New York Handicap A Division
The 2008 New York Open A Handicap draw, populated with a wide cross section of professionals and amateurs from the various clubs, resulted in excellent competition. Out of town entrants included Kris Motz of Washington, Jacques Faulise, Tony Hollins, and Pat Winthrop from Newport, Robert Matheson of Washington/Newport by way of Charlottesville, P Shannon of Washington , and Jeremy Wintersteen of Boston. Also of note was a handful of relative newcomers who have parlayed their strong squash abilities into very convincing tennis skills: Patrick Haynes, Coly Smith, and Noah Wimmer, all of New York.
The top half of the draw saw several notable matches, including an improbable first round match-up of two former Open A champions, Jeremy Wintersteen and Charlie Johnstone. Wintersteen prevailed in that test, and then proceeded to beat yet another former champion, Pat Winthrop, in the quarterfinals. Wintersteen ensured a berth in the finals with a dispatching of the local Noah Wimmer.
The bottom half of the draw was dominated by the precise shotmaking of Tony Hollins, assistant professional at Newport. After defeating two of his fellow professionals, Neil Smith and Jacques Faulise, Hollins produced two additional victories over New York amateurs Mac McAndrew and Will Thompson to win a chance at the title on Sunday afternoon.
With a grueling Silver Racquet finals entering a third set, the finalists decided to commence play on the west court. Through sparks of brilliant play Hollins displayed the skill that had propelled him through the tournament, but in the end Wintersteen’s tenacious, well-rounded game carried the day and earned him yet another splash of gold paint on the board outside the east court. 2008 NY Open Handicap A draw
New York Handicap B Division
The New York Open ‘B’ Handicap was an extraordinary success this year, fielding a total of 40 players, which substantially exceeded all prior records. Participants came from every major club in America, Boston, Newport, Tuxedo, Philadelphia, Washington, Aiken and, of course, New York.
Highest honors went to two young and rapidly improving players, Graham Jones of the Racquet Club and Max Niederste-Ostholt (know simply as Max NO in the draw) who learned to play as a summer guest at the Racquet Club over a year ago. Graham, a southpaw, won his berth in the final with a surprisingly good railroad serve as well as with exceptional speed around the court. Max, an accomplished all-around athlete, showed remarkable steadiness in his shots and composure under pressure while appearing to all to have actually improved greatly over the last year despite having only rare opportunities to play. In the final match, which was one eight-game set, Graham used his strong serves to secure a formidable six games to two lead over Max only to see Max battle back to a six-six tie. With the audience at the edge of their seats, Graham managed to win the last two closely contested games to win the match and the title 8-6. NY Open Handicap B draw
