, second and third places.

“Even though they might not win the match, their total points go into a team score,” said Carter. “We’re trying to promote this as a team effort.”

The VCU graduate students are Mary Bertram, Amanda Hiltunen, Stephen Embrey and J.B. Tanner, and their class is entitled Sports and Entertainment Event Development.

“It’s a two-semester class,” explained Bertram, who is from Salisbury, N.C., and graduated from the University of Richmond. “They split us up into groups and each group was assigned an event to take charge of. This is the event our group is doing.

“We started organizing it last semester. I’d say the past two or three weeks, we’ve really started making some decisions. We’re well on our way into planning everything. We want to make sure there’s no down time at all for the kids … they’re constantly occupied doing something.”

It appears the Quick Start arrangement has been accepted well by the city schools, according to Elizabeth Frazier, who, along with her husband, Michael, donated all the equipment for the program. The Fraziers also founded the Mary and Frances Center.

“The P.E. teachers just loved it, because it’s something different,” said Frazier. “I’ve been to two or three schools as a volunteer and the kids love it. It’s so easy for them to play on the smaller courts. What I love about it, too, is we try to teach sportsmanship.

“We’ll have a sportsmanship award at the tournament because I believe we should help kids learn to do the right thing.”

The Young Aces Open is intended to be an annual affair, Carter said, and who knows, maybe even more organized chaos next year.

Straus spent his life helping people on and off the court

A Tennis Topics article by John Packett, RTA Staff Writer

Raymond Straus was all about helping others.

Whether it was letting homeless people sleep in his garage when the area was hit by a snowstorm or starting an organization to give junior tennis players an opportunity to improve their games, the native Richmonder didn’t hesitate to lend a hand.

“He was always willing to do something for you and never, ever asked for anything in return,” said Bill Carli, who was friends with Straus since their high-school days. “He really got a lot of enjoyment from helping other people.”

Straus, 48, died in his sleep on March 6, and his passing will be missed not only by many in the Richmond marketing community, where he served as president of two local agencies, but by those in the area tennis fraternity.

With his wife of 19 years, April, Straus founded Tennis4Life Academy, a non-profit youth organization dedicated to making junior players in Richmond better. From its inception in 2007, Tennis4Life had grown to serving 125 families in the area.

“The three of us were chatting about it,” said Kim Brewer, a close friend of the family who also helped get the project going, “but he was always the guidance behind it. The voice of reason. He always sat and listened to everybody’s input and then, at the end of the day, would try and direct us.”

Tennis4Life paid area pros to work with juniors at Courtside West Racquet and Fitness Club, Virginia Commonwealth University, Kanawha Recreation Association and Collegiate in an effort to make them more competitive with their counterparts in Northern Virginia and Maryland.

“We couldn’t find the kind of tennis programs we wanted for our own children, nor could some others, so it just kind of started from that point,” continued Brewer. “We said, ‘Wouldn’t it be fun to pull something together for our own children?’

“And then we had so many parents from different levels that came to us and it just grew from there.”

Brewer also pointed out how well Straus got along with whoever he had contact with.

“He meant a lot to everybody,” she said. “He really embraced everybody. Sears Driscoll was telling me, ‘You know, Raymond just made such an effort to get to know me and include me and become my friend. He didn’t have to do that. All I was doing was hitting with Brady once a week.’”

Straus’ son, Brady, is a ninth-grader at Collegiate and a member of the tennis team that won the Prep League and Virginia Independent Schools championships last year. A daughter, Allie, also plays on the junior varsity squad.

“That’s how Raymond was with everybody,” said Brewer. “He loved to get to know you. He was so kind and such an amazing man.”

A 4.0 player himself, Straus enjoyed watching Brady play, as well as other juniors.

“The thing about Raymond is he wasn’t so concerned about who the best player was, he really liked seeing these guys out there competing and showing good sportsmanship,” said Damian Sancilio, a teaching pro and director of tennis at Courtside West.

“I remember when Brady played a match against John DePew in the city tournament last year. It was a really good-level match. I remember his comments about that match. He loved the fact that it was a young guy against an older guy, and they were such good sports with each other.

“He loved that whole thing and he was so proud that he was the father of a guy who was so respectful to the other player. It wasn’t, ‘Oh, Brady, that would be great if you could beat this guy.’ He had nothing to do with that. He just like the fact there was a great spirit out there.”

Pat Anderson, another teaching pro who worked with Tennis4Life, said Straus got a kick out of watching everybody play.

“He followed other kids, not just Brady, in tournaments,” said Anderson. “Whether it was Shyam [Venkatasubramanian] or whoever, he was cheering for them. And in different sports. Brady was a good soccer player, too, and he went to his matches. He was really into sports.”

And Straus didn’t mind donating his time to help run some of the junior tournaments around town.

“I can remember sitting at the University of Richmond one Saturday during the city [junior] tournament,” said Anderson. “We were helping him for a minute. He had been out there all day and I swear it was like 97 degrees or something, with not much shade.

“He was out there buying lunch for the people who were helping him. He was always doing stuff like that. Just a great guy.”

Carli may have summed up Straus’ life best when he said, “He was a real gentleman and looked out for other people a lot of times more so than for himself.”

2010 Tennis Night in America event at Willow Oaks Country Club February 28, 2010

Willow Oaks Country Club will be hosting a Youth Registration Tennis Night in America event featuring Wayne Bryan, father of Mike & Bob Bryan. To sign up for this event, please contact Willow Oaks Country Club at 804.32.3244 or crobinson@willowoakscc.org. Please provide your name, email, phone number and age in the email. Click on this link to view the flyer.