From Wimbledon’s Centre Court playing Roger Federer last summer to a rained soaked stadium court Sunday at Grand Harbor, Marcus Willis has arrived in Vero Beach.
The Wimbledon Cinderella story from last year summer, Willis arrived in Vero Beach and helped officials with the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships Sunday make the singles main draw, where he is the No. 2 seed.
Willis, himself, pulled the chip out of the pewter Grand Harbor Cup trophy that determined his first round opponent, 16-year-old Ivan Yatsuk of Bradenton, Fla., the winner of the wild card singles tournament at The Boulevard last month.
Willis, a native of Slouth, Great Britain, was one of the stories of the tennis world last summer, winning six qualifying matches to reach the main draw of Wimbledon before defeating the No. 54 player in the world, Ricardas Berankis, in straight sets in the first round. That win earned Willis a match-up against one seven-time Wimbledon champion Roger Federer on Wimbledon’s Centre Court, a scenario that millions have dreamed of but only a handful have experienced.
After playing sporadically in the months since then, Willis, ranked No. 404 in the ATP World Tour rankings, is returning to tournament play at this $15,000 USTA Pro Circuit Futures-level event.
“It’s a lovely place, isn’t it?,” said Willis Sunday of Grand Harbor and Vero Breach. “It’s just great to be back on court.”
Willis has only played in six tournaments since his run at Wimbledon, but he made them count. He won a singles and doubles title in Kuwait in November, and also made the final of his most recent tournament, taking place in Shrewsbury, England in February.
In the time since his last tournament, Willis became a father as he and his wife Jenny welcomed daughter Martha May on March 18th.
“There is more to life than hitting a tennis ball around,” Willis said. “I’ve got a reason to succeed now. Not that I didn’t before, but it gives me some extra motivation.”
Willis hopes this tournament and being a father will be a jump start for the rest of his career.
“Play as many tournaments as I can. Stay healthy and try to get my ranking up there,” Willis said about his goals for this year. After playing in Vero Beach this week, Willis hopes to play in some ATP World Tour and challenger-level events during the upcoming grass court season, via wild card invitations thanks to his run at Wimbledon last year that earned him massive media attention and book and movie offers.
Also headlining the main draw this week will be two young American wild card entries, American teenagers Vasil Kirkov and Patrick Kypson, both of whom are part of the USTA’s Player Development program and coached by Vero Beach resident and Hall of Famer Ivan Lendl.
Kirkov, 18 from Tampa, was the sensation from last year’s Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships when he reached the semifinals of the event as a lucky-loser, getting into the main draw after losing in the qualifying round and gaining entry after another player withdrew due to injury. Kirkov’s run in Vero Beach last year saw his ATP World Tour ranking increase by more than 1,000 spots.
Kypson, 17 from Raleigh, N.C., is another promising youngster and he will be making his first appearance in the main draw in Vero Beach. In last year’s event, he fell in the qualifying rounds, but would go on to have very promising results over the next 12 months, including winning a doubles title in Niceville, Florida in November.
Sunday’s rain postponed all the third round qualifying matches, which will resume Monday at 10 am. The final round of the singles qualifying will be held on Tuesday, along with select first round singles and doubles matches in the main draw.
In the doubles wild card tournament concluded Sunday after the rain came through Vero Beach, Isaiah Strode of San Diego and Miles Seemann of Santa Barbara, Calif., won the title – and the entry into the main draw doubles tournament – defeating Rafa Gentil of Brazil and Kurt Thein of Miami 4-2, 4-3 (8-6) using the “FAST4” scoring format.
Monday is highlighted by the Pro-Am starting at 5 pm, with two spots still available for players who want to play with and against tournament players. Tickets to watch the pro-am and be part of the “Tournament Party” are also still for sale for $90 at www.VeroBeachTennisTickets.com or at the tournament front gate.
The full main draw of singles is as follows in draw order:
(1) Calvin Hemery, France vs Qualifier
Raleigh Smith, United States vs Qualifier
Lukas Ollert, Germany vs Naoki Nakagawa, Japan
Qualifier vs (5) Kaichi Uchida, Japan
(3) Peter Nagy, Hungary vs Daniel Nolan, Australia
Winston Lin, United States vs Felipe Mantilla, Colombia
Qualifier vs Genaro Alberto Olivieri, Argentina
(WC) Junior Alexander Ore, United States vs (8) Gavin van Peperzeel, Australia
(7) Connor Smith, United States vs Santiago Fa Rodriguez Taverna, Argentina
Qualifier vs Qualifier
Shanve Vinsant, United States vs (WC) Patrick Kypson, United States
Qualifier vs (4) Facundo Mena, Argentina
(6) Julien Cagnina, Belgium vs Gianni Ross, United States
Arthur Surreaux, France vs Qualifier
(WC) Vasil Kirkov, United States vs John McNally, United States
(WC) Ivan Yatsuk, United States vs (2) Marcus Willis, Great Britain
The full Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships tournament schedule is as follows. Tournament information can also be found at www.TennisVeroBeach.com
Monday, April 24 – 10 am, Final round singles qualifying
Monday, April 24 – 5 pm-7 pm Tournament Pro-Am (2 spots still available at www.VeroBeachTennisTickets.com)
Monday, April 24 – 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm “Tournament Party” (tickets are still available at www.VeroBeachTennisTickets.com)
Tuesday, April 25 – Noon, Main draw singles/doubles starts
Tuesday, April 25 – 7 pm, Feature Night Match – “King of the Hill” winner/runner-up James Van Deinse (Vero Beach Tennis Club), Mike Alford (Quail Valley) first-round doubles match
Wednesday, April 26 – Noon, Main draw singles/doubles continues
Wednesday, April 26 – 7 pm, Feature Night Match
Thursday, April 27 – Noon, Main draw singles/doubles continues
Thursday, April 27 – 7 pm, Feature Night Match (Taco and Margarita Night in Food Court)
Friday, April 28 – Noon, Main draw singles/doubles continues (Kids Day!)
Friday, April 28 – 7 pm, Feature Night Match
Saturday, April 29 – Noon, Main draw singles semifinals
Sunday, April 30 – Noon, Singles and Doubles Finals
The Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships has been played in Vero Beach since 1995 and is regarded as one of the best entry-level professional tennis tournaments in the world. Proceeds from the event benefit the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation (www.MardyFishFoundation.com), the non-profit tennis foundation benefiting children, named for Vero Beach native son Mardy Fish, the former top 10 tennis star and a U.S. Davis Cup standout.
Advance tickets for the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships are available at www.VeroBeachTennisTickets.com. Season tickets for all 10 days of the competition are available for $100. Daily buy-one-get-one free tickets for the qualifying rounds April 21-24 are for sale for $10, with daily tickets for the main draw sessions April 25-30 for sale for $20. A special “Happy Hour” ticket is available for $10 after 5 pm for night sessions on Tuesday, April 25 – Friday, April 28 that includes a featured 7 pm night match. Admission for children 18 and under is free. Tickets are also sold at the front gate. Approximately 3,000 fans annually attend the event, which is seen as one of the best-attended events in the world on the “Futures” level of professional tennis tournaments. The 2016 event featured 13 players who played Davis Cup for their country and was won by Jonas Luetjen of Germany, who defeated Latvian Davis Cupper Martins Podzus in the final.
Some of the past competitors at the USTA Vero Beach Futures have gone on to succeed at the highest levels of professional tennis, winning major singles and doubles titles, Olympic medals and Davis Cup championships and earning No. 1 world rankings. Andy Roddick, the 2003 U.S. Open champion who attained the world No. 1 ranking and helped the United States win the Davis Cup in 2007, competed in Vero Beach in 1999. Thomas Johansson of Sweden, who reached the second round of the Vero Beach Futures in 1995, won the Australian Open seven years later in 2002. Nicolas Massu, the 1998 singles runner-up in Vero Beach, won the singles and doubles gold medals at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece, beating Fish in the gold medal singles match. Kyle Edmund, the 2013 champion in Vero Beach, helped Great Britain to the Davis Cup title in 2015. Other notable former competitors in Vero Beach include former world No. 2 Magnus Norman, former world No. 4 Tim Henman, 2016 Wimbledon finalist Milos Raonic among others. Former Vero Beach competitors have combined to win 19 titles in singles, doubles and mixed doubles at Grand Slam tournaments. Six former Vero Beach players have gone on to play Davis Cup for the United States – Roddick, Fish, Taylor Dent, Jared Palmer, Donald Young and Ryan Harrison.
Corporate sponsors and donors for the 2017 tournament include PNC Bank, Boston Barricade, George E. Warren Corporation, Indian River Medical Center, Jake Owen Foundation, Syde Hurdus Foundation, Indian River Oxygen, Citrus Grillhouse, Coastal Van Lines, Rossway Swan, Publix, Ryan A. Jones and Associates, Tom Collins Insurance Agency, Vocap Partners, Riverside Café, Center Court Outfitters, David Walsh and Associates Real Estate, Peter Bernholz Family, John’s Island Real Estate, Gene Simonsen, Michael & Kathleen Pierce, Steve and Karen Rubin, Rob and Mickey Stein, William Barhorst, Dan Holman, John Klein, Mello Financial Services, Ocean Drive Elite Physiques, Rosato Plastic Surgery, Captain Hiram’s Resort, Absolute Protection Team, Minuteman Press, Technifibre, TeamChristopher.com, Fit for Life Strength, Diamond Resorts International, Wilson, Don Herrema and Lori Ford.
Founded in 2007, the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation (www.MardyFishFoundation.com and @MardyFishFound on Twitter) currently supports over 2,100 children in 15 elementary schools and six middle schools in Indian River County, Florida by providing after-school exercise, nutritional and enrichment programs in a safe environment to prepare them for healthy, productive and successful lives. The Foundation introduced the “Six Healthy Habits” in 2012 which are Get Sleep; Drink Water; Exercise Daily, Eat Healthy; Brush and Floss; Make Friends.
Schedule for Monday, April 24
Stadium
Jose Ricardo Martinez, Mexico vs. (15) Sam Riffice, United States
(5) Eduardo Agustin Torre, Argentina vs. Daniel Garza, Mexico
Christian Vinck, Germany vs. Lorenzo Joaquin Rodriguez, Argentina
Grandstand
Oliver Crawford, United States vs. Zion Heaven, United States
(6) Jonathan Chang, United States vs. Boris Kozlov, United States
Dariusz Lipka, Poland vs. (16) Mauricio Resendiz, Mexico
Court 1
Mac Kiger, United States vs. Matthew Segura, United States
(1)Ricardo Rodriguez, Venezuela vs. Brian Berdusco, United States
Court 2
Kurt Thein, United States vs. (11) Ty Trombetta, United States
Arnav Mohanty, United States vs. (14) Alexandre Rotsaert, United States
(2) Patrick Daciek, United States vs. Richard Torres, United States
Court 3
(7) Pavel Krainik, Canada vs. Jason Legall, United States
(4) Collin Johns, United States vs. Haydn Lewis, Barbados
Trent Bryde, United States vs. (13) Rowland Phillips, Jamaica
Court 4
Dejon Bivens, United States vs. (10) Mark Whitehouse, Great Britain
(3) Alex Blumenberg, Brazil vs. Marcelo Arturo Rodriguez Mojica, Panama
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