Both of Ivan Lendl’s tennis pupils lost in the final round of the qualifying tournament for the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships at The Boulevard Tennis Club Monday, but one got lucky.
Patrick Kypson and Vasil Kirkov, both coached on by the Vero Beach resident and Tennis Hall of Famer, were both defeated in their final-round matches, Kypson losing to fellow American Williams Howells 6-4, 1-6, 6-1, while Kirkov lost to another American Hady Habib from Houston, Texas 6-2, 7-6 (2). Kirkov, however, was awarded a “lucky loser” position into the main draw when Alejandro Gomez of Colombia withdrew from the singles draw.
Kirkov will be joined in the 32-player main draw by two other teenage American players, Sam Ruffice and Gianni Ross, who have all been training with Lendl at the Windsor Club many times this year.
Rookie pro Michael Zhu from Princeton, N.J. won a marathon three-set struggle to beat Mexican Davis Cup player Tigre Hank 7-5, 2-6, 6-4 in two hours, 42 minutes in the most dramatic final-round qualifying match Monday. Zhu, who played No. 1 in his senior year at the University of Michigan in 2015, out-hit his flashy left-handed opponent from the baseline on Stadium Court. Tigre, from Tijuana, is the No. 1 player from Mexico and frequently trains in Vero Beach with part-time local resident Daniel Garza, also a Mexican Davis Cupper who won the Vero Beach Futures title in 2011.
Other players qualifying for the main draw of the $10,000 USTA Pro Circuit event include former world No. 46 Evgeny Korolev of Russia who defeated Jonathan Chang 6-2, 6-1 and Ty Trombetta of the United States who defeated Jamaican Davis Cup team member Rowland Phillips 7-6 (5), 6-1.
The main draw of play starts at 10 am with Adam Ambrozy, an 18-year-old from St. Petersburg, Fla., facing Marcelo Tomas Barrios Vera of Chile in the first match on the Stadium Court. Ambrozy, who will attend Columbia University in New York City next year, is one of 14 teenagers in the singles and doubles field this year at the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships. The No. 1 seed in the event is Gonzalo Escobar, a member of the Davis Cup team from Ecuador who is ranked No. 346 in the world. Escobar is one of 12 players in the singles or doubles tournament who have played Davis Cup for their country.
Results – Final Round Qualifying
Michael Zhu (USA) def. Tigre Hank (MEX) [1] 7-5, 2-6, 6-4
Eduardo Agustin Torre (ARG) [2] def. Benjamin Hannestad (DEN) [10] 2-6, 6-3, 6-2
William Howells (USA) def. Patrick Kypson (USA) [13] 6-4, 1-6, 6-1
Ty Trombetta (USA) def. Rowland Phillips (JAM) 7-6 (5), 6-1
Hady Habib (USA) def. Vasil Kirkov (USA) 6-2, 7-6(2)
Evgeny Korolev (RUS) def. Jonathan Chang (USA) 6-2, 6-1
Raleigh Smith (USA) [7] def. Javier Naser (CHI) 7-6, 6-2
Juan Manuel Benitz Chavarriaga (COL) [8] def. Michael Lippens (USA) 6-1, 6-2
Main Draw Tuesday’s Schedule of Play
Stadium Starting at 10 am
Adam AMBROZY (USA) vs. Marcelo Tomas BARRIOS VERA (CHI)
Followed by
Vasil KIRKOV (USA) vs. Alejandro MENDOZA (BOL)
Not Before 1 pm
Matias Franco Descotte vs. Juan Sebastien Gomez (COL) (5)
Not Before 3 pm
Miomir KECMANOVIC (SRB) / Jonas LUETJEN (GER) vs. Brian BATTISTONE (USA) / Isaiah STRODE (USA)
Not Before 4:30 pm
Deiton BAUGHMAN (USA) / Anderson REED (USA) vs. Antonio BALAU (BRA) / Igor SCHATTAN (BRA)
Not Before 6 pm
Michael ALFORD (USA) / William FEDERHOFER (USA) Peter NAGY (HUN) / Denis SHAPOVALOV (CAN)
Grandstand Starting at 10 am
Starting at 10 am
Mauricio ECHAZU (PER) / Federico ZEBALLOS (BOL) vs. Ruben GONZALES (PHI) / Dennis NEVOLO (USA)
Not Before 11 am
Peter NAGY (HUN) [8] vs. Jonas LUETJEN (GER)
Not Before 1 pm
Thomas COOK (USA) / Nathan PASHA (USA) vs. Gonzalo ESCOBAR (ECU) / Roberto QUIROZ (ECU)
Not Before 3 pm
Jose Daniel BENDECK (COL) / Alejandro MENDOZA vs. Daniel GARZA (MEX) [2] / Tigre HANK (MEX)
Not Before 4:30
Geronimo ESPIN BUSLEIMAN (ARG) / Eduardo Agustin Gomez (COL) vs. Juan Sebastian GOMEZ (COL) [3] /Felipe Mantilla (COL)
Court 4
Not Before Noon
Martins Podzus (LAT) vs. Jorge Montero (CHI)
Not Before 4 pm
Martins Podzus and Martins Podzus (LAT) vs. Alexander Merino (PER) Michael Zhu (USA)
Monday’s full schedule of play can be seen here: https://s3.amazonaws.com/ustaassets/assets/1/15/schedule520.pdf
The main singles draw can be seen here: https://s3.amazonaws.com/ustaassets/assets/1/15/singles_draw518.pdf
The main doubles draw can be seen here: https://s3.amazonaws.com/ustaassets/assets/1/15/doubles_draw518.pdf
Fans can follow news and developments on the tournament on Facebook and on Twitter at @VeroFutures and by going to the website www.TennisVeroBeach.com
Tournament match start times are as follows:
10 am Tuesday, April 26 Not before 6 pm Night Match (Main Draw Starts)
10 am Wednesday, April 27, Not before 6 pm Night Match (Main Draw)
10 am Thursday, April 28, Not before 6 pm Night Match (Main Draw)
10 am Friday, April 29 Not before 6 pm Night Match (2nd Doubles Semifinal)
1 pm, 3 pm Saturday, April 30, Singles semifinals
11 am Sunday, May 1 (likely doubles championship match first, followed by singles championship match at 1 pm, depending on if a player is competing in both finals)
Starting in 2016, the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation is the new operator of the $10,000 “Futures” tennis tournament in Vero Beach, one of the longest-running and best attended events on the U.S. Tennis Association Pro Circuit. The tournament, now called The Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships, benefits the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation, the non-profit tennis 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. The event was managed for 20 years by Vero Beach tennis teaching professional Mike Rahaley, who made the annual Vero Beach stop one of the crown jewels on the USTA Pro Circuit. The 2016 tournament will be held April 22 through May 1 at The Boulevard Tennis Club.
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.” Mardy Fish recently completed his ATP professional tennis career at the 2015 U.S. Open, highlighted by a career-high ranking of No. 7, six ATP singles titles, eight ATP doubles titles and an Olympic silver medal in singles at the 2004 Olympics. He reached the quarterfinals at the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open and was a mainstay on the U.S. Davis Cup team from 2002 to 2012.
Some of the past competitors in Vero Beach 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 Australian Open semifinalist 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.
Sponsors and supporters of the event are as follows:
Grand Slam Sponsors
SorensenRealEstate.com
Boston Barricade
Laser Spine Institute
George E. Warren Corp.
Indian River Medical Center
Syde Hurdus Foundation
PNC Bank
Backhand Sponsors
John’s Island Real Estate
Coastal Van Lines Storage
Indian River Press Journal / TCPalm.com
Barbara Ettinger
Dr. Larry Landsman
Dr. John Sarbak
Citrus Grillhouse
White Orchid Day Spa
Gene Simonsen
Michael & Kathleen Pierce
Center Court
Publix
Indian River Oxygen
Forehand Sponsors
Rosato Plastic Surgery Center
Kay C. Betancourt, DMD
Jeff & Rosanne Susi
Mello Financial
Jean Ueltschi
Sam & Susie Bell
Cravings
Sue Powell Rentals
William Barhorst
Peter Bernholz Family
Don & Linda Proctor
The Whole Person Project, Inc.
Ocean Drive Plastic Surgery
Ocean Drive Elite Physiques
Huryn Construction
Riverside Café
Barker Air Conditioning
Bill & Laurie Stewart
Steve McCloud / Wells Fargo Private Mortgage Banking
Coggin BMW of Ft. Pierce / Mercedes of Ft. Pierce
Twig Swim & Sportswear Shop
Osceola Bistro
Supporting Sponsors and Patrons
The Moorings Yacht & Country Club
New Leaf Designs
A Pampered Life / Disney Spa
Carpe Antiperspirant Hand Lotion
Robert Kowalczyk – Moorings Yacht & Country Club
Win Detergent
Calvetti & Company
NewChapterMedia.com
Steve Hardin – Twin Oaks Tennis Club
Aurelija Merrill – John’s Island Club
Carol Donnelly
Roy & Tish Wissel
Boast
Hutchinson’s Florist
Casey’s Restaurant
Chelsea’s Market
Tennis Resort at the ESPN Wide World of Sports at Disney
Sassy Boutique
Quail Valley Club
Bottle Shop
Busy Bee
Veranda
Avanzare
Maison Beach Gifts
Center for Advanced Eye Care
Diamond Resorts International
Monreal London
Rock City Gardens
Tina Simone Company
Pogues, Inc.
Kevin Healy, M.S., D.S.
Chiropractic Nutrition and Wellness
Treasure Coast Sports Commission
Saddlebrook Academy
Nailtiques
Sam Garcia – Quail Valley Club
Dr. Raymond Della Porta, D.M.D.
Yulin Day Spa
Pat Gorman – Bent Pine Golf Club
Frosting
Grind & Grape bar & grill
JMcLaughlin
Vero Beach Yoga Barre
Ken & Annette Krasnow
Indian River County School District
Body Network
Studio Gabriel
Quinn Hiaason
Tommy Falcone
Sandy Malone
Spring Hill Suites by Marriott
Vero Beach Inn & Suites
Seaside Grill
Swarovski Jewelry
Minuteman Press
Dr. Michele Maholtz
Jony Leitenbauer and Tom Fish – Windsor Club
