Mascot "Tennis the Menace" greets visitors to Greater Midland Tennis Center.
TENNIS FRIENDS: Midland Invites Families to Festival During USTA Tourney
April 23, 2015
By: Dave Rogers
Come to the tournament and have a ball!
That's the invitation of Mike Woody, Midland's Mr. Tennis, and U.S. Tennis Association U.S. Open playoff tourney officials.
Woody and the Greater Midland Tennis Center are inviting family and friends, teammates and guests of players competing June 12-16 for a spot in the 2015 U.S. Open, offering tennis and activities for everyone.
"We want to make this event like a Tennis Friends Festival," said Tennis Center Tournament Director Cindy Vickery. "Congratulations to the players chasing the dream on our courts to earn a spot in America's Grand Slam, August 31-September 13."
Participants will try to play their way through sectional tournaments and a national championship to earn a spot in the U.S. Open. The Tennis Center is the USTA-designated Midwest Site for the early competition.
Players 14-older with USTA membership are eligible. Competition is scheduled in five divisions: Mens & Women's Singles and Men's, Women's and Mixed Doubles.
Winners play in the U.S. Open National Playoff Championships, August 21-29 in New Haven. Conn. Singles winners go into the Qualifier, doubles winners go into the main draw.
"We appreciate our selection by the USTA as the Midwest site for this playoff on a tennis field of dreams. How cool is it to tell your friends you competed in the U.S. Open?" said Mike Woody, Tennis Center Executive Director.
Entry fees are $85 for singles and $55 for doubles. Viewing is free. To sign up, visit www.USOpen.org/NationalPlayoffs or www.midlandtennis.com, or call Cindy Vickery, (989) 631-6151.
The public is invited to participate in the annual Prince Cup Doubles Tournament for adults Saturday, May 16 from 1-3:30 p.m., and a Prince Racquet Demo session in the morning, 11 a.m. to 12: 30 p.m., with hitting on a pro court and ball machine court. Shoes, tennis bags and racquets are prizes.
Once again, the Tennis Center will host the Girls MHSAA Division I Tennis State Championships, May 29-30 for team and individual honors. Viewing is free.
Summer Tennis Camps, June 15-September 3, are currently enrolling in Tennis and All Sports and Tennis Only Camps for 10-under and Middle and High School Academy Camps, as well as competitive camps for juniors, Hot Shots, Satellite Academy and Tournament Training Program (TTP). Register at the Welcome Center (989) 631-6151 or go online: www.midlandtennis.com.
John Telfer, classical guitarist/composer turned tennis pro directs the 10-Under program at the Tennis Center by working with interested parents of children who could benefit from the program that features, fun, friends and accelerated progress using age-appropriate equipment, scaled courts and special tennis balls.
"We take your perfectly normal child and turn them into tennis players by emphasizing fun and running very fast, swinging away. We get tired. Your children get tired. It's all good," says Telfer whose building the program as Midland's "Pied Piper of 10's Tennis."
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