Family Circle Cup Expands Qualifying Draw for 2012

Already a big event, America's largest clay court event for women just got bigger.

The Family Circle Cup will expand its singles qualifying tournament from its current 32-player draw to a 48-player draw during the 2012 tournament.  Qualifying matches will be held beginning at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, March 31 and Sunday, April 1, throughout the Family Circle Tennis Center.  Marking the tournament’s 40th year, the Family Circle Cup will be held March 31 – April 8, 2012 at the Family Circle Tennis Center in the Best Tennis Town in America, Charleston, S.C.

“Our opening weekend will be an unbelievable value for spectators looking to enjoy world class talent.  Family Circle Cup fans are very knowledgeable and appreciate the high level of play on display during our opening weekend.” said Bob Moran, Family Circle Cup Tournament Director. 

The expanded qualifying draw will result in an increase of total qualifiers advancing to the main draw, from eight to twelve, as well as an increase in total tournament prize money, from $711,000 to $749,160.  Two additional qualifying wild cards will also be generated by this expansion, which have traditionally been granted to young Americans who greatly benefit from participation in this WTA Premier Event.

Individual Session Tickets, Travel Packages, Team Getaways, visit FamilyCircleCup.com/Tickets. 

Highlights of the U.S Open Men's Qualifying Draw

128 will be on hand, looking for 16 spots in the U.S. Open main draw for qualifiers.  This is a huge deal and the draw is loaded with players capable of pulling an upset.  They are playing for prize money, but the real prize is making it to the main draw next week.

Let's look at some of the contenders and matches that stand out.

Joao Souza of Brazil is the top seed.  He looks like he might have the easiest path, he could face one of the hardest working players in tennis along the way, Roman Borvanov.

The #1 player in the Dominican Republic is in the draw.  That would be Victor Estrella, he makes his living playing mostly Futures events around the Caribbean.

Marsel Ihlan of Turkey might be the best player in the draw.  He is the #3 seed, and he played well in qualifying for Cincinnati.

Joao Sousa of Portugal is also in the field.  Do not confuse him with Joao Souza, who I mentioned earlier.

Americans are littered throughout the draw.  They include, Alex Kuznetsov, Daniel Kosakowski, Tim Smyczek of Milwaukee, and Rhyne Williams, a Tennessee Volunteer who plays veteran, Rik   De Voest.

Believe it or not, Wayne Odesnik is the #19 seed, and he stands a pretty good chance of qualifying.

Keep an eye on young American players like Mitchell Frank, Denis Kudla, Bjorn Frantangelo and Blake Strode, who again won the National Playoff competition this year.

One match to make a note of is an All-American matchup of Bradley Klahn taking on Tennys Sandgren, and yes, that is his real name.

Nice to see Jesse Witten in the draw, as his retirement draws near.  Also, I'll be interested to see who prevails in the James Ward vs. Michael Yani match.

Qualifying for the U.S. Open is free to the public and makes for some interesting tennis.

Marsel Ilhan is the #3 seed in qualifying

Atlanta Tennis Championships Qualifying Saturday Order of Play

Qualifying play begins at 10 a.m. sharp today (Saturday) at the Racquet Club of the South in Norcross, GA for the 2011 Atlanta Tennis Championships.

Notable names in action today include young American Denis Kudla, former top-10 player Nicolas Massu and college players from the University of Georgia and Georgia Tech.

ORDER OF PLAY – SATURDAY, JULY 16, 2011
CENTER COURT start 10:00 am
Qualifying – [WC] W Spencer (USA) vs N Lindahl (AUS)
Qualifying – N Massu (CHI) vs [WC] K King (USA)
Qualifying – C Fleming (GBR) vs D Kudla (USA)
Qualifying – J Anton (USA) vs [WC] M Spyslinger (USA)
COURT 1 start 10:00 am
Qualifying – H Lewis (BAR) vs [WC] D Bernstein (USA)
Qualifying – [WC] G Gomez (ESP vs P Simmonds (USA)
Qualifying – [WC] G Townes (USA) vs E Graves (USA)
COURT 2 start 10:00 am
Qualifying – O Sajous (HAI) vs A Krywacz (BRA)
Qualifying – K Lejnieks (LAT) vs D Kosakowski (USA)
Qualifying – A Smith (USA) vs N Schnugg (USA)