by Beth Rifkin
Wind chill - rain - snow - freezing temperatures! North American winters are no day at the beach for the tennis crowd. And having watched those lucky Australian Open attendees soak up the sun while we've all been left out in the cold has made it even worse. I'm so outta here-headed to the States version of "endless summer" at Delray Beach, Florida - where the ATP Tour's American hard-court season kicks-off and the average February temps are in the 70's!
"It's not even about a yellow tennis ball going back and forth anymore." says Delray Beach International Tennis Championships Executive Director John Butler, "It's about the music, the food, the fashion, the revelry. We've created an event that actually transcends the sport now while featuring the games most fantastic stars - and it doesn't hurt that they hit a ball 140 miles an hour. You need a seat belt for the ITC."
In its 16th year and taking place at the Delray Beach Stadium & Tennis Center February 9-17, 2008, the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships really do have it all - 32-player draw, total prize money of $436,000, top tennis stars, entertainment, Kidz Day, food and used tennis racquet drives (free tickets for non-perishable food donations and usable racquets), Ladies Day lunch, VIP dinner party, a charity pro-am and special Valentines Day packages.
Two-time ITC champion Xavier Malisse of Belgium (pictured above) will be making his ninth appearance in Delray Beach --- and hoping for a nice long stay in Florida by repeating last year's championship wins in both singles and doubles play.
In addition to Malisse, top world ranked American James Blake and Tommy Haas of Germany lead an exciting and competitive field that includes Americans Mardy Fish, Vincent Spadea, Robert Kendrick, Bobby Reynolds, Michael Russell, rising stars John Isner, Sam Querrey and Donald Young, Argentinean Juan Martin Del Potro, Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez and Germany's Benjamin Becker. And the doubles action is sure to be scorching with top ranked doubles team Americans Bob and Mike Bryan leading the draw.
What's this? A round-trip ticket to South Florida for under $200?! I'm so there - see you on the beach!
Tournament Info: www.yellowtennisball.com
January 31, 2008
