The Racquet Club of Chicago proudly hosted the 2018 U.S. 40s Singles and Doubles from May 11-13.
The tournament was very evenly matched with the top seven players in the draw within 4 handicap points of each other and winning would come down to who performed at their best in the pivotal moments.
Ryan Carey was in dominant form from the start as he dispatched British hopeful Nick Browne 6-5, 6-2. Carey followed that up by beating the in-form local, Max Drake, by the same score line.
The wide-open bottom half of the draw featured excellent matches. In one first-round match, Frederika Adam squared off against Jack Brown. The match, which was played to a very high level, ended with the slightly steadier Frederika emerging victorious 6-5, 6-4.
In another strong first-round match, Greg Van Schaack was drawn against Chicago’s Rowan Carroll. The match didn’t disappoint as both players showed great court coverage and accuracy with their shots. Rowan came out of the blocks a little quicker, controlled the service end and won the set first 6-3. Greg began to reacquaint himself with the court early in the match and, in doing so, regained his lethal return of serve. This allowed Greg to continually set short chases during which he found a good length on his serve. This combination lead to a come-from behind 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 victory.
The semi-final between Frederika Adam and Greg Van Schaack was the match of the tournament with wonderful athleticism interspersed with excellent shot-making and retrieving. Frederika managed to save 3 match points before finally winning 6-1, 4-6, 6-5.
Ryan Carey was at his absolute best in the final . In continuing his dominant form from earlier in the tournament, Ryan didn’t allow Frederika to settle in. By using some accurate forcing mixed in with some tight cut strokes Ryan secured the Singles Championship 6-2, 6-2.
Chicago’s Jack Brown and Max Drake won the Doubles Championship when they scored a minor upset in defeating the #1 seeds Ryan Carey and Greg Van Schaack. The final was played at a scintillating pace. Jack and Max managed to win the important points, and the tournament in a 6-3, 6-4 match.
Thank-you to the Racquet Club for hosting the event, and to the tournament chairman, Max Drake for his superb running of the tournament.
Also, a huge thanks to John Cashman and Steve Virgona for their marking throughout the weekend.
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Ryan Carey, Greg Van Schaack, Max Drake & Jack Brown
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Max Drake & Jack Brown
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Freddie Adam & Ryan Carey
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