Players Announced for ButlerCars.com Tennis Classic of Macon

ButlerCars.com Tennis Classic of Macon
Presented By The W.L. Amos Foundation

STRATFORD ACADEMY - JAIME KAPLAN TENNIS CENTER * OCTOBER 6-13, 2013
 PLAYERS ANNOUNCED

MACON, Georgia, (September. 20, 2013) Tennis fans in Macon are in for a rare treat in two weeks as one of the strongest fields to date for a USTA 25K event was announced today for the ButlerCars.com Tennis Classic of Macon, presented by The W.L. Amos Foundation.  The action runs October 6-13 at the Jaime Kaplan Tennis Center at Stratford Academy.

“Wow, it’s the strongest field I’ve ever had in 11 years of running a USTA Pro Circuit event, and that included my 50K events, says Mercer tennis coach and tournament director Eric Hayes.

The field includes one of the fastest rising players in the world in No. 88 Ajla Tomljanovic of Croatia and two Americans looking to improve their rankings in Coco Vandeweghe and Melanie Oudin, who is a former U.S. Open quarterfinalist and is from Marietta, Georgia.

The entire entry list is available at: http://www.itftennis.com/procircuit/tournaments/women%27s-tournament/info.aspx?tournamentid=1100030133

The qualifying draw is equally strong and features Anna Tatishvili of Georgia who was ranked No. 50 in the world a little over a year ago and Nicole Gibbs who has won an NCAA singles title at Stanford. Two University of Georgia players will also be playing the qualifying.

Slated to be the No. 2 seed is Michelle Larcher De Brito of Portugal who upset Maria Sharapova at Wimbledon this summer.

Tickets are now on sale and are available at participating Butler Automotive Group dealerships around Macon and through Mercer tennis coach and tournament director Eric Hayes at (478) 301-2269. Tickets are at priced at $5 per day or $25 for the entire week.

In addition to Butler Automotive Group being the title sponsor, the W.L. Amos Foundation has been added on as the presenting sponsor for 2013.

The tournament will also benefit the Middle Georgia Tennis Foundation.

Anyone interested in volunteering please contact Hayes by email at hayes_ea@mercer.edu or Rick Limpert, tournament press aide at Rick.Limpert@gmail.com.

The tournament offers $25,000 in prize money to the singles and doubles players and a 64-player qualifying tournament will take place during the opening weekend of the tournament.

About the USTA Pro Circuit

With approximately 90 tournaments hosted annually throughout the country and prize money ranging from $10,000 to $100,000, the USTA Pro Circuit is the pathway to the US Open and tour-level competition for aspiring tennis players and a frequent battleground for established professionals. The USTA launched its Pro Circuit 33 years ago to provide players with the opportunity to gain professional ranking points, and it has since grown to become the largest developmental tennis circuit in the world, offering nearly $3 million in prize money. Last year, more than 1,000 men and women from more than 70 countries competed
in cities nationwide. Mardy Fish, Maria Sharapova, Andy Roddick, Caroline Wozniacki, John Isner, Li Na and Andy Murray are among today’s top stars who began their careers on the USTA Pro Circuit.

Jaime Kaplan Tennis Center at Stratford Academy
The Jaime Kaplan Tennis Center is the beautiful new tennis facility at Stratford Academy.  The SP Design Group and Hulsey McCormick & Wallace, Inc. coordinated the design effort with the USTA and the K-12 school for the concession/restroom/locker building and the eight new playing courts. In 2011, the new facility was awarded the USTA Outstanding Facility Award for an educational institution.

Butler Automotive Group
The Butler family has been in the car business for three generations, beginning back in 1933 in Alma, Georgia.  In 1970 Marshall Butler bought a Toyota dealership in Macon, Georgia and over the years has grown his business to include Ford, Honda, Toyota (2), Lexus, Volkswagen, Acura, BMW (2), Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep.

Middle Georgia Tennis Foundation
The mission of the Middle Georgia Tennis Foundation is to raise funds to support tennis programs, especially youth programs in Middle Georgia.  

For more information:
On-site PR contact: Rick Limpert (209) 920-7425 or email: Rick.Limpert@gmail.com
Website: www.ButlerCarsMacon25K.com
Twitter:  @USTAMacon25K