Vero Beach’s Michael Alford and Robert Kowalczyk received more cheers than games Tuesday in their opening first-round doubles match at the $15,000 Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships. The local duo fought hard behind a loud and encouraging crowd but their part-time careers as competitive tennis players was not enough to over-come full time touring professionals Julian Bradley of Ireland and Isaiah Strode of San Diego 6-1, 6-2 at Grand Harbor Golf & Beach Club.
“This was more like a college match actually. It was really entertaining,” said Bradley, a member of Ireland’s Davis Cup team and a former standout at the University of North Florida. “It was really good fun, kind of like in college with all the crowd and everybody getting into it and a lot of cheering. Obviously we weren’t the favorites there but it was a good match, good fun.”
Alford and Kowalczyk received a main draw wild card invitation into the tournament by the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation for being the winner and runner-up, respectively, in the annual “King of the Hill” competition that is held each January and February at The Moorings club and determines the area’s best local tennis talent. It marked the third straight year that Alford has played in the doubles tournament at this event, while it was Kowalczyk’s first since 2013, but also 20 years since he played in the event in 1998 with his long-time pal and tournament namesake Mardy Fish.
Despite having the rowdy crowd behind them, Alford and Kowalczyk fell in straight sets, not being to convert on many of the “no-ad” points that are a signature of doubles play on the professional level.
“Yeah that was a lot of fun. We had a big crowd tonight,” Alford said. “Just wish some of those big points would’ve gone our way but they came up with some good stuff.”
“This is probably one of the best Futures in the world, I swear” Kowalczyk said. “I’ve played all over and nothing compares to what goes on around here.”
Just before Alford and Kowalczyk’s doubles match on Stadium Court, the match of the tournament concluded in a final-set tiebreaker that warmed up the Vero Beach crowd before the featured 7 pm night match. Karl Poling, the West Point, N.Y. native, son of Army coach Jim Poling, nephew of Vero Beach resident Christy Sturgess and a soon-to-be freshman at Princeton, N.J. was edged by No. 4 seed Strong Kirchheimer in a final-set tiebreaker 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (4) in two hours, 51 minutes.
Two weeks ago, Poling won a 40-player “wild card” tournament at the USTA National Campus in Lake Nona, Florida to earn an entry into the main draw of this event and last week, he won a doubles wild card event at The Boulevard club to also earn a main draw doubles wild card into the tournament.
Poling appeared down and out to the 22-year-old former Northwestern University standout trailing 6-3, 3-1, but rallied to win five of the next six games to force a third set. Poling then trailed 4-1 in the third set, but won four games in a row and served for the match at 5-4. Kirchheimer, however, stayed “strong” – like his name – and ripped a match-busting forehand winner at 5-4 in the final-set tiebreaker in the second-to-last point of the match.
“Credit to him. He played very well,” Kirchheimer said of Poling’s performance. “I was just trying to make sure I did all the right things.”
“I got off to a slow start in the second set as well but I just tried to stay solid. Tried playing my game,” Poling said.
For Poling, his entire experience with this year’s event has been a grind. It started in Orlando just two weeks ago as he won five rounds at a wild card tournament, including beating top American prospect Trent Bryde in a three-hour battle in the event final.
He’s disappointed that he couldn’t earn his first ATP point here in Vero Beach, but he is going to use his time at this tournament and the one in Orlando as a learning experience and confidence booster.
“He played well, played some good points. I played some good points. It was a solid match,” Poling said. “Past couple months I’ve been playing pretty well so we’ll see if I can use this as a springboard and just keep going up.”
For Kirchheimer, he was happy to get the win and used the motivation of the large crowd on hand to help him through.
“It’s awesome. We’ve got a great stadium here, a lot of people,” Kirchheimer said. “It always makes it a heck of a lot more fun to play with a crowd.”
In another All-American first round match Tuesday, Harrison Adams of New Braunfels, Texas defeated Mousheg Hovannisyan of North Hollywood, Calif. 6-1, 6-4.
Adams is at the peak of his young professional career with a career-high ranking of No. 775 in singles and No. 475 in doubles on the ATP World Tour computer and he’s looking to keep it rolling here in Vero Beach. The only thing that stalled him Tuesday was a two-hour match delay due to lightning.
“I got off to a good start. I felt like my serve was penetrating a lot, kicking up, getting high out of his strike zone,” Adams said. “I was kind of rolling in the beginning. Everything was clicking and then the lightning came. He came out really tough in the second,” Adams said before going into his mental strategy during the break.
“You’ve really got to try to keep your focus, but at the same time stay relaxed because you don’t want to wear yourself out and think too much,” Adams said.
Adams was able to weather the storm, eventually breaking Hovhannisyan in the final game to clinch the match.
The battle between these two was also a battle of former college stars. Adams played at Texas A&M, while Hovhannisyan played at Pepperdine.
“It’s awesome,” said Adams of seeing other former college players on tour. “Some guys I’ve battled against in dual matches for four years, and then I come out on tour and we’re battling again. I love to see the college guys.”
Alejandro Tabilo, a 20-year-old lefty from Chile, also won on Tuesday as he defeated John Lamble of Saratoga, Calif., 7-6(8), 6-4.
Being a left-hander from Chile, Tabilo has drawn comparisons to former world No. 1 Marcelo Rios.
“I’ve grown up watching videos of him on YouTube so it’s nice being compared to him,” Tabilo said. “We’ve worked together a little bit also and he helps me.”
Tabilo is the No. 8 seed in this year’s tournament and ranked just outside the Top 800, but he he isn’t content and hopes to keep improving.
“Gotta get my ranking up a little bit,” Tabilo said. “So hopefuly I do my best here.”
The continuation of first round singles and doubles play begins Wednesday at noon, with feature night matches at 5 pm and 7 pm.
The Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships is the USTA’s $15,000 Futures-level tournament played in Vero Beach since 1995 and 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, 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.
Tournament tickets and sponsorships are now on sale and can be purchased at www.VeroBeachTennisTickets.com Tickets for the qualifying rounds from April 20 – April 23 cost $10, while tickets for the main draw of singles and doubles from April 24 – 29 are $20, with “night session” tickets starting at 5 pm from April 24-27 costing $10. Season tickets that include both the qualifying and main draw events cost $100. Admission for children 18 and under is free. 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. More info on the event can be found at www.TennisVeroBeach.com
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 and most recently world No. 50 player and teen sensation Denis Shapovalov, who played in Vero Beach in 2016. 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.
Sponsors for the 2018 Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships are led by Presenting Sponsor PNC Bank and Grand Slam Sponsors Boston Barricade, George E. Warren Corporation, Jake Owen Foundation, Syde Hurdus Foundation / Fit For Life and Land Rover / Jaguar Treasure Coast, Backhand Sponsors Publix, Rossway Swan, Coastal Van Lines, White Orchid Spa, Foglia Contracting, Forehand Sponsors Steve and Karen Rubin, Willem and Marion de Vogel, Cravings, M&M Group – Keller / Williams Realty Vero Beach, Rosato Plastic Surgery, Riverside Café, Ocean Drive Elite Physiques, 14 Bones Barbeque, Gordon Food Service, Peter Bernholz, Swarovski, Soul Music, Minuteman Press and Elite Airways, Kit Fields Realtor / CharlotteTerry.com, Cabana Sponsors John’s Island, Gene Simonsen, Michael & Kathleen Pierce, William Barhorst CPA, Dan Holman, John Klein, Hadleigh Investments, TeamChristopher.com, Tom Collins, The Pitcher Family, Pene Chambers Group, Waldo and Candy Johnston, The Pappalardo Family, Mickey and Rob Stein, Lace and Bob Milligan and Drop Shot Sponsors Fresh Market, Brooklyn Bagel, Hutchinson’s Florist, Seaside Grill, A Pampered Life-Disney Spa, Avanzare, New Chapter Media, Smith & Company Landscaping, Center For Advanced Eye Care, Cast Electric, Citron of Vero Beach, Amerigas, Central Window of Vero Beach, Bill’s Audio and Video Innovations, ML Engineering, Capt. Bob’s Airboat Adventure, Busy Bee Lawn & Garden Center, Complete Restaurant Equipment, Wilco Construction, Nozzle Nolen, Southern Plumbing, Treasure Coast Sotheby’s, Jack’s Complete Tree Service, Complete Electric, Statewide Condominium Insurance, Abco Garage Door, O’Hair, Quinn, Casalino, Chartered, Rick’s Custom Care, Rich-Look Lawn Care, White Glove Moving & Storage, Coastal Comforts @ The Village Shops, Jimmy’s Tree Service, Thompsons Remodeling & Home Repairs, Summit Construction, Colton Williams & Reamy, Sunshine Furniture, Malesardi, Quackenbush, Swift, Aluma Tower Company, Alex MacWilliam, Inc., Charlotte Terry Real Estate, Ken’s Pool & Spa Repair, Vero Beach Orthopedics, Barker Air Conditioning & Heating, Treasure Coast Financial Planning, Engineered Services, Peter Bernholz, Deborah Benjamin, John & Faith Parker, Duke & Betty Foster, Paul & Linda Delaney, Timmy Wood Gary and Beth Williams, Don Moyle, Chuck Pollard, Stewart Dunn, Leslie London – LL Vinyl Designs, Dara, Hunter and Thom Morgan
Results from April 24
First Round Singles
Harrison Adams, United States d. Mousheg Hovhannisyan, United States 6-1, 6-4
(8) Alejandro Tabilo, Chile d. John Lamble, United States 7-6(8), 6-4
(4) Strong Kirchheimer, United States d. (WC) Karl Poling, United States 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(4)
First Round Doubles
(1) Hunter Johnson, United States/Yates Johnson, United States d. Juan Benitez, Colombia/Jesse Flores, Canada 7-6(5), 6-4
(WC) Tim Kopinski, United States/Tam Trinh, United States d. Pablo Irigary Guarne, Spain/Matias Zukas, Argentina 6-3, 6-7(5), 10-6
Julian Bradley, Ireland/Isaiah Strode, United States d. (WC) Michael Alford, United States/Robert Kowalczyk, United States 6-1, 6-2
Ricardo Rodriguez-Pace, Venezuela/Eduardo Agustin Torre, Argentina d. (3) Raleigh Smith, United States/Alejandro Tabilo, Chile 3-6, 7-6(5), 10-8
Samuel Bensoussan, France/Santiago Fa Rodriguez Taverna, Argentina d. John Lamble, United States/Jody Maginley, Antigua & Barbuda 6-2, 5-7, 10-4
(2) Harrison Adams, United States/Nick Chappell, United States d. Edward Bourchier, Australia/Rowland Phillips, Jamaica 6-2, 6-2
Final Round Qualifying Results
Juan Alejandro Hernandez Serrano, Mexico d. (13) Julian Bradley, Ireland 6-2, 4-6, 6-4
Jordi Arconada, United States d. Rowland Phillips, Jamaica 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(5)
Axel Nefve, United States d. Zandrix Acob, United States 6-3, 4-6, 6-3
Schedule for April 25, Matches Starting at Noon
Stadium
(Q) Nick Hardt, Dominican Republic vs. (WC) Alexander Rotsaert, United States
Not Before 1 p.m.
(Q) Nicolas Mejia, Colombia vs. (WC) Matthew Segura, United States
Not Before 3 p.m.
(1) Marcelo Tomas Barrios Vera, Chile vs. Isaiah Strode, United States
Not Before 7 p.m.
(WC) Christian Alshon, United States vs. Ricardo Rodriguez, Venezuela
Grandstand
Junior Alexander Ore, United States vs. (Q) Richard Torres, United States
Not Before 1 p.m.
(2) Samuel Bensoussan, France vs. Nick Chappell, United States
Not Before 3 p.m.
(WC) Boris Kozlov, United States/Karl Poling, United States vs. Adam El Mihdawy, United States/Collin Johns, United States
Not Before 5 p.m.
(5) Juan Benitez, Colombia vs. Pablo Irigary Guarne, Spain
Court 2
(Q) Jordi Arconada, United States vs. Collin Johns, United States
Not Before 1 p.m.
(7) Jorge Montero, Chile vs. Eduardo Agustin Torre, Argentina
Not Before 3 p.m.
Raleigh Smith, United States vs. (Q) Ryan Goetz, United States
Not Before 4:30 p.m.
(4) Junior Alexander Ore, United States/Miles Seemann, United States vs. Nick Hardt, Dominican Republic/Nicolas Mejia, Colombia
Court 3
(Q) Juan Alejandro Hernandez Serrano, Mexico vs. Adam El Mihdawy, United States
Not Before 1 p.m.
(6) Santiago Fa Rodriguez Taverna, Argentina vs. Tyler Mercier, United States
Not Before 3 p.m.
(3)(Q) Matias Zukas, Argentina vs. (Q) Axel Nefve, United States
