by Charlie Michele
Over President’s Day weekend, The Tuxedo Club hosted the 117thGold Racquets, as well as the US Pro Singles Rackets Championship. Event Chairs Kim Kilgore, Laura Tillsley and Charlie Michele pulled out all of the stops with a full itinerary. On Friday night, there was a delicious pasta bar for players and guests served at the Tennis House. The galleries were packed throughout the evening, with many patrons utilizing the Club-brewed “Tuxedo Ale” on draft to loosen up the vocal chords. Matches went well into the night with the last tennis ball being hit just before 1:00am.
With a full set of matches on Saturday, play kicked off bright and early at 8:00am. Spectators were spoiled to some high quality tennis throughout the day, as well as some gallery favorite match-ups. Over 175+ guests in attendance at the Saturday Night black tie dance were treated to a delicious surf and turf meal. The band played throughout the night, and the dancefloor was as lively as the galleries in the Tennis House! Quite a few of the younger guests were taught a thing or two on the dancefloor by the more “seasoned” Tuxedo members, truly showing that some things get better with age.
On Sunday, the matches kept on rolling and started getting towards the business end of the tournaments. The patrons were able to witness some exquisite rackets in the evening, with the pros strutting their stuff with some high quality shot-making. Guests were treated to more casual Pub Night at the Main Club for dinner, which was attended by over 100 people. Following tradition, the food was Southern Comfort themed and was enjoyed by all in attendance.
On the Court Tennis court, there was a full capacity of players competing in the singles Gold Racquet (non-handicapped), as well as the Cuspidor Doubles. The singles Gold Racquet was hotly contested in the opening rounds, with a few matches going the distance. Three Tuxedo members (Charlie Michele, John Beam and George Handy) advanced to the quarterfinals, keeping the hope of a hometown winner alive.
The current Tuxedo Club Champion, George Handy, was able to advance to the semi-finals where he faced Pat Winthrop (National Tennis Club). Pat showed why he is one of the top amateur players in the game as he made quick work of George. The second semi-final, between the defending champion Peter Cipriano (NY Racquet & Tennis Club) and Benedict Yorston (Prince’s Court/Radley), was a nail-biter in the first set. Benedict pushed Peter all the way and made him bring out his best shots. Peter was able to play the big points well and advanced to the finals.
The final between Patrick and Peter was one of the best in recent memory. There were grueling points, mixed with some high quality forcing from both players. Peter was able to overcome Pat in a tight four set battle, with the crowd on the edge of their seats during the whole match. With the Bathurst Cup just around the corner, the USA contingent certainly looks like they will be coming with a point to prove!
The Court Tennis Cuspidor Doubles saw a capacity group of players compete in the 2019 competition. After 4 days of play, 3 flighted finals were played on Monday afternoon. In Flight I, Benedict Yorston (Prince’s Court/Radley) & Jake McCray (Prince’s Court) defeated Nick Jones (Seacourt) & Pasha Aziz (NY Racquet & Tennis Club) 8/6. In Flight II, Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh (Tuxedo Club) & Todd Yannuzzi (Tuxedo Club) defeated Suzy Schwartz (Boston T&R Club) & Briggs Fraser (NY Racquet & Tennis Club) 8/5. In Flight III, Dianne Christensen (Tuxedo Club) & Matthew Dupee (Tuxedo Club) defeated Jeremy Thompson (Philadelphia Racquet Club) & Jeremy Kidde (Tuxedo Club) 8/6.
The Rackets Spittoon Doubles was won by Peter Cipriano (NY Racquet & Tennis Club) & Chris Heffernan (Tuxedo Club) over Briggs Fraser (NY Racquet & Tennis Club) & Charles Vleck (Philadelphia Racquet Club). In the Rackets Singles Peter Cipriano defeated Charles Vleck (Philadelphia Racquet Club) in a hard fought, high quality final. That win makes it two consecutive years where Peter has won both the singles rackets as well as singles court tennis, placing him in the company of exceptional players such as Jimmy Bostwick (1961), Pete Bostwick (1969), Guy Devereux (2007) and Jonathan Larken (2011).
The Tuxedo Club once again had the honor to host the US Professional Rackets Singles Championship, and once again we saw World Champion James Stout dominate the competition, winning 3/0 over Neil Smith in the an entertaining final.
Many thanks to Tim Chisholm and all of The Tuxedo Club staff for a hugely successful weekend. We look forward to hosting next year’s 118th edition!
