This is a very exciting weekend for the 4.5 division. All of the top teams are battling each other for positioning, which could give us some insight into potential playoff matchups. Which teams will shine and which will falter?
4.5 A
Featured Match: OC/Branch v. OC/Feldman
Defending fall champs vs. Defending spring champs. A lot of history between these two teams but I'm not sure that Todd's team has quite come together yet this season. No real pressure for them whereas Rusty knows this is a must-win for his team to be able to secure that number one spot. Bovermann could quietly move to 3-0 with a win this week, which could put them as the only other undefeated team besides the other OC winner. That would only happen if Royal Oaks loses, which I don't see happening. T Bar has a chance to reestablish themselves as a contender with a convincing win.
Predictions:
Branch over Feldman 4-1 (Not sure anybody but Vik can pull out a win)
Collin County over Stonebridge 4-1
T Bar over Hackberry 4-1
Bovermann over Village 3-2 (Interesting to see how these matches will turn out with a lot of doubles experience on these two teams)
Royal Oaks over High Point 4-1 (Who gets the 1? Maybe Kanevsky.)
4.5 B
Featured Match: Huffhines v. Brookhaven
Two playoff teams from last season square off in a battle of undefeated teams. Somebody choked away a third-set tiebreak to lose to Brookhaven last season so the team will be looking for revenge. I expect every line to be close and the match to go either way. I bet you can guess who I'm predicting to win though. A lot of great matches in this flight this Sunday though. I was very impressed with the Lakes' lineup last week and I think they could beat almost any team if they are that strong consistently. I thought Springpark would be a contender but they haven't shown it so far. I don't think High Point should sleep on them though. If Springpark puts out a smart lineup (Hint: Luis in singles), they could actually win one. All of these matches I think could go either way.
Predictions:
Huffhines over Brookhaven 3-2
High Point over Springpark 3-2
Lakes over Greenhill 3-2 (Strong singles players on both sides should decide it).
Juhn over T Bar 3-2
DFW over LB Houston 3-2
Anybody who wants to discuss these matchups or any late roster additions, feel free to chime in.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
4.0 Week 3
So week 2 continued to flesh out who will rise to the top but way too early to cancel vacation plans for July for anyone. Nice win for Garland#2 over the Village. The OC/(2 or 3) over BH/Pearlman was even more impressive.
Flight A:
One rainout match that might be interesting is LBH/Jones v. Springpark. I am curious to see how that goes down or when it is because Springpark also has Hackberry this Saturday which should be a good match. I like Hackberry in close one. TBar and HP should remain unscathed and untested this weekend.
Flight B:
We actually have a pretty solid weekend in our flight. The SWAT team has a weekend full of tennis taking on the Lakes on Saturday and Garland on Sunday (makeup match). All undefeated teams and we could all have losses by the end of the weekend. Another solid match is Stonebridge who takes on Brookhaven (2-0), I think this match will be very good. I hate to predict especially not knowing the lineups but I think Stonebridge has a very good chance of winning this match. If they can get at least one singles match I really like their chances, if they get both singles matches then there should be no way they don't leave with a win. I think it will come down to the Don Buford matchup, if he can take out their top singles player then I like BH but otherwise I am going with SB.
Flight C:
Since I don't like to jump off bandwagons I am sticking with the Village to make some noise this weekend v. Greenhill but I am finding it very hard to see them winning this match although it would make this flight much more interesting. I see GH winning 3-2 if both teams bring their top 8. HP takes on Royal Oaks and should move to 3-0 but don't sleep on the RO, they have some solid players.
Flight D:
zzzzzz. Four undefeated teams and none of them play each other quite yet. Thorntree does play Garland and the winner of that match might break into that top section of this flight and contend. I am looking forward to 5/16 when Springpark plays OC and Garland takes on LTF, those should be good matches.
New roster additions:
Don't see much here, Tim Newman went ahead and joined HP/Bob again. Tim (I think you entered the wrong HP team#, I will send you the right one now)
Flight A:
One rainout match that might be interesting is LBH/Jones v. Springpark. I am curious to see how that goes down or when it is because Springpark also has Hackberry this Saturday which should be a good match. I like Hackberry in close one. TBar and HP should remain unscathed and untested this weekend.
Flight B:
We actually have a pretty solid weekend in our flight. The SWAT team has a weekend full of tennis taking on the Lakes on Saturday and Garland on Sunday (makeup match). All undefeated teams and we could all have losses by the end of the weekend. Another solid match is Stonebridge who takes on Brookhaven (2-0), I think this match will be very good. I hate to predict especially not knowing the lineups but I think Stonebridge has a very good chance of winning this match. If they can get at least one singles match I really like their chances, if they get both singles matches then there should be no way they don't leave with a win. I think it will come down to the Don Buford matchup, if he can take out their top singles player then I like BH but otherwise I am going with SB.
Flight C:
Since I don't like to jump off bandwagons I am sticking with the Village to make some noise this weekend v. Greenhill but I am finding it very hard to see them winning this match although it would make this flight much more interesting. I see GH winning 3-2 if both teams bring their top 8. HP takes on Royal Oaks and should move to 3-0 but don't sleep on the RO, they have some solid players.
Flight D:
zzzzzz. Four undefeated teams and none of them play each other quite yet. Thorntree does play Garland and the winner of that match might break into that top section of this flight and contend. I am looking forward to 5/16 when Springpark plays OC and Garland takes on LTF, those should be good matches.
New roster additions:
Don't see much here, Tim Newman went ahead and joined HP/Bob again. Tim (I think you entered the wrong HP team#, I will send you the right one now)
Sunday, April 26, 2009
3.5 Week Two - Results!
3.5 A
"The Huff-Whines' Boys" continued winning this week without dropping a line.
The purloined Chris Jones made his debut this week with a impressive 6-1, 6-1 victory.
Lifetime Squeeked out a 3-2 victory over JCC.
LT was a 3rd set tiebreaker at line #2 singles away from receiving the Epic Fail of the Week.
The First real match of the 3.5 season is next week when Lifetime takes on the Mighty Glenn Strohl and Brookhaven @ Lifetime fitness.
3.5A Team Standings
3.5 B
Durrty Garland Debuted this week with a impressive 5-0 victory over Greenhill.
Westlake squeek out a victory over Canyon Creek.
Westlake's weakness at singles is begining to be revealed.
Sam Grand Continues to look like they maybe a threat.
Flight B heats up next week when Westlake takes on High Point.
3.5B Team Standings
3.5 C
Flight leader, Greenhill beat Brookhaven 3-2, The Stein Bros dropped both singles lines but Greenhill dominated in doubles,
Canyon Creek made it look easy vs the Lakes winning 4-1.
And Fretz continued to win downing the Village 4-1.
Looks like this division could get interesting with CC, GH, Fretz, and possibly OC all capable of pulling out a win over each other and everybody else.
3.5C Team Standings
Next Week :
Brookhaven @ Lifetime
and
Westlake @Highpoint
Let me know your predictions.......
Friday, April 24, 2009
4.5 Week Two
Some more interesting matchups this week but none of the big guns are battling each other it looks like.
4.5 A
Featured Match: High Point/Bazan v. T Bar
Not much of a feature matchup but I figure this is a must-win for T Bar to stay in the hunt and Bazan's team could prove to be a contender with a win here. High Point barely squeaked by in week one and they face a much stiffer test this week. Branch, Royal Oaks, and Feldman may not lose a line between them. Hackberry and Bovermann battle in what should be the closest match of the flight. I predict it will come down to singles in this one and I think Hackberry is just a little stronger in that category.
Predictions:
T-Bar over HP 4-1 (sorry Cary, but last time I picked against you it worked out for you)
Branch over Village 4-1 (doubles should actually be pretty competitive)
Royal Oaks over Stonebridge 5-0
Hackberry over Bovermann 3-2
Feldman over Collin County 4-1 (not sure where the one comes from).
4.5 B
Featured Match: Lakes v. Huffhines
I'm not going to list my team in the featured match every week but this week it's obvious. The Lakes team was a playoff contender last season and this is a match they need to win to be in that position again this season. Greenhill v. HP is also a close match to call but I actually think Greenhill could win this one. Brookhaven and Sprinpgark should win easily and T Bar and DFW could be a toss-up too.
Huffhines d. Lakes 4-1
Brookhaven d. LB 4-1
T Bar d. DFW 3-2
Springpark d. Juhn 4-1
Upset Pick: Greenhill d. High Point 3-2. Greenhill rolled last week and their singles one-two punch will be tough for any team to handle, assuming they are in the lineup.
As long as the rain stays away it should be a great weekend of tennis.
Thoughts?
4.5 A
Featured Match: High Point/Bazan v. T Bar
Not much of a feature matchup but I figure this is a must-win for T Bar to stay in the hunt and Bazan's team could prove to be a contender with a win here. High Point barely squeaked by in week one and they face a much stiffer test this week. Branch, Royal Oaks, and Feldman may not lose a line between them. Hackberry and Bovermann battle in what should be the closest match of the flight. I predict it will come down to singles in this one and I think Hackberry is just a little stronger in that category.
Predictions:
T-Bar over HP 4-1 (sorry Cary, but last time I picked against you it worked out for you)
Branch over Village 4-1 (doubles should actually be pretty competitive)
Royal Oaks over Stonebridge 5-0
Hackberry over Bovermann 3-2
Feldman over Collin County 4-1 (not sure where the one comes from).
4.5 B
Featured Match: Lakes v. Huffhines
I'm not going to list my team in the featured match every week but this week it's obvious. The Lakes team was a playoff contender last season and this is a match they need to win to be in that position again this season. Greenhill v. HP is also a close match to call but I actually think Greenhill could win this one. Brookhaven and Sprinpgark should win easily and T Bar and DFW could be a toss-up too.
Huffhines d. Lakes 4-1
Brookhaven d. LB 4-1
T Bar d. DFW 3-2
Springpark d. Juhn 4-1
Upset Pick: Greenhill d. High Point 3-2. Greenhill rolled last week and their singles one-two punch will be tough for any team to handle, assuming they are in the lineup.
As long as the rain stays away it should be a great weekend of tennis.
Thoughts?
4.0 Week 2
So this week went by fast but after skimming through the matches there isn't much sizzle this week and even the matches pending rain rescheduling weren't that great. We are making up v. Garland on 5/3.
Flight A:
Hackberry takes on HP/Bob and might actually keep them awake since they have some solid players at doubles. If they can grab a singles line then who knows this might be a good match. Our MOW is TBar v. LBH/Jones. I know Tbar looked impressive but this LBH played in the DCC last year and played very well, they have lost two solid players but added some new blood as well. I am picking LBH to win this one 3-2.
Flight B:
I only see one match that is interesting and that would be Stonebridge v. Lakes. Of course I am interested for my own reasons (we play the Lakes on 5/2) but I think the winner of this match will be a contender and the loser will have a tough time jumping up the top in this tough flight.
Flight C:
Not too much to keep me awake here but I am still curious to see Royal Oaks' results v. Greenhill, if they lose here most likely the rest of the way is just for fun and it will also be interesting to see if Greenhill is going to continue in the their winning ways without two big guns that have moved onto 4.5 (Kevin Windham and Fernando Contreras).
Flight D:
Not much sizzle here either but maybe a slow boil as OC takes on Garland/Brueckner. Steve's team may not be loaded but I think they have some talent to keep OC interested and may just push them more than they expect. Lifetime takes on LBH/Au and should win but I don't think this match will be quite as easy as the last one where Team Eddie didn't drop a set.
I would be remiss if I didn't mention some interesting additions to rosters in the last week.
Team Bob hits 20 players with Deviney and Tran. Willis is a good guy and a pretty solid player too. Vinh had solid results in the past as part of the Collin County teams that did well, he will help in singles.
OC adds Daryl Myrick who can play some singles and very solid at doubles which only makes them better.
Greenhill added Rob Bliss and Patrick Solomons who came from other teams and might help out at singles as John is probably looking to get some help for Enrique.
Flight A:
Hackberry takes on HP/Bob and might actually keep them awake since they have some solid players at doubles. If they can grab a singles line then who knows this might be a good match. Our MOW is TBar v. LBH/Jones. I know Tbar looked impressive but this LBH played in the DCC last year and played very well, they have lost two solid players but added some new blood as well. I am picking LBH to win this one 3-2.
Flight B:
I only see one match that is interesting and that would be Stonebridge v. Lakes. Of course I am interested for my own reasons (we play the Lakes on 5/2) but I think the winner of this match will be a contender and the loser will have a tough time jumping up the top in this tough flight.
Flight C:
Not too much to keep me awake here but I am still curious to see Royal Oaks' results v. Greenhill, if they lose here most likely the rest of the way is just for fun and it will also be interesting to see if Greenhill is going to continue in the their winning ways without two big guns that have moved onto 4.5 (Kevin Windham and Fernando Contreras).
Flight D:
Not much sizzle here either but maybe a slow boil as OC takes on Garland/Brueckner. Steve's team may not be loaded but I think they have some talent to keep OC interested and may just push them more than they expect. Lifetime takes on LBH/Au and should win but I don't think this match will be quite as easy as the last one where Team Eddie didn't drop a set.
I would be remiss if I didn't mention some interesting additions to rosters in the last week.
Team Bob hits 20 players with Deviney and Tran. Willis is a good guy and a pretty solid player too. Vinh had solid results in the past as part of the Collin County teams that did well, he will help in singles.
OC adds Daryl Myrick who can play some singles and very solid at doubles which only makes them better.
Greenhill added Rob Bliss and Patrick Solomons who came from other teams and might help out at singles as John is probably looking to get some help for Enrique.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Ft Worth Tennis - One Month In
I know that some of the Dallas purist will complain about a Ft Worth post on the Dallas tennis blog,A little disclosure here, I am a member of the Flower Mound 4.0 team and this spring has started my first swim through USTA Ft Worth leagues.
It has been great having practices and home matches just down the street from my house, but that as been balanced out by the ass beating that is driving to South and West Ft. Worth.
But it has been a nice change of pace to play some new teams and visit some new facilities.
Some general observations. FTW, of course does not have the same participation levels that Dallas does. The overall strength level seems lower than the Dallas leagues.
There are some quality teams and players of course,
But, on the whole I would say that Dallas leagues are set up to be stronger.
What that means, I'm not sure. I have seen several 4.0 players that looked like they would be a better fit on a 3.5 team.
So that brings in to question the whole NTPR system and where you decide to rate your self at. (I don't want to get started on ratings talk right now)
3.5 Division
In the 3.5 Division we have 2 flights RED and BLUE
3.5 Red flight
The ATC Spoilers have jumped out to a 4 - 0 start and should finish the season 8 - 0.
They are anchored by 3.5 veterans Ty W. Sewell, Pedro Montalvo, and Gil Flores. They seem to be mixing up their line-ups and not relying on a core group of players which will help them in the play-offs.
This is my pick to represent FTW in the 3.5 Sectionals.
3.5 Blue flight
Southlake Edwards is in control of this flight, they are anchored by 3.5 tournament fixture Ron Whitson and two single players who look like they may be a better fit on a 4.0 team in Fernando Aguirre and Michael Cerny.
They don't have the depth of ATC but in a one match play-off situation they may be able to take them out.
4.0
One Flight - 12 teams - and an Incredible 11 matches!
Are you Dallas guys jealous?
The two teams on top here are both from the same facility Mcleland Tennis Center. (The Location - Shitty, the courts terrible, but they do have 2 public indoor courts Nice!)
The McL Old Gang Seems to have the edge on the McL Hammers.
I don't see either one of these teams being able to challenge a Bob Somebutt team however.
There are about 6 teams in the middle of the pack who seem to be able to beat each other depending on what line ups they run out,
and 4 cellar dwellers.
4.5
One Division - 5 teams - 8 matches - No Play-offs.
In this flight everybody plays each other twice, so basically it's Double elimination.
There is only one undefeated team - Southlake.
Southlake made it to the Sections last year as a wild card.
They are my pick for the FTW sectional representative this year.
That's all I have for this month,I'm no Ft Worth expert yet.
So if I missed something let me know.
All you Ft Worthers and Bi-Leaguers let me hear from ya.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Week One 4.5 results
Here are the 4.5 results from Week One:
Flight A
Feldman's team rolled as expected without dropping a set. In the feature match, Oak Creek beat T Bar 4-1, but two of the four wins were third-set tiebreaks. Interesting lineup for Oak Creek. Makes me wonder who was available. Maybe they were saving Gene for the spring season. Bovermann and Bazan squeaked by with close tiebreak wins. Royal Oaks was unimpressive in its win, proving that the sandbagging may be over for them. All in all, no big surprises with the two Oak Creeks in the driver's seat.
Flight B
High Point and Greenhill both rolled in their respective matches. Greenhill dominated 4 of the 5 lines, possibly emerging as a true contender, or exposing LB as a bottom-feeder. Time will tell. My team squeaked by Springpark 3-2. I think with a different lineup Springpark could have beaten us. Very happy with a win there. The Lakes rolled over Oak Creek/Juhn, but not as easily as I would have thought. Biggest surprise this week was with Brookhaven barely beating a perennial last place DFW Hilton team. Ken Moraif losing 1 and 3 is a huge surprise though so maybe DFW has some talent. But very questionable lineup for Brookhaven which makes me wonder.
Half the teams are undefeated and I'm looking forward to next week.
Flight A
Feldman's team rolled as expected without dropping a set. In the feature match, Oak Creek beat T Bar 4-1, but two of the four wins were third-set tiebreaks. Interesting lineup for Oak Creek. Makes me wonder who was available. Maybe they were saving Gene for the spring season. Bovermann and Bazan squeaked by with close tiebreak wins. Royal Oaks was unimpressive in its win, proving that the sandbagging may be over for them. All in all, no big surprises with the two Oak Creeks in the driver's seat.
Flight B
High Point and Greenhill both rolled in their respective matches. Greenhill dominated 4 of the 5 lines, possibly emerging as a true contender, or exposing LB as a bottom-feeder. Time will tell. My team squeaked by Springpark 3-2. I think with a different lineup Springpark could have beaten us. Very happy with a win there. The Lakes rolled over Oak Creek/Juhn, but not as easily as I would have thought. Biggest surprise this week was with Brookhaven barely beating a perennial last place DFW Hilton team. Ken Moraif losing 1 and 3 is a huge surprise though so maybe DFW has some talent. But very questionable lineup for Brookhaven which makes me wonder.
Half the teams are undefeated and I'm looking forward to next week.
3.5 Week One - For Real!
3.5 A
This Flight held to form,
Both Lifetime and Oak Ridge won easily, 5-0,
Oak Ridge's win included a 6-0, 6-0 win by accused sandbagger Enrique Molina,
First the sandbagging acusations, then they steal Chris Jones from Oak Creek, and finally they give the finger to Oak Ridge county club,
Watch out for Oak Ridge (or should they be called Huffines now?), they maybe this year's new Durty Garland.
Brookhaven squeked out a win also, I think they may be left on the outside looking in.
3.5A Team Standings
3.5 B
This flight also held serve with wins by Westlake and Highpoint.
Highpoint look dominate in doubles, but is still struggling in singles, dropping line #1 and Sutherland going to the 3rd set tiebreaker on line #2.
HP need a singles ringer or sandbagger bad, maybe the Oak Ridge boys can lend them one of their spares.
Sam Grand also posted an impressive win, but with a roster of only 10 players they will not be able to keep it up.
Next week - The All New Revamped Durrrrrty Garland make their debut!
3.5B Team Standings
3.5 C
Epic Fail of the Week
Fretz defeats Oak Creek 4 -1
Fretz defeats Oak Creek 4 -1
Old Custy Oak Creek dropped 3 out of 4 third set tiebreakers to the Young upstart Fretz team and may have seen their playoff hopes disappear.Greenhill put in a strong 5- 0 win, even with out sandbagger Zack Stein in the line up.
And Canyon Creek had a strong showing as well.
3.5C Team Standings
4.0 Week 1 (Mostly rain)
So I am guessing everything is posted from this weekend since most matches were rained out including SWAT v. Garland (we hope to make up in early May).
Flight A:
TBar took out fall playoff participant BH/Helterbran fairly easily with the only win coming at line 2 singles for BH. Colao/Martin winning at line 1 v a good doubles team was impressive but not sure if this shows more of a step back for BH or a step forward for TBar. Maybe a little bit of both but nothing mind blowing here. If anything I think it shows 2nd place is more wide open than I thought here. Hackberry and OC have the roster to jump up and contend in this flight with TBar. 1st place is all but decided but the rest will be very tightly contested.
Flight B:
Oakridge v. CC was rather close but in the end it shows as a 4-1 win for CC. Oleg had to face Hans which is no treat and he fell i n 3 sets along with 3 other matches that went to the 3rd set TB. BH/Bartlett got off to a strong start taking on the Village B team which struggled especially at doubles. Don Buford looks to be back in good form with a good win over Khaning who has a lot of talent. If Buford can stay on track this team will be dangerous because they have many options at doubles. I expect them to contend all season long.
Flight C:
Royal Oaks put up a good showing as a new 4.0 team but fell to the Village. It looks like most new teams they have some top talent but get somewhat thin after that. Although they have a big roster so there may be some hidden surprises. The Village will make noise in this flight especially if everyone stays healthy and they can keep up at singles. High Point got off a strong start with a 4-1 thumping of OC/3. Not sure what to make of this one but starting out with a win is always good and if Harrigan stays at singles (hint hint) they will be tough to beat. Go get'em guys! The most impressive or depressing result was the sweep put on by Brookhaven/Pearlman over new team Collin County. I know some of these guys have bounced back and forth from 3.5 and I have a feeling come June they will be back at 3.5 (maybe that is what they are working on) if they continue to have results like this. Nice win for BH, I expect more good results from them.
Flight D:
Thorntree had a good debut sweeping doubles which was good since they were swept at singles. This is not a bad LBH team but Thorntree will have to improve at singles if they want to contend in this tough flight. LTF started off the season strong with a 5-0 sweep of Stonebriar, new singles player Vahdat started off the season with a woodshedding of Moomjian (6-0, 6-0) ouch! And yes Eddie is back and didn't drop a set along with the rest of the team. Springpark also had a good outing with a 4-1 crushing of Stonebridge, and they added a new player..........drum roll please..............Jonathan Marcus. Jonathan if you needed a place to play you could have called you didn't have to go to the dark side. (OMG)
I will post something later in the week about week 2 which for most will be week 1.
Flight A:
TBar took out fall playoff participant BH/Helterbran fairly easily with the only win coming at line 2 singles for BH. Colao/Martin winning at line 1 v a good doubles team was impressive but not sure if this shows more of a step back for BH or a step forward for TBar. Maybe a little bit of both but nothing mind blowing here. If anything I think it shows 2nd place is more wide open than I thought here. Hackberry and OC have the roster to jump up and contend in this flight with TBar. 1st place is all but decided but the rest will be very tightly contested.
Flight B:
Oakridge v. CC was rather close but in the end it shows as a 4-1 win for CC. Oleg had to face Hans which is no treat and he fell i n 3 sets along with 3 other matches that went to the 3rd set TB. BH/Bartlett got off to a strong start taking on the Village B team which struggled especially at doubles. Don Buford looks to be back in good form with a good win over Khaning who has a lot of talent. If Buford can stay on track this team will be dangerous because they have many options at doubles. I expect them to contend all season long.
Flight C:
Royal Oaks put up a good showing as a new 4.0 team but fell to the Village. It looks like most new teams they have some top talent but get somewhat thin after that. Although they have a big roster so there may be some hidden surprises. The Village will make noise in this flight especially if everyone stays healthy and they can keep up at singles. High Point got off a strong start with a 4-1 thumping of OC/3. Not sure what to make of this one but starting out with a win is always good and if Harrigan stays at singles (hint hint) they will be tough to beat. Go get'em guys! The most impressive or depressing result was the sweep put on by Brookhaven/Pearlman over new team Collin County. I know some of these guys have bounced back and forth from 3.5 and I have a feeling come June they will be back at 3.5 (maybe that is what they are working on) if they continue to have results like this. Nice win for BH, I expect more good results from them.
Flight D:
Thorntree had a good debut sweeping doubles which was good since they were swept at singles. This is not a bad LBH team but Thorntree will have to improve at singles if they want to contend in this tough flight. LTF started off the season strong with a 5-0 sweep of Stonebriar, new singles player Vahdat started off the season with a woodshedding of Moomjian (6-0, 6-0) ouch! And yes Eddie is back and didn't drop a set along with the rest of the team. Springpark also had a good outing with a 4-1 crushing of Stonebridge, and they added a new player..........drum roll please..............Jonathan Marcus. Jonathan if you needed a place to play you could have called you didn't have to go to the dark side. (OMG)
I will post something later in the week about week 2 which for most will be week 1.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
4.5 Week One
4.5A
Featured Match: Oak Creek/Branch v. T Bar
Two playoff teams from last fall clash in the opening week. This should give us an idea of how competitive T Bar will be this season, and if any team will be able to challenge Branch. If T Bar were to pull the upset the rest of the season will be much more interesting. In other matches, Feldman and Royal Oaks should cruise. Bazan has as good a chance as ever to get a win this week against an improved Village team. Collin County or Bovermann could emerge as a darkhorse with a convincing win this week too.
Predictions:
Oak Creek d. T Bar 4-1
Feldman d. Stonebridge 5-0
Collin County d. Bovermann 3-2
Village d. High Point 3-2
Royal Oaks d. Hackberry 4-1
4.5 B
Featured Match: Huffhines vs. Springpark
Not quite the featured match of the other flight but the only matchup between two above .500 teams from last season in this flight. The rest of the matches should not be competitive either. High Point v. T Bar could be interesting to see where both teams stand. T Bar has been labeled as the B team but I think they could be a contender.
Predictions:
Huffhines d. Springpark 3-2
Greenhill d. LB Houston 4-1
High Point d. T Bar 4-1
Lakes d. Oak Creek 4-1
Brookhaven d. DFW Hilton 5-0
Thoughts?
Featured Match: Oak Creek/Branch v. T Bar
Two playoff teams from last fall clash in the opening week. This should give us an idea of how competitive T Bar will be this season, and if any team will be able to challenge Branch. If T Bar were to pull the upset the rest of the season will be much more interesting. In other matches, Feldman and Royal Oaks should cruise. Bazan has as good a chance as ever to get a win this week against an improved Village team. Collin County or Bovermann could emerge as a darkhorse with a convincing win this week too.
Predictions:
Oak Creek d. T Bar 4-1
Feldman d. Stonebridge 5-0
Collin County d. Bovermann 3-2
Village d. High Point 3-2
Royal Oaks d. Hackberry 4-1
4.5 B
Featured Match: Huffhines vs. Springpark
Not quite the featured match of the other flight but the only matchup between two above .500 teams from last season in this flight. The rest of the matches should not be competitive either. High Point v. T Bar could be interesting to see where both teams stand. T Bar has been labeled as the B team but I think they could be a contender.
Predictions:
Huffhines d. Springpark 3-2
Greenhill d. LB Houston 4-1
High Point d. T Bar 4-1
Lakes d. Oak Creek 4-1
Brookhaven d. DFW Hilton 5-0
Thoughts?
3.5 Week One
I don't see anything too exciting here in Week one.
But I will try to pick something out of each Sub-Flight.
3.5 A
Since the sandbaggers at Oak Ridge are taking on the perennial 3.5 palukas of the appropriately named Hackberry CC I will pick:
Lifetime Fitness/Kaiser vs. High Point/Entrekin
As the match to watch.
I don't see anything on HP's roster that can challenge LT but it should be interesting to see who LT lines up.
3.5A Match Schedule
3.5 B
Durty Garland pulls a week 1 bye, so we will have to wait another week to crucify John Sick on the self-raters cross.
Match to watch:
High Point/Jameson vs Canyon Creek/Gable
Canyon Creek has a deep team and a generally tough at home, but this one will be at HP.
This one could be tight.
3.5B Match Schedule
3.5 C
A.k.a the boring sub-flight
match to watch: None
Unless some other team can step up to the big boy table there won't be much to report until the last week of the regular season - OC vs Greenhill.
3.5C Match Schedule
But I will try to pick something out of each Sub-Flight.
3.5 A
Since the sandbaggers at Oak Ridge are taking on the perennial 3.5 palukas of the appropriately named Hackberry CC I will pick:
Lifetime Fitness/Kaiser vs. High Point/Entrekin
As the match to watch.
I don't see anything on HP's roster that can challenge LT but it should be interesting to see who LT lines up.
3.5A Match Schedule
3.5 B
Durty Garland pulls a week 1 bye, so we will have to wait another week to crucify John Sick on the self-raters cross.
Match to watch:
High Point/Jameson vs Canyon Creek/Gable
Canyon Creek has a deep team and a generally tough at home, but this one will be at HP.
This one could be tight.
3.5B Match Schedule
3.5 C
A.k.a the boring sub-flight
match to watch: None
Unless some other team can step up to the big boy table there won't be much to report until the last week of the regular season - OC vs Greenhill.
3.5C Match Schedule
Monday, April 13, 2009
4.0 Week 1
So finally the season will get underway this weekend. I am still sticking with my thoughts a few weeks back but I am sure there will be some surprise teams emerge as the first few weeks of the season get underway. Unfortunately there are not that many great matchups this weekend so unless an upset occurs it should be business as usual.
Flight A:
Bob has added to the army and got Dencil Johnson to sign on to help them out, that should make them more of a threat than usual in later rounds of the season. But no real test for them until the DCC and if I read our packet right we are rooting for Bob to have an undefeated season so there will be a round robin playoff in July. There are two interesting matchups in Flight A this week Brookhaven/Helterbrann takes on TBar M. These are the two of the three teams along with LBH that are most likely in contention to make it to the postseason. I have a feeling TBar M will squeak out a win but it will be close. LBH has a match against one of the Springpark teams so I will be curious to see how they perform but I expect they will do well.
Flight B:
So I guess the best matchup this weekend will be the SWAT team v. Team Durty Garland. I expect a very tough first match. I don't want to post a prediction but I do predict a good competitive match on each side. Oakridge is getting interesting mainly because Prather seems intent on having 30 players on the team so they can only improve, right?
Flight C:
This flight seems to lack some starpower but that will most likely produce some great matches week in and week out. This week we get to see how tough the Royal Oaks crew will be and they get a test playing the top Village team who has some strong doubles play. If RO rolls here it could announce them as a team to contend with. Brookhaven has the new Collin County team who has some solid players and might push them a little.
Flight D:
Alright Eddie, is Flight D good now? At first glance it looks very tough but there is a big drop off between the haves and the have nots. Thorntree is a little mysterious and FAR but not sure they will be a contender (but thanks for joining). OC, Spark and LTF are the clear favs and "should" all win this week but I have a feeling one of the other 6 teams will emerge and make this real interesting.
Flight A:
Bob has added to the army and got Dencil Johnson to sign on to help them out, that should make them more of a threat than usual in later rounds of the season. But no real test for them until the DCC and if I read our packet right we are rooting for Bob to have an undefeated season so there will be a round robin playoff in July. There are two interesting matchups in Flight A this week Brookhaven/Helterbrann takes on TBar M. These are the two of the three teams along with LBH that are most likely in contention to make it to the postseason. I have a feeling TBar M will squeak out a win but it will be close. LBH has a match against one of the Springpark teams so I will be curious to see how they perform but I expect they will do well.
Flight B:
So I guess the best matchup this weekend will be the SWAT team v. Team Durty Garland. I expect a very tough first match. I don't want to post a prediction but I do predict a good competitive match on each side. Oakridge is getting interesting mainly because Prather seems intent on having 30 players on the team so they can only improve, right?
Flight C:
This flight seems to lack some starpower but that will most likely produce some great matches week in and week out. This week we get to see how tough the Royal Oaks crew will be and they get a test playing the top Village team who has some strong doubles play. If RO rolls here it could announce them as a team to contend with. Brookhaven has the new Collin County team who has some solid players and might push them a little.
Flight D:
Alright Eddie, is Flight D good now? At first glance it looks very tough but there is a big drop off between the haves and the have nots. Thorntree is a little mysterious and FAR but not sure they will be a contender (but thanks for joining). OC, Spark and LTF are the clear favs and "should" all win this week but I have a feeling one of the other 6 teams will emerge and make this real interesting.
Friday, April 3, 2009
2009 GALLERY FURNITURE HOUSTON OPEN
In an attempt to keep the 3.5 players from cannibalizing each other in their thread,
I will start the official Houston Major Zone thread.
Let's take a look at who from the Dallas area elected to put tennis before their family and Christ the Lord Almighty and spend Easter in the cesspool known as Houston, TX
Men's 4.5 Draws
4.5 Singles
4.5 Doubles
Men's 4.0 Draws
4.0 Singles
4.0 Doubles
Men's 3.5 Draws
3.5 Singles
3.5 Doubles
2.5 Singles
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