2024 Etchebaster

2024 Etchebaster

By an interested observer The Etchebaster trophy was contested at the Racquet Club of Chicago from January 19th – 22nd, 2024. Six players traveled to Chicago from New York, Boston, Detroit, Philadelphia, Washington D.C and Aiken. There was also a strong field of 16 Chicago players, and a notable performance goes to Chicago’s Lawson Buhl, who lost narrowly in the R16 to #2 seed Jason McAlhaney 6-3, 4-6, 6-5. The Etchebaster final of 2024 was between Chicago’s John Pak and Westwood Country Club’s Conrad Calcagno. Conrad had earlier survived two three-set thrillers on Saturday, firstly in the quarterfinal against local… Read the Full Story >

2024 Hickey Cup

2024 Hickey Cup

by James Greenley The Hickey Cup was played at Georgian Court University in Lakewood, NJ. There was a full draw of 16 players from Washington, Philadelphia, Boston, Tuxedo and Newport. There was some superb tennis from everyone in the tournament. There were two draws. Those who didn’t get through the first round were entered into the plate draw. In the plate, the final involved the young and upcoming player Kurt Mueller and Randy Barr. Randy got off to a good start, taking the lead 6-1. Kurt fought back into the match, hitting targets and some fantastic winners. Kurt ended up… Read the Full Story >

Westwood 70+ Invitational – 2024

Westwood 70+ Invitational – 2024

by Ivan Ronaldson With the Hickey Cup at Lakewood oversubscribed, Westwood held a Level event for handicaps 70 and above. A total of 15 players entered, with nine locals and six traveling from Philadelphia and Newport. In the top half of the draw, both the 1st and 4th seeds were knocked out in their first match, leading to a semifinal between unseeded Brian Lutz and Andy Davidson. Brian’s athleticism wasn’t quite enough to deal with Andy’s experience and serving variety. Davidson won 6-4, 6-1 and advanced to the final. In the bottom half of the draw, Sydney Alderman from Philadelphia… Read the Full Story >

2024 Junior Handicap

2024 Junior Handicap

by Dawson Lane A small but enthusiastic group of Junior played in the 2024 Junior Handicap Singles at the Tuxedo Club on January 13th & 14th. Hazel Christensen, Johnny Dawson, Walt Laukitis, Kurt Mueller & Calliope Yannuzzi participated in a round-robin where all the juniors played four matches, with Johnny Dawson & Kurt Mueller earning the right to play each other in the Final. Based on the results of the round-robin, Kurt was the favorite heading into the final, even with a slight handicap adjustment based upon Kurt going undefeated in the round-robin portion of the event. Kurt played an… Read the Full Story >

2024 Parent Child

2024 Parent Child

by Dawson Lane No non-Tuxedo entries to the 2024 Parent-Child allowed the conversion to a Family Handicapped Doubles event! This change allowed 12 teams to participate in a fun weekend of handicapped doubles. Three (4) team round robins saw the winners of each group, and the team with the 2nd most games won moved on to the semifinals. Maria Panico & Steve Klepper defeated Lindsay & Gavin Maxwell in an entertaining three-set semifinal to earn their spot in the Final. In the other semifinal, Johnny Dawson and ‘adopted for the weekend’ Dad Chris Heffernan defeated the Mother-Son pairing of Serena… Read the Full Story >

**IMPORTANT TOURNAMENT SCHEDULING INFO** Hickey Cup There are limited spaces; if you have not entered and are interested, please contact Ivan Ronaldson ASAP New Tournament! Westwood 70 + Invitational Singles tournament is open to players with handicaps 70 and above. January 26-28, 2024 – Westwood CC Women’s Events – NEW DATES – IMPORTANT!!! The U.S. Ladies Open will now be played on May 17-19, 2024 in Tuxedo The Women’s Invitational (U.S. Women’s Amateur) will be held at Westwood CC on May 3-5, 2023. The tournament is open to all U.S.-based amateurs. Details on both women’s tournaments will be available soon.

2023 USCTA Annual Dinner, Awards & Auction

2023 USCTA Annual Dinner, Awards & Auction

by James Zug In mid-December 2023, the Racquet & Tennis Club hosted the twenty-sixth annual United States Court Tennis Association dinner and auction during the traditional Whitney Cup weekend. Nearly two hundred people came to the dinner. It was ably chaired again by Ted Goneos, with assistance from Ben Lawrence; they both wrangled auction lots, helped set up the east and south lounges, donated wine and reached out to USCTA members. For those not watching a very tight, long-delayed final match on the West Court (Anderson Good & Noah Motz topped Chris Holter & Tom McGinnis 6-4 in the third… Read the Full Story >

Fortnight Before Christmas

Fortnight Before Christmas

Fortnight Before Christmas By Peter Pell and Jim Zug   ‘Twas the fortnight before Christmas, when all through the Clubhouse Not a bleacher was roaring, although ready to pounce. The mugs were placed on the mantle with care, In hopes that victory soon would be theirs. The patrons were nestled all snug in the dedans; with memories of Greentree and practicing lockjaw Drama in the culture, finest amateurs we tap; DC kit bags were opened for intense winter’s scrap. When out on Park Avenue there arose such a clatter, I sprang from the long-green to see what was the matter.… Read the Full Story >

2023 Jimmy Dunn

2023 Jimmy Dunn

by Rob Whitehouse The 42nd annual Jimmy Dunn saw its biggest turnout in history, with 204 entrants competing in court Tennis, singles and doubles squash and racquets! Two hundred seventy-four matches were played over four days at the Racquet Club. We had players attend from all over the country and a few from across the pond. The tennis had fifty-six teams entered across seven different divisions. The atmosphere was incredible, with matches scheduled all day, and the competition was very even in all divisions. Most players entered multiple events, making for some exhausted players on Sunday! The Jock Soutar saw… Read the Full Story >

2023 Silver Racquet Weekend

2023 Silver Racquet Weekend

By the R&TC Professional Staff Silver Racquet Invitational  The Invitational Tennis Singles produces a draw nearly commensurate with the U.S. Amateur, and this year did not disappoint. Players from five clubs fought it out in the Main Draw. Seeds progressed accordingly despite an exceptional performance from Matt Mackin against his clubmate, Ben Stein. Both Bristowe and Stein were nearly flawless in their Semi-Final performances, with Freddie overcoming James Medlow and Stein likewise overcoming Henry Smith. This is perhaps the youngest Semi-Final in memory and a terrific sign of the times to come.  In the Final, Ben played one of the… Read the Full Story >