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Patience, A Six-Hour Drive And Luck Pays Off For Vero’s Ching Wang

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By Randy Walker

@TennisPublisher

Top American WTA pro Taylor Townsend received a good deal of exposure and props for her effort to get from the National Bank Open tournament in Toronto after losing in the quarterfinals to the Cincinnati Open by traveling by car overnight in order to get to her match on time. The story is outlined here: A tennis player’s race: Taylor Townsend drives to Cincinnati for qualifying | TC Live | Tennis.com

An almost equally heroic effort, one the complete opposite end of the pro tennis spectrum, was also made over the weekend by local Vero Beach, Florida standout player Ching Wang. His effort, however, was just to get into the qualifying rounds of a $15,000 USTA Pro Circuit event in Huntsville, Alabama, the bottom rung of pro tennis, and it involved driving six hours the day of his match! And to boot, it came the day after teaching tennis for almost eight hours!

But first, let’s set the scene.

Wang, a popular teaching pro in Vero Beach who has worked at Sea Oaks Beach & Tennis Club and also with the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation, has been teaching at the Linville Golf Club in Linville, N.C. in the summer, but over the last few years, has dipped his toes in competitive tennis by trying to get into entry-level pro events on the ITF World Tennis Tour. In 2023, one year after finishing playing college tennis at Division II Lees-McRae College in North Carolina, Wang earned a main draw doubles wild card in doubles and a qualifying wild card in singles via wild card events at the $15,000 Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships at the Vero Beach Tennis & Fitness Club. Wang was able to win a round in the qualifying singles tournament that year beating a player from Texas named Matthew Vos, as you can hear about here: https://youtu.be/R71OEMXqEzw?si=YtKZHTei915sP8rP

While this win didn’t earn him any money, and was still one round shy of getting in the main draw of the event, it did earn him an International Tennis Federation (ITF) ranking point that, although not an ATP rankings point, can help him get into the qualifying rounds of these introductory pro-level events when the entry lists run out of players with ATP points. It is very difficult to get into the qualifying rounds of these events unless you have at least some ITF ranking points.

While Wang was able to earn a ranking point with his first round qualifying win at the Mardy Fish event in 2023, he did not play another ITF event until the following year’s Mardy Fish event 12 months later. He was only able to sneak into the qualifying rounds only based on his ITF point earned the previous year. Wang, however, lost in the first round of qualifying, so his point would soon drop off the computer, making it more difficult, once again, to get into the qualifying rounds. His ITF point, however, would still be used for entries in the next two tournaments after the Mardy Fish, in Orange Park, Florida and Pensacola, Florida, based on the rankings for the event used for entries. Wang was able to slide into both draws. He suffered a first-round qualifying loss in Orange Park to Fabian Hansch Mauritzson of Sweden by a heart-breaking 7-6(7), 5-7, 11-9 margin. The win would have replaced the ITF point that he was soon going to lose. In the last tournament where his ITF point would be used for entry a week later in Pensacola, Wang was able to win another first round qualifying match, beating American Daniel Prado Contreras 6-2, 6-1, to replace his ITF ranking point. He, however, lost in the next round to American Phillip Jordan 6-0, 6-3.

So, with his new ITF ranking point replenished, Wang, while teaching tennis in Linville, N.C. over the summer, awaited opportunities where he could get into events that were relatively close by, so as not to severely interrupt his tennis teaching responsibilities. As the $15,000 event in Huntsville, Alabama approached, Wang was getting closer and closer to getting into the qualifying rounds as players dropped out of the tournament, which is customary as players decided which ITF World Tennis Tour event to play that particular week. Two days before the start of the event, Wang was 14 spaces out of qualifying, but there were going to be at least seven spots that opened up with withdrawals. So if a few players in the qualifying tournament got bumped up into the main draw with wild cards (which happens often) and there were some no shows from the alternate list that Wang was on, he could get into the tournament. Wang and I were texting as we monitored the entries and watched who was pulling out. I estimated that he was about four spots out, which with a few more no shows, would allow him to get into the tournament

Recently, the ITF changed the sign-in rules for the qualifying tournament where you could sign in over the phone, where previously you had to show up on site, so Wang called ITF supervisor David Littlefield from Linville to sign in on Saturday evening. As luck would have it, Wang made it into the qualifying tournament as the second-to-last direct entrant. Wang was still in Linville when the draw was published Saturday night around 8 pm, confirming his spot in the draw to play the next day, albeit 350 miles away! Luckily he took the advice I gave him to request a late start time so he could get to Huntsville. (“Yes. I requested a late start. Thanks to you. I didn’t know you could do that.” He texted me.) His match was scheduled on the last wave of matches, to start not before 2:30 pm. So Wang, after teaching tennis for almost eight hours during the day, left in his car from Linville at 6 am Sunday morning and arrived in Huntsville around noon. He took the court for his match at 3:30 pm.

Not only was Wang lucky to get into the tournament, but he had luck in the draw. Originally, Wang was scheduled to face Andrew Delgado, a 19-year-old from High Point, N.C. with an ATP ranking of No. 1755. However, Delgado pulled out of the tournament and was replaced in the draw by an alternate, a player named Robert Sarosi, who hold an mediocre good club player UTR rating of 7.75 but still manages to get into an ITF World Tennis Tour event with persistence and just by signing up, showing up and signing in as an alternate. He sometimes gets very lucky and gets in a few tournaments, as he also did as an alternate at the 2024 Mardy Fish event, where he lost in the first round of qualifying to Meecah Bigun, the twin brother of French Open junior champion Kaylan Bigun, 6-0, 6-0. Sarosi also lost to Sea Oaks Beach & Tennis Club pro Christian Docter 6-0, 6-0 in the Mardy Fish pre-qualifying event.

So the effort and six-hour drive on the day of the match for Wang was worth it. He easily beat Sarosi 6-1, 6-2 and was able to get another ITF ranking point that will help him even more get into more events. It’s not like a player like Wang is going to take off into a professional career, but just being able to compete and get into these tournaments and test your skills in competition against great players from around the world is something that players of a certain level aspire to. Every player, no matter the level, has tennis dreams. Some may dream and fulfill aspirations of playing on the ATP Tour or at Grand Slam tournaments – and winning matches, doing deep, playing on big stadium courts, etc. Some just want to play some pro tennis and see the world, or play college tennis or many just want to win a club championship, or maybe a USTA Gold Ball as a winner of any various USTA National Championship event. So, just getting the opportunity to play in the qualifying rounds of ITF World Tennis Tour events can be a goal for a certain level of player. On that scale, it is exciting and a worthy goal in competitive tennis.

On Monday, Wang played his second-round qualifying match – the final round of qualifying – but it did not go that well. He lost 6-1, 6-0 to a player named Carson Baker, who was the No. 6 player on the University of Mississippi’s team last season and who is ranked No. 2057 on the ATP computer in doubles. Wang said he was affected more than usual with the 90-degree temperatures during the match bit it beating Baker in itself was a tough ask on paper to begin with based on his more recent playing experience at a higher level.  “He was definitely more consistent on the decisive points,” texted Wang about the match.

It was then back in the car for Wang for another six-hour drive back to the Linville Golf Club where he would again return to the courts.

“Back to work tomorrow,” he texted.

Garrett Johns Wins 2024 Mardy Fish USTA Futures Title

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by Harvey Fialkov

On Garrett Johns’ second match point, Victor Lilov ripped a forehand at the toes of the hard-charging Duke fifth-year senior, who scooped it up and delicately dropped it over the net with side spin and just off the line to capture his fifth $15,000 ITF World Tour singles title on a breezy Sunday afternoon on the clay courts of the Vero Beach Tennis & Fitness Club in front of approximately 200 fans.

To see the incredible shot, click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuutsfsMNas

“That might have been one of the best shots I ever hit; it was crazy,” smiled the second-seeded Johns after downing the third-seeded Lilov of Delray Beach 7-6 (1), 6-2 to win the 30th annual Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation futures tournament and earn $2,160 as well as 15 ATP ranking points which puts him at No. 433 in the ATP rankings.

“It was super awesome and I’m so happy to win it,” he said.

Johns, 23, who defeated the 20-year-old Lilov in the semis of an ITF $15,000 in Boca Raton last November, out-served the Canadian native (also a citizen of Bulgaria and the U.S.) to the tune of 10 aces, while winning 74 percent of his first serves. After exchanging early breaks in the first set, Lilov pulled out an 8-deuce marathon game at 5-6, including staving off two sets points on his second kick serves, to force a tiebreaker.

“My serve definitely came up in the big moments,’’ Johns said. “Serving well put some pressure on his service games a little bit. After losing that long 6-5 game I had the mentality that it’s a tiebreaker and anybody can win, and not to let the last game affect me. I did that well.”

Johns, a left-handed writer who plays right-handed, is coached at Duke by Ramsey Smith, son of Hall of Fame player Stan Smith, who boasted a huge serve. Johns started the tiebreaker with an ace and never looked back as Lilov’s game and shoulders began to sag.

“Six months ago, you beat me and you did it again, so thanks,’’ Lilov joked in his post-match speech. “After that long 5-6 game he started serving great and after I missed my [fourth] backhand volley and went down 0-3 in the breaker it was pretty much over and nearly impossible to break him in the second set.

“All credit to Garrett. I played the best I did all week, but I have to become better.”

Lilov, a Junior Wimbledon finalist in 2021, who fell short of winning his second ITF title, will improve to No. 598 in the rankings, and head to Orange Park in Orlando next week to compete in another $15K. He’s coached by Rudy Diaz, who operates the Developmental Tennis Institute in Miramar.

Johns, an Atlanta native who’s moving to Boca Raton after the college season, won three ITF $15,000 singles tournaments and four ITF $25,000 doubles tournaments in 2023 while taking the college season off. He won another singles title in Memphis in 2022, so the lanky 5-foot-11 Johns is used to being the last man standing on Sundays.

“I think my college career has done that, playing for a team is kind of bigger than yourself,’’ said Johns, an All-American singles player, who will compete in the upcoming NCAA individual and singles regional tournament. “There’s a lot of pressure so after playing that and coming here with ad scoring, I feel kind of comfortable.”

Co-tournament director Randy Walker read the inscription on the perpetual Mike Rahaley Memorial Trophy that says: “We hope we never see you again!” The saying is a nod to Rahaley, the late tournament founder, who often joked with players in the finals of this entry-level pro tournament that he hoped he would never see them again, insinuating that he wanted them to move up to bigger and better tournaments and not toil in the beginning levels of pro tennis.

“Now, I’m focused on playing some Challengers and getting to qualifying rounds for Grand Slams, but first I have to focus on finishing the college season,’’ Johns said.

American teens first pro title

Cooper Woestendick and Alexander Razeghi, a couple of 17-year-old Americans, showed that taking out the top-seeds in the second round wasn’t a fluke as the enthusiastic duo won their first professional title Saturday evening in front of a spirited crowd.

The 6-foot-3 lanky Woestendick, who was part of a doubles team to win the Junior Australian Open title in January, earned his first career ranking points this week, as he and Razeghi, his left-handed partner, eked out a 6-4, 4-6 (10-3) victory over brothers Alex, 25, and Miles Jones, 23, of Marina del Rey, Calif., in blustery conditions.

“It got pretty stressful for a second and then a tiebreaker, but we’re glad we got it done,’’ said Stanford-bound Razeghi, from Humble, Texas, who has won six Gold balls for winning USTA National tournaments.

The 6-foot-3 Woestendick from Olathe, Kan., who boasts a huge serve, had never won a pro doubles match in the two tournaments he entered in Wichita the last two years, was thrilled to notch his first ATP doubles singles and doubles ranking point this week.

“It’s cool,’’ Woestendick said of his doubles’ title. “No one can ever take that away from us that we won a professional tournament. Obviously, we both have a good future.”

Victor Lilov To Face Garrett Johns In Mardy Fish Vero Beach Futures Final

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By Harvey Fialkov

On a sunny, yet blustery Saturday afternoon more suited for kite-flying and windsurfing, the semifinals of the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation $15,000 ITF World Tennis Tour event pitted four Americans for the first time since 2005.

Actually, the four doubles finalists are also American, marking the first time in the 30-year tournament history that all eight Americans reached this stage together.

In the noon semifinal at the Vero Beach Tennis & Fitness Club at Timber Ridge, third-seeded Victor Lilov, 20, who also holds citizenship papers in Bulgaria and Canada (where he was born), bounced back from an 0-6 second set trouncing to down Miles Jones of Marina del Rey, Calif., 6-4, 0-6, 6-1 to reach his fifth pro final that includes his only title in a $15,000 ITF in Peru in 2022.

“I didn’t deserve the first set as he was playing better but I was able to find a way to break at 3-3, love-30 and that was the difference,’’ said Lilov, a Junior Wimbledon finalist in 2021 where he lost to Samir Banerjee, now at Stanford University. “He got the momentum in the second set, and I got down on myself, acting a bit like a baby.”

The 0-6 or bagel loss didn’t deter Lilov, who recalled that twice before in his, “life, I came back from 6-0 down, including the Junior Orange Bowl 12s’ final,’’ said Lilov, who beat Bruno Kuzuhara of Coconut Creek that day at Salvadore Park in Coral Gables. Kuzuhara went on to win the Junior Australian Open singles and doubles in 2022.

“I said it can’t get any worse so I came out in a new set with more energy and told myself to put more balls on the court. … It was so ugly with the wind and the high bounces off the clay. It was so difficult to control. I got the early break in the third, went up 3-0 and he went down after that, so I took advantage.”

Jones, 23, who was into his first career ITF semifinal and first doubles final with his brother Alex, 25, said he got too impatient in the third set.

“He played better tennis in the worst conditions,’’ said Jones, who like his brother sports a stylish one-hand backhand. “The break at 3-3 in the first was pivotal. I focused on getting ahead in the second set and not give up on long rallies. His level dropped. In the third, the complete opposite happened. It’s the first time I won a 6-0 set and lost. I hope it’s the last time.”

Lilov’s opponent in the 1 p.m. Sunday final will be second-seeded Garrett Johns, who converted 7-of-7 break points to outlast his close friend and housemate this week, fifth-seeded Will Grant of Boca Raton, 6-3, 7-5.

Johns, 23, who won seven ITF singles and doubles tournaments last year and is an All-American singles player at Duke, clearly displayed more poise at the most critical stages of the match.

“Super important playing the big points well,’’ said Johns, an Atlanta native, who will move to Boca Raton next month and live near his buddy whose couch he often uses when he’s in South Florida.

“I thought Will actually did a better job dealing with the wind than me in the second set, coming in, making some good volleys, moving me around a lot, but I stayed tough on the big points and got the win.”

Grant’s long-time British coach Damion Jackson was proud of his disciples resilience in the second set.

“That stood out for me. Garrett really took his chances and whenever there became a big moment, Garrett was the one that stepped up and played the great tennis,’’ said Jackson, who gave Grant his first lesson at age 3 in London where Grant was born.

“Both players struggled with the wind but kudos to Garrett, he played the better tennis when it mattered. Will could take heart with the second set but I think he was a bit fatigued from his match on Friday.”

Grant, 23, a member of the University of Florida National Championship team of 2021 with Ben Shelton, wouldn’t go down gently against his USTA National Hard Courts 12s’ championship partner.

Grant, ranked 738, showed his mettle, that helped him get to three ITF $15K finals last year (2 doubles titles. He trailed 2-4, 15-40 in the second set when he finally broke (4-of-11 on break points) to claw back in the match.

However, while serving at 5-6, 30-30, Grant’s normally reliable two-hand backhand let him down for an unforced error, setting up Johns’ sliced backhand which induced a Grant forehand into the net.

Lilov and Johns have met once before in a $15K in Boca Raton six months  ago when the fifth-year Blue Devil prevailed 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 in the semis.

“He’s a very good defender,’’ Lilov said. “It was very windy there, too. He took me apart there because he was better in the wind that day.”

Young Americans Dominate Entries Into Mardy Fish Pro Tennis At Timber Ridge

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A slew of ambitious up-and-coming American tennis players highlight the player field for the 2024 Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships $15,000 USTA Pro Circuit ITF World Tennis Tour event to be held April 22-28 at the Vero Beach Tennis & Fitness Club at Timber Ridge.

Cooper Woestendick of Olathe, Kansas, the reigning USTA National Boys 16s champion who won the 2024 Australian Open junior doubles title earlier this year, is among the cadre of promising Americans who are scheduled to compete at the Vero Beach Tennis & Fitness Club along with fellow American up-and-comers Kaylan Bigun of West Hollywood, Calif., a singles quarterfinalist at Wimbledon and U.S. Open juniors last year, Stanford University commit Alexander Razeghi of Humble, Texas, a doubles semifinalist at the U.S. Open junior championships in 2023, and Victor Lilov of Raleigh, N.C., the runner-up at the 2021 Wimbledon junior championships. Christian Langmo of Boca Raton, Fla., a former standout at the University of Miami, is the leading entry in the tournament with an ATP ranking of No. 425 

Of the 24 entries before the qualifying rounds, 18 are American and also include former Northwestern star and 2018 Mardy Fish semifinalist Strong Kircheimer of Highland Park, Ill., current Duke standout Garrett Johns of Atlanta, former University of Georgia and Notre Dame standout Tristan McCormick of Berwyn, Pa., and 2022 Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation champion Sekou Bangoura of Bradenton, Fla. Jaycer Lyeons from Tyler, Texas, who last year went from being the last player accepted into the main draw of the tournament to reaching the singles final, is also in the main draw singles field. Mitchell Lee from Oakland, Calif., who won the Mardy Fish “Wild Card” event at the Sea Oaks Beach & Tennis Club earlier this year to qualify, will make his pro tennis event debut in Vero Beach.

Andres Andrade of Ecuador, who reached the doubles quarterfinal at the ATP Tour’s U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championships in Houston last week with former University of Florida teammate and Vero Beach competitor Ben Shelton, is among three former Florida Gators scheduled to compete. Andrade, a quarterfinalist in Vero Beach last year, will be joined by Duarte Vale of Portugal, a semifinalist last year in Vero Beach, as well as Will Grant of Boca Raton, Fla.

Among the players scheduled to play in the qualifying rounds of the tournament set for April 22 and April 23 are four-time Mardy Fish wild card singles winner Matthew Segura of Apopka, Fla., Venezuelan Davis Cupper Brandon Perez and Gianni Ross of Chicago, the most outstanding player on the University of Virginia’s 2022 NCAA Championship team. Lachlan Gaskell from Delray Beach, Fla., the runner-up to Lee at the Mardy Fish Sea Oaks “Wild Card” event will also be competing in the qualifying rounds of the tournament.

The Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships has been held in Vero Beach since 1995 and, since 2016, has benefitted the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation, the non-profit foundation benefiting children named for Vero Beach native son Mardy Fish, a former top 10 tennis star, U.S. Davis Cup hero and silver medalist at the 2004 Olympic Games.

“We are very excited about our singles field which is filled with young and promising American players and lot of players who tennis fans in Vero Beach are familiar with from past events,” said event co-tournament director Tom Fish, the father of Mardy Fish. “We have guys who have played big matches at ATP events, junior Grand Slam champions and finalists, great college players, Davis Cup players from other countries and those wanting to get a foothold in pro tennis. It will be a very entertaining event with some highly-competitive tennis and all benefits at-risk kids in Indian River County.”

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, 2021 Wimbledon semifinalist Denis Shapovalov, 2022 U.S. Open semifinalist France Tiafoe, 2023 Australian Open semifinalist Tommy Paul and new rising star and 2023 U.S. Open semifinalist Ben Shelton. Former Vero Beach competitors have combined to win 19 titles in singles, doubles and mixed doubles at Grand Slam tournaments. Eight former Vero Beach players have gone on to play Davis Cup for the United States – Roddick, Fish, Taylor Dent, Jared Palmer, Donald Young, Ryan Harrison, Frances Tiafoe and Tommy Paul.

Affectionately known as “Timber Ridge” to locals, the Vero Beach Tennis & Fitness Club has been a staple in the community for over 30 years and has been owned and run since 2016 by James and Joseph van Deinse. The club boasts 14 Har-Tru tennis courts, a pickleball court, pool and clubhouse with fitness center and bar. The facility previously hosted a $25,000 women’s USTA Pro circuit event in 2014 that featured future major tournament champions Naomi Osaka and Sofia Kenin, future top 10 star Jennifer Brady and future major doubles champions Nicole Melichar, Laura Siegemund and Gaby Dabrowski. The club is also the original home of the “King of the Hill” tennis competition, hosting the first seven editions of Vero Beach’s popular doubles competition from 1996 to 2002. The Vero Beach Fitness & Tennis Club will be the third different venue to host the tournament after being held at Grand Harbor Club for 17 years from 1995 to 2009 and in 2017 and 2018 and at The Boulevard where it was held for 11 years from 2010 to 2016 and from 2019 to 2022.

Founded in 2007, the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation (www.MardyFishChildrensFoundation.org and @MardyFishFound on Twitter) currently supports over 2,400 children in 15 elementary schools, six middle schools, and several other community organizations in Indian River County, Florida by funding 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.

2024 Tournament Sponsors

Presenting Sponsor:  PNC Bank,  Grand Slam Sponsor:  Michael Merrill, Broker Associate, Scoreboard Sponsor:  Block and Scarpa, Attorneys at Law

Additional Event Sponsors:  The Roberts Family Foundation, Carly Witteck, Realtor, Jake Owen Foundation, Boston Retail Solutions, Cliff Norris Real Estate, Bill Antle, Gene Simonsen, Michael Pierce, Bob and Emilie Burr, Lynn Southerly, John and Sara Marshall, John and Marie McConnell, Peter and Ellen Kendall, Jaime Yordan, M&M Realty, Foglia Contracting, Jim and Shirin Marver, Joe and Barbara Price, Hazelton Marketing Group, Kitchens By Design, Minuteman Press, Weatherman Umbrellas, Linda Delaney, Charlie and Este Brashears, Michael Williams, Wendy and Chase Carey, Steve Rubin, Tom Collins Insurance, Evelyn’s Plant Care, Nalzaro Music, Natalie’s Juice 

Cooper Woestendick

Gomez, Tavarez Rip Over Vero Beach Locals, Stage Incredible Final-Round Comeback To Win Mardy Fish “Wild Card” Doubles Title

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Panama Davis Cupper Luis Gomez and partner Junior Tavarez from the Dominican Republic were a two-man wrecking ball through some of Vero Beach’s best local players en route to winning the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships doubles “Wild Card” tournament.

To boot in the event final, the pairing withstood a stretch of losing 12 straight points in the second set-tiebreaker into the decisive match tiebreaker to defeat top-seeds Tanner Povey of Indian Rock Beach, Florida and Dylan Jaen of Hilton Head, S.C. 3-6, 7-6 (0), (11-9).

Gomez and Tavarez will play in the doubles main draw at the $15,000 USTA Pro Circuit event that will be held April 22-28 also at the Vero Beach Tennis & Fitness Club.

En route to the final, Gomez and Tavarez ran through a gauntlet of Vero Beach standouts defeating Boulevard Tennis Club men’s doubles champions Bernardo Feitosa and Mike Hickey in the first round 6-2, 6-0, then Vero Beach Tennis Club member Sam Weinstein and Juan Rincon 6-2, 6-2 in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, they beat local Vero Beach teaching pro and half of the defending champion team at this event Ching Wang and his partner James Aronson of New York, N.Y. (whose grandmother lives in Vero Beach) 6-1, 6-4.

In the final, the unseeded duo seemingly had the match in hand, leading 6-3 and holding double match point receiving serve at 4-5, 30-40 in the no-ad scoring doubles format. However, Povey, who will play for Arizona State in the Fall, and Jaen, who will play for Boise State, fought back, fighting off the first match point with a furious volley exchange and the second, benefitting from an odd low bouncing ball that slid under the racket of Tavarez. Povey and Jaen managed to force a second-set tiebreaker, which they won 7-0. The American duo then took a 5-0 lead in the decisive 10-point match tiebreaker, losing an incredible 12 points in a row. However, Gomez and Tavarez then out of nowhere went on to win the next seven points to lead 7-5. Povey and Jaen managed to tie the score at 7-7 before Povey missed a backhand return and double faulted to give Gomez and Tavarez two more match points leading 9-7. After Jaen saved the first match point in the match tiebreaker with an overhead smash, Tavarez let the second one go awry with an ill-timed double fault. With some time to think of his potentially fatal match mistake as the teams switched sides, Tavarez responded with a thundering ace down the T to give him and Gomez the 10-9 lead. On the next point, Tavarez then finally closed the match with a backhand drop volley winner.

“That was crazy,” said Tavarez after the match. “The first set was pretty chill. We dominated the whole set and we closed it out. And then we were too comfortable and then we lost the second set in the tiebreaker 7-0. That was crazy. I was so frustrated with myself. Then in the super tiebreaker we were down 5-0, which means we lost 12 points in a row. That was insane. Mentally we were so frustrated and out of the match. And then after I broke my racquet, it was amazing. I let go my anger and then we came back. That was amazing.”

“This is tennis, sometimes it is crazy,” said Gomez. “Sometimes you lose 12 points in a row and then you wake up and win the match and do a comeback.”

Watch the full post-match interview here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4RV6yvPXcBY&t=48s and in Spanish here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_7AeY6Ko4s

Povey and Jaen advanced to the final in another decisive match-tiebreaker, defeating the Port St. Lucie pair of Tyler Rios, the 2023 “King of the Hill” runner-up, and Tomas Martinez by a 6-7(5), 6-1 (10-8) scoreline. Povey and Jaen also beat the fan favorite team of John McConnell, age 69, and Peter Carr, age 70, 6-0, 6-1 in their opening match. McConnell and Carr gave a popularly viewed post-match interview discussing their love of tennis that can be seen here – 70-Year Olds Talk After Playing “Wild Card” Pro Tennis Event https://youtu.be/nZgyX8vAk1w?si=24iruTfCq1tsINef

The Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships traditionally holds wild card events for all of its wild card entry positions. American teenagers Mitchell Lee and Lachlan Gaskell earned main draw and qualifying singles wild cards, respectively last month, which you can read about here https://tennisverobeach.com/index.php/2024/03/03/top-u-s-juniors-lee-gaskell-secure-first-pro-chances-at-mardy-fish-sea-oaks-wild-card-tournament/ The tournament will hold one more wild card  tournament, a pre-qualifying tournament for a spot in the tournament, April 17-19. Entries can found on the UTR site here: https://app.utrsports.net/events/221435

Luis Gomez and Junior Tavarez