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.

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