Palmira Golf & Country Club proved to be a terrific venue for the Fort Myers
Ritzman Tennis USPTA Pro League to open the 2012 - 2013 Season. Host Kenny Gibson (Tennis Director) and his staff greeted the hundreds of enthusiastic
fans who descended upon the well-manicured grounds. The fans generated more than enough
buzz and excitement to make me wish I had been in the lineup.
 |
Scott Harrignton & Jim Katterfield pose with
Paul Pignone of Boston Retirement Advisors
and event host Kenny Gibson |
For those who haven’t yet been informed, there’s a new format this season, with six teams,
instead of four, vying for Pro League honors. Team competition will include
three men’s doubles (No.1 through No.3 doubles) and one mixed doubles match. Click here for Team Rosters, League Standings, and Match
Schedule. A tiebreak
set (first to 10 points, AKA super-tiebreak) is used if there are split sets in
a match.
The scoring works as follows: One point is
gained for every set won. Teams using substitutes only get half a point for each
set won. So for example, if Joe and Jim beat Bob and Bill in straight sets, Joe
and Jim get two points and Bob and Bill get zero. If Joe and Jim win in three
sets, then they get two points and Bob and Bill get one. However, if Joe is
playing with a sub, his team will only get half a point per set, so instead of
two points, his team would only get one. A team cannot use two subs on the same
court. I hope that brings you up to speed. Now on to last Friday’s action…
Team Babolat (7) versus
Boston Retirement Advisors (3.5)
 |
| Erica Cossairt & Armor Persons of Babolat |
Captain Jeff Diggs’ Team Babolat jumped out to a really nice
start, taking three of the four matches against Scott Harrington’s Boston
Retirement Advisors (BRA). Tyler Owens continued his winning ways at first
doubles, teaming with Deny Rager to dispatch Scott and Jared Kalpin in straight
sets.
 |
| Jim Katterfield & Susie Gibson raffle goodies |
At second doubles, Jeff and John Jerome took a close three-setter from League
Commissioner Jim Katterfield and my ex-partner Joel Hampton.
 |
| Mike Barnes & Paul D'Amico of BRA |
On Court 3, Paul D’Amico and Mike Barnes posted the only win
for BRA, edging Mark Owens and Toni Halski in three. On the Mixed Doubles
court, Armor Persons of Breckenridge and Erica Cossairt of Cape Coral Racquet
Club squeaked by Bob Green of Pelican Preserve and Christie Pollen (subbing for
Kim Jones of The Landings) in another third-set super-tiebreak.
Johnny Malloy’s (5)
versus University Grill (2)
 |
| Mike Curran & Elliot Debolt of JM |
The points in the matchup between Mike Curran’s (Gulf
Harbour) Johnny Malloy’s (JM) and Mike Lawver’s (Heritage Palms) University
Grill (UG) were a bit more even, but JM also took three of four courts.
 |
| Larry Gagnon & Oliver Stenger of JM |
Curran
and Elliot Debolt (The Vines) bombed their way through Matt Maloney of Punta
Gorda Club and Xander Woodford (sub) in straight sets on Court 1, and Larry
Gagnon (Plantation) and Oliver Stenger (Park Meadow) did the same to Mark Drons
and Terry See on Court 3.
 |
| John Ramsey & Sandy Miller |
JM took the mixed doubles match in straight sets as well,
when John Ramsey (Kelly Greens) and Sandy Miller (sub) beat Tony Martin (Heritage
Bay) and Carolyn Lawver (Heritage Palms).
 |
| Mike Lawver & Patrick Kangwa of UG |
Captain Lawver (Heritage Palms) teamed
with Patrick Kangwa (Rapallo) to defeat Todd Wise (Legends) and Kevin Kearns in
straight sets to salvage a win for UG.
Remax (5) versus Gateway Dental (2)
 |
| Frank Fourgeau & Corey Knapp of Remax |
Winning three of four matches was the theme of the day, and
Remax won three of the four matches against Gateway Dental (GD) as well. Remax Captain
Frank Fourgeau (Gulf Harbour) and partner Corey Knapp started things off with a
straight-set win over my partner Anthony Hatori (Vasari) and my sub Steve
Shreiner (thanks for filling in Steve!) at second doubles.
 |
| Dave Dooley & Tom Fisher of Remax |
On Court 3, Dave
Dooley (Shadow Wood) and Tom Fisher (sub) downed Alex Hermeto (Gateway) and Steve
Shortridge (Colonial) in straight sets for another Remax victory.
 |
| Ryan Sherry & Shawn Hedrick of GD |
GD captain Shawn Hedrick (The Strand) and Pro League newcomer
Ryan Sherry ended Manuel Encalada’s (Cascades) undefeated streak, beating him
and Luke Andreae (Punta Gorda Club) in straight sets on Court 1.
 |
| Christie Bradley & Dan Moenning of Remax |
Dan Moenning (Punta
Gorda Club) and Christie Bradley (Sanctuary) rounded out the Remax wins with a
straight-set victory over Jeff Timmer (Colonial) and Kerry Kendrick (Casa
Ybel).
The action moves to Gulf Harbour this Friday, November 2, at
4pm. League leading Team Babolat takes on Gateway Dental, fourth-place BRA will
face fifth-place UG, and JM and Remax, tied for second, will go head-to-head.
The Gulf Harbour venue is always a rocking stop on the Pro League Tour, and I’ll
be back in the lineup, so hope to see you there. Click here for additional pictures at Palmira.
Pro League Standings
Place
|
Team
|
Jersey
Color
|
Points
|
1st
|
Babolat
|
Orange
|
7
|
2nd
|
Johnny Malloy’s
|
Lime Green
|
5
|
2nd
|
Remax
|
Carolina Blue
|
5
|
4th
|
Boston Retirement Advisors
|
Tropical Blue
|
3.5
|
5th
|
University Grill
|
Gold
|
2
|
5th
|
Gateway Dental
|
Burgundy
|
2
|
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