by Leon Smart
On April 4th – 6th, the Tennis & Racquet Club in Boston hosted the USCTA National 40s, showcasing a strong field.
The singles main draw kicked off with tightly fought matches, setting the tone for the weekend. Alex Spence opened his campaign with a hard-earned victory over Jeff Horine, prevailing 6-5, 3-6, 6-3 in a match full of momentum swings. On the same day, Shep Skiff faced a dominant Todd Meringoff; Todd advanced in straight sets, 6-1, 6-2. Jeremy Wintersteen came from a set down to outlast John Pak, 5-6, 6-2, 6-3, in a gritty performance.
Meringoff continued his fine form in the semifinals, dispatching Wintersteen 6-2, 6-1 to book his spot in the final. The other semifinal produced one of the tournament’s biggest upsets as Alex Spence beat the number 1 seed, Gabe Kinzler, after losing the first set. The result was 5-6, 6-0, 6-2, booking Spence a spot in the singles final.
The championship match saw Meringoff assert his authority, defeating Spence 6-5, 6-1 to claim the 2025 National 40s Singles title.
The doubles event featured a round-robin format leading into a final. The team of Todd Meringoff & Alex Spence was dominant from start to finish. After comfortably defeating Wintersteen & Skiff 10-2, they faced Horine & Pak in the final. Meringoff & Spence took the title in a commanding display with a 6-3, 6-1 victory.
The back draw was equally compelling, featuring close battles and a great run by Shep Skiff. Jeff Horine edged past John Pak in the semifinals in a dramatic 10-9 finish, while Skiff overcame Kinzler 10-6 to advance to the final. Skiff capped his run in the final with a strong performance, defeating Horine 10-8 to take the Back Draw Singles title.
Congratulations to Todd Meringoff, who took home titles in both singles and doubles and to all the competitors who made the event a great success.
