tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-63720292872436373812024-03-18T22:28:37.659-05:00USTA Dallas League Tennis BlogA blog where people from the metroplex and from stinky Houston can talk about upcoming and past league matches and tourneys. Oh who am I kidding you guys will talk about whatever you want.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger688125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-83774539169458638672018-08-06T13:48:00.000-05:002018-08-06T13:48:38.039-05:00Dallas Tennis Blog....RIP ???<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-85953722581058892812018-01-02T10:10:00.001-06:002018-01-02T10:10:02.545-06:00Time for 40s... Cold Weather and Old People Muscles/Joints... What Could go Wrong?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Happy New Years and Brrrrrr..... It is January so that means it is time for 40s. Those players that are struggling to compete with whippersnappers get their moment. For those of you vacationing at a tropical paradise, it is really cold here in the metroplex. The season starts this weekend and the good news is it will actually warm up to playable conditions... if the weather man is right. If the weather remains like t is as I write this... well, the old joints and muscles are in trouble.<br />
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Lets get to the new season to discuss.<br />
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<b>4.5+</b><br />
We have the usual suspects with Harllee, Reiman and Rossouw as the favorites. Last year, Arcaria broke through and made it interested. Sweeney had to move up and split up after a trip to Nationals.<b> </b><br />
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<b>Rossouw</b> has pared his roster back to a manageable size of 18. With 9 matches to play, this should be workable. He has good 5.0s of Barrick and Lama as well as several good 4.5s like Flores to complement his 5.0s. He should make another trip to city playoffs and have a good chance to make it to sectionals.<br />
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<b>Harllee</b> has a lot of the same players back. He has Bruno Braga as a 5.0 to build around and that is a really good place to start. Few 5.0s are going to beat Braga... especially at 40s. He has a lot of good 4.5s to work with as well. I see this team getting to city playoffs too.<br />
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<b>Reiman</b> has Foster as a 5.0. He is solid but Braga should have his way with him. Patrick Rea is his other 4.5 but I am not familiar with him so I am not sure what to make of him. He has several solid but not really playoff 4.5s on his roster. This team may or may not be there at the end.<br />
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<b>Arcaria</b> has some pieces but with this current roster, it is not enough. Buoni as his lone 5.0 is very solid. If he adds another top notch 5.0, he can compete. He has a chance but he will be fighting but needs a piece or two.<br />
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Of the other teams, nobody has enough to be serious contenders.<br />
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<b>4.0</b><br />
At 4.0, it appears the epicenter for Dallas middle age tennis is Garland Tennis Center. There are two flights.<br />
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<b>4.0 Flight A</b>: This appears to be a three team race between Garland/Russell (formerly known as Garland/Sisk), Brookhaven/Bartlett and Greenhill Ohl.<br />
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<b>Garland/Russell</b>: They have decided to take a page out of the Marc Rossouw playbook and start with 21 on the roster. There are only 7 matches to be played so playing time might be slim for several players. They do have some good 4.0s with Tony Le, Mike Zackary, Pat Teterud, Mark Sweeney and Duane Covell. I really expect this team to win the flight.<br />
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<b>Brookhaven/Bartlett</b>: This roster looks more or less the same as it has looked for a long time. I expect them to be competitive every week with an outside chance at winning.<br />
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<b>Greenhill/Ohl</b>: I could write the exact same thing about this as Brookhaven as the roster looks more or less the same and they will be competitive but only an outside chance at winning.<br />
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The other teams in the flight are just playing for fun.<br />
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<b>4.0/Flight B</b>: This flight is plain bad. I guess it is a two team race between Garland/Kanchi and Springpark/Walters.<br />
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<b>Garland/Kanchi</b>: They only have 9 on the roster. Of the players I know, they aren't bad. One is from San Antonio so that more or less makes this a team of 8. Without some additions, I see some defaulted lines in their future. This team has enough to make it to playoffs but is desperate for some depth.<br />
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<b>Springpark/Walters</b>: This team definitely brings a lot of 'experience' in both tennis and life. I actually think they could field a very good Super Seniors team.<br />
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<b>Canyon Creek/Patterson</b>: They have a few pieces but not nearly enough.<br />
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The truth is this flight is fairly wide open. Kanchi has the best top talent but no depth. The others have a few pieces but little in the line of top end 4.0.<br />
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In the end, Garland/Russell is the favorite to get to sectionals.<br />
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In the mean time, stay warm! It is Texas in January, if you don't like the weather, just be patient. It will change soon enough.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com97tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-2598245279357003472017-12-11T11:24:00.001-06:002017-12-11T11:26:42.541-06:00Tri-Level Recap... Sisk Rolls<div style="text-align: center;">
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Tri-Level was this weekend and in a not very big surprise, Sisk and Voldemort won again. Vnce Kingsley took second with his only loss to Sisk's juggernaut. The most impressive part is Sisk won the vent without dropping a line. Actually, they did not drop a single set and only 51 games. In 15 total possible lines, that is an impressive average of better than 6-2, 6-2. One loss runner-up Kingsley dropped 134 games.<br />
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I have to think this is the best team in Texas and expect to see them do well at sectionals.<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com49tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-52824230827635758312017-11-29T11:32:00.000-06:002017-11-29T11:33:59.342-06:00Ratings Countdown<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1VSff_gWL4YLTBm07kSl0xDV2nb2nfg0SGYl3uG_Y15DuDQgARsWnsyOjdrTeWv6k20fjobiOIKDEcYUVnh4HhdGc6CeI3QzfBtZ2VdTqU9gkwEvkOeNPxVvYz8GKyTOqCu1qktJVEI8/s1600/Countdown_titles_2012.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="164" data-original-width="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1VSff_gWL4YLTBm07kSl0xDV2nb2nfg0SGYl3uG_Y15DuDQgARsWnsyOjdrTeWv6k20fjobiOIKDEcYUVnh4HhdGc6CeI3QzfBtZ2VdTqU9gkwEvkOeNPxVvYz8GKyTOqCu1qktJVEI8/s1600/Countdown_titles_2012.png" /></a></div>
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I know a lot of people (especially a few captains) think about rating release like a kid does Christmas. Well, there is an official countdown clock on Tennis Link. Tomorrow night at 11:00 is the rating release.<br />
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I have been needing to make a new post but this fall format and people just playing with nothing to gain makes it uninteresting. Let me know what you guys think of the fall.<br />
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Regardless, it was time for a new post and with Tri-Level and 40s coming up, it is time to re-engage the blog.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com55tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-23454308527194925832017-08-30T22:28:00.000-05:002017-08-31T09:05:24.696-05:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<strong><em><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">HAPPY ANNIVERSARY !!!</span></em></strong></div>
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It's hard to imagine, but 10 years ago today, August 31, 2007, the Dallas Tennis Blog was formed. Founded by Carey Bazan, aka "Lucky Thunder", an idea was put into action and became life. His inspiration came from the Houston tennis blog, but has long survived, seeing that the last post in Houston was back in August 2014. Thanks to Murray, we still have a heart beat. <br />
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Not much has changed over the decade. Houston was still the talk of beating out Dallas in Sectionals, and a man name Bender was winning National titles. While some of the players have changed, the topics have remained the same. Complaints of tanking, playing out of level, year end ratings, Tri-level, Combo, etc. was just as alive back then as it is now. (No- I didn't forget mixed. It just wasn't much of a topic until we entered a narcissistic society.)<br />
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To celebrate, I thought it would be appropriate to recognize the contributors, and then provide you with some of my favorite blog posts over the past 10 years. You can click on the Blog Archives to revisit if you so wish.<br />
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Recognition to past contributors:<br />
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<img alt="Cary Bazan aka Lucky Thunder" class="display-thumbnail" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqJqcPCQWY_BeF0F_Z19NfVfhOnWkl4AvK6xQ-EM3tASB9CoOGnjN__2bsGKDPt5nltNt4ldIbVca2HiGwT4yrCsMkzjP59UUZJyTdGVJd_mK6yI4yPePhLEfNge4B_IWfZ5INdyCxqPq0/s45-c/rec-robin.jpg" /> Carey Bazan aka Lucky Thunder <strong>(Founding Father)</strong><br />
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<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibXpviE-Jvg5A02jDVPI8xksPVAMIvs-YBhWBBOEuGy5b9xKZlfW8YnaE2BxS3ffft5X4kOkLeKB3AVO1sjJlBOC02Tvy71JxegEI_Vx0c3d4xYcxzl7MWVqdn3LYKrGMDfR-OEdjatW0/s35/nancy.jpg" /> Corey Noel (CoreDawg aka Nancy)<br />
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<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO3hs_HFyCHJVxTFYLR4LJqfKF2ANys81yBD17LX87ADU2UUE1RwCmCnVC01qivFSvx98fK_96OlO4H7I2SZ3AcE0sldd0UnCsCO9mBL9AEnA7-pcL8syVOn2kBlBaK3jMSQQIyQBk447J/s35/1356119249571.jpg" /> Marc Klamecki<br />
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Mark Roussouw<br />
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<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmCuS6FzUk230oInIXXNxHuSg0Tl-juiU49D3J9_gXiQsxKE_DoO02rCDope-uAXTUOvaiKBGuc3PwCbpLKp1WURks4QCrHf1NS-XGHufBxKuSxhbgBrmO4ehzH02mk6wB2-UjoUXygdU/s35/ArnoldMJ.jpg" /> B-Mo<br />
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<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgg6HTHwMrEGr1EHNzfTmLcaPZvkI4Owtm7opC9-zJvZn4ThfO0JS6zCH2789CuxQvfwEaKa89lNkGvmp7OdJQJIB3T-_pNEzfiKRJAF3qpqD3bdGji_eURfobz4logcubzMH1klwPQCRx/s35/CaptnFantastic.jpg" /> Captain Fantastic<br />
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<a href="javascript:openPopup("https://www.blogger.com/view-follower.g?followerID\x3d17478998191408071883\x26blogID\x3d6372029287243637381", 700)"><img alt="Murray Langston" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-IuJIbwSb0uU/AAAAAAAAAAI/AAAAAAAAABY/BQRSfCoY784/s45-c/photo.jpg" title="Murray Langston" /></a> Murray Langston<br />
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<strong>TOP 10 BLOG POSTS</strong>: <br />
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<strong>10) <u>Monday, July 20, 2009 3.5 City Wrap Up</u></strong> - It was the beginning of using pictures in the blog post and was aimed at me, spawning me to begin anonymously blogging as Captain Fantastic.<br />
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<a href="http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2009/07/35-city-wrap-up.html">http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2009/07/35-city-wrap-up.html</a><br />
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<strong>9) <u>Monday, December 1, 2008 Year End Ratings About To Drop</u></strong> - Coming at the top with number of comments - 357. Yes the blog was alive and well back then. Complaints about getting Benchmark rankings. <br />
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<a href="http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2008/12/2008-year-end-ratings-about-to-drop.html">http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2008/12/2008-year-end-ratings-about-to-drop.html</a><br />
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<strong>8) <u>Sunday, May 23, 2010 Working the System</u></strong> - Roussouw submits his Jerry McGuire essay. Unfortunately, Klamecki switched to Subscribe, and when he switched back, all comments were lost. I would have loved to have read those.<br />
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<a href="http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2010/05/working-system.html">http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2010/05/working-system.html</a><br />
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7) <strong>Wednesday, February 19, 2014 </strong><strong>THE LORD OF THE RATINGS – THE RETURN OF THE KELLY CASTING CALL FOR DTA PRODUCTIONS</strong> - Not because this was about Kelly, but because it was the birth of Murray Langston and him graciously taking over the blog.<br />
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<a href="http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2014/02/the-lord-of-ratings-return-of-kelly_19.html">http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2014/02/the-lord-of-ratings-return-of-kelly_19.html</a><br />
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6) Unfortunately, it was another post with suppressed comments, but miraculously, when year end ratings come out, the system is overloaded and locks up, and Bob Somabut gets 10 of his players that were bumped up and benchmarked, appealed back down a level. And Kelly thinks he is special.<br />
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Since I can't find the link, I regress with one of my drunken Christmas poems:<br />
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<strong>Wednesday, December 21, 2011 <u>- Twas the Night before Christmas</u></strong><br />
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<a href="http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2011/12/twas-night-before-christmas.html">http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2011/12/twas-night-before-christmas.html</a><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">5) <span style="color: black; font-size: xx-small;"><u><strong><span style="font-size: large;">Saturday, October 8, 2011</span> - </strong></u></span></span><a href="http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2011/10/good-readings-for-fall.html"><span style="color: black; font-size: large;"><strong>Good Readings for the Fall</strong></span></a> - I truly think this is good advice, and if more adhered to my suggestions, there would be less complaining about the tanking.<br />
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<a href="http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2011/10/good-readings-for-fall.html">http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2011/10/good-readings-for-fall.html</a><br />
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4) <strong><u>Monday, October 14, 2013 - Dallas 3.5s Bring home 1st 40 and Over National Title</u></strong><br />
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Just because<br />
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<a href="http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2013/10/dallas-35s-bring-home-1st-40-and-over.html">http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2013/10/dallas-35s-bring-home-1st-40-and-over.html</a><br />
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3) <span style="font-size: xx-small;"><strong><u><span style="font-size: small;">Tuesday, March 20, 2012 -</span> </u></strong></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><u>Team Arcaria Finishes 2nd at Tri-Level Nationals</u></strong> - A personal knock on me and had me reveal my identity. Looking back, outside of the jealous tone, it is kind of funny, especially having my face superimposed in all of those historic pictures. I hold no grudges and see Klamecki each year at the Bent Tree Indoor Classic.</span> </span><br />
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<a href="http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2012/03/team-arcaria-finishes-2nd-at-tri-level.html">http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2012/03/team-arcaria-finishes-2nd-at-tri-level.html</a><br />
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2) <strong><u>Sunday, July 18, 2010 - Star Wars 7 - Decimation of the Sith (aka GTC)</u></strong> - What can I say. It was an epic time, and an epic post.<br />
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<a href="http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2010/07/star-wars-7-decimation-of-sith-aka-gtc.html">http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2010/07/star-wars-7-decimation-of-sith-aka-gtc.html</a><br />
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AND THE NUMBER ONE BLOG PLOST ...........<br />
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<strong>1) <u>Sunday, August 5, 2012 - Hitler Plays USTA league tennis in Dallas</u></strong> - Not sure who produced this, but did create the rave in Dallas.<br />
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<a href="http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2012/08/this-made-made-me-lol-little-bit-enjoy.html">http://dallasleaguetennis.blogspot.com/2012/08/this-made-made-me-lol-little-bit-enjoy.html</a><br />
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I am sure there are several other posts that could have been listed, especially some of Murray's recent writings, or the show-down between Gerber and Bazan. However, I haven't had the time to stay up-to-date on things or go back and read them all. These were just some that stuck in my mind. I hope you enjoy!<br />
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Thanks Carey --- to 10 more years?!!<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com97tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-4952178356579434882017-08-18T10:55:00.003-05:002017-08-18T11:12:45.737-05:00The Bell Curve... Dallas Rules the tails of the curve! Houston rules middle of the curve. :(<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Sectionals is over and it was a definitely story of Dallas, Houston and the Little Dwarf cities. As or commenters noticed, Dallas won 40% of the sectionals events. In itself, that is a remarkable number. On the flip side, a comment was made Houston won 60%. That left exactly 0% for the est of the state. San, Antonio, Austin, West Dallas (aka Ft. Worth) and all the irrelevant cities were shutout.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>5.0+</b>--At 5.0, Lakes-Jannasch brought home the sectionals trophy. I cannot say I am shocked as I think this is the best 5.0 Dallas team I can recall. Jeff deserves a great amount of credit as this team is loaded top to bottom. The only thing surprising me was they actually had 3 matches go to 2-1. This team is good and I think they have a serious chance at gong deep at nationals. This team is better than the one Oscar finished as runnerup a few years ago. Jeff is a good guy and I wish them success. This is the one nationals I will follow as this team has a chance to impress the nation and make Dallas proud!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>4.5</b>--Freeman and his Houston forces... well Vidi, Vici, Vini.. They came, they saw and they conquered. I saw a little of this and the kid playing singles out of Houston was... out of level. I will leave it at that. Dallas made the semis but outmatched by a good San Antonio team. The score says 3-2 but two matches were abandoned when San Antonio got three lines. It is a good run for a relatively new captain in Jorge Aguilar. If he keeps his core together and adds a couple of pieces, this team could be really special next year. I will root for Texas as they do have Jean on the Houston team.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>4.0</b>--Wild Houston wins this one. They beat Freeman's forces in the semi finals here. I actually thought the Kanchi team would do damage but I guess you have to get to sectionals to actually win sectionals. Garland/Russell gave Wild Houston everything they could handle but losing close 3-2 while missing their best singles guy on Friday. I have to wonder if things are different if this match is played on Saturday. I will once again root for Texas... I guess it isn't Freeman.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>3.5--</b>Deja Vu from 4.5. Freeman and his Houston forces came and won again. I could pretty much copy and paste the 4.5 commentary except Houston beat Dallas in a close semi-final match. It looks like Dallas needed to sweep doubles as they were all very close but that is asking a lot.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>3.0--</b>What would a year look like if a Bender team did not win a sectionals title? I am sure it happened in Far Far Away Land a Long Long Time Ago. Bender wins again while playing in a single flight and dropping the first match to comeback and win. Let this be a lesson to those captains that just tank after they lose... ahem, West Dallas captain.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In the end, it is always fun. Dallas won the two extremes of the bell curve and Houston won the working man's part of the curve. The rest of the state is just playing to go to Dallas and be fodder in the heat. Regardless, I still think 40% of the events is impressive.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Combo starts and I guess Sisk and Kanchi have the best teams. I am picking Sisk as I will not pick Kanchi again until he shows me his teams actually win even when they have the best roster.</div>
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<br /></div>
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com61tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-32850524360175737722017-07-18T15:08:00.002-05:002017-07-18T15:08:30.569-05:00City PlayOffs... The Fellowship of the Crystal Tennis BallIt is finally time for annual heat stroke inducing Dallas City Playoffs. With all of the comments preoccupied with Mixed, I decided it is time to take a break and get to an important event. Since I am short on time, let me get started.<br />
<br />
<b>5.0</b>-- We have the division I am most optimistic about advancing to Nationals and winning. This is one of those play-in tournament events. <br />
<br />
<b>2 v 3 Match--</b>We have Cooper Fitness/Vahdat-Noel versus the 5.0 ever present Perkison (formerly Village and now Springpark). This looks to be a tight match. Cooper has current Louisville player Parker Wynn and a lot of players I don't know. I am guessing they are really good. Cooper won the head to head 2-1 in the first week Perkison has Loren Collins and longtime 5.0s with other players I don't know. I will take Cooper in a 2-1 but I expect a dog fight. <br />
<br />
<b>In the Winner to Sectionals match</b>, it will be the Cooper/Springpark winner versus Lakes/Jannasch. The Lakes have a tremendous team. They only dropped one line all year. Lakes has a lot of options and the beat Cooper 3-0 without dropping a set. They beat Springpark 3-0 but former Baylor player Zoltan Papp did take 3 sets to beat Kyle Davidson.<br />
<br />
In the end, I take the Lakes to win this and go on to win sectionals. These are three really great teams. I don't see a wildcard in their future but any of these teams would represent Dallas well.<br />
<br />
<b>4.5--</b> <b>Greenhill/Rossouw-- </b>We start withe the ever present City Playoff participant and QT winner <b>Greenhill/Rossouw</b>. Normally, I don't think too hghly of QT winners but this team is pretty good and like all Rossouw teams... very deep. This is a deep, experienced and talented team. He has several marginal 4.5 playoff players but he does have some top in 4.5s as well. Marc's top players are very formidable. I think this QT champ is in the mix.<br />
<br />
<b>Brookhaven/Bartlett</b>--This is a name I don't generally associate with 4.5 City Playoffs but it is another large deep roster. I don't think they have the top end players of some of the other rosters. They will do well but I think they are probably safe from the August Sectionals heat.<br />
<br />
<b>Brookhaven/Harlee</b>-- This is a name I do typically associate with 4.5 City Playoffs. Like the other BH team, it has really good players but he appears to be lacking those next level ringers that could be playing in 5.0 and competing. They will be in the mix but I am not sold.<br />
<br />
<b>JCC/Reiman</b>-- This is another frequent attendee at this event. Thye have top talent like Clint Sumrow and they will be a tough out. I expect them to have a good chance to win this event.<br />
<br />
<b>Sprinkpark</b>/<b>Aguilar</b>-- These are the new kids on the block and the surprising number 1 seed. They are clearly a very good team. I am curious to see how they stand up in the post season.<br />
<br />
In the end, I will take JCC and Springpark with JCC wnning a close 3-2. Springpark will be hoping for a wildcard but 4.5 is so iffy about wildcards.<br />
<br />
I will be back tomorrow to ponder 4.0!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com221tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-45107792035816924422017-07-12T21:53:00.003-05:002017-07-12T21:53:53.939-05:00QT Time... It is the Weekend for the Worst fo the Best...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnoialgNcOAImIlU5jXNiEn3Y2nWf058i8TcM_TK1szdAq66NxMS4QbBSl5Q3J4lgANYf-ZtOO9ktcq40bdWHROEyaQz3ES0jc62S58GDAZ7Bg8NOYzNe2TZeQF_clQuYI1joGrzOrjos/s1600/quicktrip.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="175" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnoialgNcOAImIlU5jXNiEn3Y2nWf058i8TcM_TK1szdAq66NxMS4QbBSl5Q3J4lgANYf-ZtOO9ktcq40bdWHROEyaQz3ES0jc62S58GDAZ7Bg8NOYzNe2TZeQF_clQuYI1joGrzOrjos/s400/quicktrip.gif" width="350" /></a></div>
It is that time of year when we have a mini tournament for the teams that didn't win and give a mulligan. I'm not entirely opposed to this participation event because the DTA has a pretty long track record of putting the best teams in the same flight. <br />
<br />
<b>4.5</b> <br />
<br />
We have a four team playoff.<br />
<br />
<b>Life Time Fitness/Arcaria</b>: This is a good team that probably had no playoff aspirations in March but Arcaria had some players and added some. Beavers, Takashi and Jean Nguyen are all very good 4.5s. He has some new names and they look pretty solid too. This is a good team.<br />
<br />
<b>Greenhill/Rossouw-Myers</b>: I knew Marc and Brandon were BFFs but I had know idea they merged and even took each other's last name. In all seriousness, this roster suffers from a serious void of depth. It is concerning in the heat to have only 28 players on the roster. He does have some really good players with Cash, Bell, Lafavre and others. He just needs to be sure and play his best players and not spread the playing time. Marc has always been good to his players and got his extras playing time so that is a little concern.<br />
<br />
<b>Gleneagles/Juhn</b>: This is a team that is surprising to see in the post season. When I look at the roster, I see a pretty good and not great 4.0 team. I am pretty sure they can keep the next weekend open.<br />
<br />
<b>Oak Creek/Sangren</b>: This is a strange team. They definitely would be a force in 55s. They have some younger guys that I do not know but it is a god team. I think they will need to overachieve to see city playoffs.<br />
<br />
In the end, it should be between Lifetime and Greenhill. If this were 18th century warfare, Greenhill would overwhelm with numbers. Since 8 can play and you only need three lines, I will take Lifetime Fitness in a close 3-2.<br />
<br />
<b>4.0</b><br />
We have two three team flights. We even have some new party crashers that really aren't familiar with playoffs in Royal Oaks, Lakes and Canyon Creek. Congratulations to the new kids on the block.<br />
<b> </b><br />
<b>Flight A</b>: <br />
<b>Brookhaven/Bartlett</b>: Bartlett has a bunch of guys that have a lot of QT experience. This looks like the same guys at the club I have been seeing at Brookhaven for a long time and really don't get to 4.5 so they are a solid group.<br />
<br />
<b>Lakes/Reifsnyder</b>: This is one of the new guns. I'd like to say I see some potential ringers but I do not. they look pretty average top to bottom. I don't see enough to take down Brookhaven Brad and the Bartletts.<br />
<br />
<b>Royal Oaks/Templeton</b>: Everything I just said about Lakes is rinse, wash and repeat. They are basically the same guys with different names.<br />
<br />
<b>Winner of Flight A</b>: This should be a walk for Brookhaven. The only caveat is the same as others... you must play your best. This is not the time for equitable tennis time.<br />
<br />
<b>Flight B</b>: This is easily the more difficult flight. All three teams in this flight are capable of winning flight A. Put Greenhill/Canyon Creek/Brookhaven in a flight and it could go any direction.<br />
<br />
<b>Canyon Creek/Patterson</b>: This team has quite a few players that have been around for quite awhile. If they play their cards right, they can get three lines against anyone in the flight.<br />
<br />
<b>Greenhill/Ohl</b>: This is pretty much the same as Canyon Creek. They will need to play their lines right.<br />
<br />
<b>Garland/Kanchi</b>: This is the team I expect to win city playoffs and do damage at sectionals. The only surprise is they are in QT. He has 23 on his roster and if Kanchi learned from his mistakes of the past and actually play his best, he wins this flight, QT, city playoffs and maybe sectionals.<br />
<br />
As I read this, there is a recurring theme on these captains... if they will just play their best players. I have always wondered why so many captains do not play their best and get bitten as a result. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com58tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-35117304331766263642017-06-13T09:18:00.004-05:002017-06-13T09:18:37.561-05:004.5 and 4.0 Turn the Corner For the Final Push to the Finish Line
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.5 Flight A - in a double round robin format,
Brookhaven/Harllee has moved clear of the field sitting at 7-1.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everyone else in this flight has at least
four losses already.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>McKinney/Rodriguez,
Seay/Hall nad Gleneagles/Juhn are all tied in the four loss column.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>McKinney still has to play Brookhaven, and Seay
and Gleneagles have another match against each other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Advantage to the winner of the
Seay/Gleneagles match.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.5 Flight B - continuing the trend in 4.5,
Springpark/Aguilar has walked off with this flight as well sitting undefeated
at 8-0.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They've had several 3-2 wins but
they still keep winning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They face
second place Greenhill/Rossouw in the final match but already have this flight
locked up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Greenhill sits tied with Oak
Creek/Martin at the three losses.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oak
Creek has the easier finish so they should edge Greenhill out for second.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.5 Flight C - in a continuing good year for Bartlett, his
Brookhaven team sits atop this flight at 7-1.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Oak Creek/Sangren and Springpark/Khaing are tied for second with three
losses.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At first glance it looks like
Brookhaven has this flight in hand since there are only two matches left.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hold on a minute, those matches are against
Oak Creek and Springpark.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This one is
much more up in the air than it looks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>For Brookhaven, its two to make one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>One win down the stretch will seal the deal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oak Creek sits clear in second based on lines
but they finish with Brookhaven and Las Colinas/Arnold, both of whom already
beat Oak Creek.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.5 Flight D - back to the earlier theme, JCC/Reiman is undefeated
and has a two match lead on second place Lakes/Way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While JCC and Lakes still have to play, JCC
need only beat last place Greenhill this weekend to lock up first before the
final match.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Third place
Lifetime/Arcaria still has a path to slip into second.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lakes finishes with first place JCC and third
place Lifetime, so two losses to close the season are not out of the
question.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A Lifetime win over Lakes and
SamGrand would then slide Lifetime into second.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Much will depend on how seriously JCC takes its final match against
Lakes after they've already wrapped up the flight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If JCC empties the bench, Lakes could catch a
break.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.0 Flight A - this flight looks like its neck and neck at
first glance with three teams tied in the one loss column, but upon further
inspection I'd say Oak Creek/Iyer has this flight locked up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Garland/Kanchi has the schedule to slip into
second but with the fall wild card they may choose not to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Royal Oaks/Templeton and TBar/Snow match to
close out the season could weigh heavily on the playoff race.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.0 Flight B - Huffhines/Ratcliffe has this flight all but
wrapped up with one match remaining and sitting as the only one loss team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Canyon Creek/Patterson and High Point/Somabut
sit tied for second with identical 6-2, 28-12 records but CC has the head to
head tie breaker.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>CC has a walkover
final match so they should be hard to catch for second.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.0 Flight C - this flight has our first 4.0 undefeated team
with Garland/Russell sitting at 7-0 with only a straggler left.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Garland has been squeaking by with a lot of
3-2 wins so we'll have to see how that holds up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Brookhaven/Bartlett and Greenhill/Ohl are
tied in the one loss column but they finish the season playing each other so second
place should be decided on the court this weekend.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.0 Flight D - the final undefeated team in 4.0 is
Eldorado/Browning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have slowly
distanced themselves from the field, now sitting with a two match lead with
only one left to play.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A full four teams
sit tied in the two loss column so this flight is going to be a photo
finish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lakes/Reifsnyder has a
commanding line lead on the rest but they close against first place Eldorado so
that could be the end for Lakes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Oasis/Smith and LB Houston/Trentino still play each other so that's an
elimination match.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the last two loss
team, Chandlers Landing/McLemore still has to play LBH.</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com129tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-40853590024144906942017-05-30T20:31:00.000-05:002017-05-30T20:31:21.335-05:004.5 Update - if we must<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><img alt="Image result for french open 2017" class="rg_ic rg_i" data-sz="f" height="118" jsaction="load:str.tbn" name="wA8VVHhmd0zbcM:" src="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQhPUAujj4ICdFrhV2Q0b5DNqcn9IDRQw_qxSGRlbv4RCXYvTyLJg" style="height: 168px; margin-left: -2px; margin-right: -2px; margin-top: 0px; width: 284px;" width="200" /></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;">HOLY CRAP! That thing from Alien looks a lot like Andy Murray.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;">4.5 flight A - Brookhaven/Harllee has jumped out to a commanding lead in
this flight.</span><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;">Mediocrity reigns supreme in this flight so no surprise with this result.</span><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;">The
boys from Brookhaven are 6-0 with their next closest pursuer mired at 3-3.</span><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=6372029287243637381" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">4.5 flight B - no surprise here either, as Springpark/Aguilar remains
unbeaten.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We do have a couple of teams
rising up a bit, with Oak Creek/Martin and High Point/Somabut tied at 4-2.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Interesting in this flight, Greenhill/Rossouw
has 27 players on the roster and the team is 3-3 so far.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Losses to HP and OC have them in a bind at
the mid-way mark.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">4.5 flight C - also hitting the 20 roster mark but managing to keep up
the wins thus far, Brookhaven/Bartlett leads this flight at 5-1.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Springpark/Khaing sits alone in second with a
3-2 mark but three teams are tied at 3-3 with four matches left so the door is
still open.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">4.5 flight D - JCC/Reiman has bounced back from its disappointing 40s
season with a 5-0 mark in this flight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lakes/Way
and Lifetime/Arcaria are a peg back both stuck in the two loss column.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Since these are round robins at 4.5 a lot can still swing for any team
but they're going to have to make their moves quick as the season is drawing to
a close fairly quickly.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com37tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-67829290501876688042017-05-12T09:03:00.000-05:002017-05-12T09:03:08.698-05:00First look at how 4.0 is shaping up<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">We are now four matches into the season so there is enough
match history to have a bit of a picture to work from.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Also I just changed jobs and my new employer
has actually wanted me to work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Hopefully that changes soon.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">4.0 flight A - at the head of the pack and undefeated is Oak
Creek/Iyer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have been in or close
to the playoffs fairly frequently the last few seasons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tied at 3-1 are Garland/Kanchi, TBar/Snow and
Royal Oaks/Templeton.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Normally I'd pick
Garland to win this flight but they also have the QT wildcard from winning the
fall so that muddies the water a little.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Should be Oak Creek and Garland at the end.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">4.0 flight B - much to still be decided here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>High Point/Somabut is the only undefeated
team in this flight but there are four teams still tied at 3-1; Canyon
Creek/Patterson, Springpark/Walters, Huffhines/Ratcliffe and
McKinney/Clifton.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>High Point will be
there when the season is done.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who will
be with them?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Inside edge to Huffhines
because they have already beaten Canyon Creek, but Huffhines plays Springpark
this Saturday and the winner is in the driver's seat for second in this flight.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">4.0 flight C - this flight is completely back loaded for the
second half of the season with four teams still undefeated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In order of current line lead we have
Greenhill/Ohl, Hackberry/Myers, Brookhaven/Bartlett and Garland/Russell.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The gauntlet begins this weekend though with
the first elimination match being Hackberry versus Garland. Neither of these
teams has excelled at singles and have been riding their doubles thus far.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Greenhill and Brookhaven look a little
stronger on paper but all these teams are close enough that it will depend
highly on who is available for the key matches.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">4.0 flight D - while flights B and C are the toughest top to
bottom, this is the weakest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
currently have Eldorado/Browning as the only undefeated team followed at one
loss each by Chandlers Landing/McLemore and Lakes/Reifsnyder.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Not the strongest year for 4.0 in Dallas in general and
several teams have a fair shot of advancing to sectionals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Early favorite is still Garland/Kanchi but it
isn't anywhere close to the team he had last year.</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com31tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-37455781544490982102017-03-31T10:47:00.000-05:002017-03-31T10:47:58.122-05:0040s playoffs have finally arrived
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.5+ over 40 - this will be an all Sunday affair.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Brookhaven/Bartlett plays Lifetime/Arcaria at
9:00am and the winner plays Oak Creek/Sweeney at noon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And did I mention there is now a 100% chance
of rain on Sunday?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Good thing there
aren't a lot of matches.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Never more than
in these "plus" leagues is availability more important.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sure, in your 4.0 league you have some
players better than others but in this flight the difference in a top end 5.0
and a good 4.5 is huge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course the
first problem is actually having a top end 5.0.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There are a couple out there and if they are or aren't available they
can make all the difference.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sweeney
proved he had the deepest team only losing one match while the other two
playoff contenders lost three apiece.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Depth is now less of an issue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How
good are your top six - not eight through twelve - becomes much more important.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.0 over 40 - this is the most wide open city playoff at
this level I've ever seen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>40s has been
around for a few years now and while there have been some good 4.0 teams each
year, this is the most balanced year for the playoff contenders that I've
seen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That may be because Dallas just
doesn't have a dominant team this year, or possibly several teams or good (we
won't really know until sectionals), but it should be a wide open event.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These guys are playing a round robin over
Friday and Saturday, with the seeds listed as: 1) Oak Creek/Ramasami, 2)
Springpark/Walters, 3) Canyon Creek/Patterson and 4) Huffhines/Clark.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Just to reacap: 9.0 55s was won by Oak Creek/Sweeney going
away and 8.0 55s was won by Greenhill/Kayser in a three team playoff.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Good luck to everyone this weekend.</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com29tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-57261260042339872702017-03-14T09:22:00.002-05:002017-03-14T09:22:29.910-05:00Seniors, still?<span style="font-family: "calibri";">A bit of a yawner this time of year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nothing really going on except for 4.5 over
40s finishing up their flight play matches.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Oak Creek/Sweeney cruises 4-1 over TBar/Fikes with Fikes and
Pascal pulling out a third set tie breaker to keep from being swept.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Lifetime/Arcaria sweeps Greenhill/Rossouw with Rossouw
defaulting two lines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has 21 people
on the roster and he defaulted two lines?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Rossouw's playoff chances are all but done at this point.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">In a Brookhaven intra-club challenge, Bartlett's team took
down Harllee's team 3-2.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That was a big
win for Bartlett, moving his guys into third and dropped Harllee into fourth
and in danger of missing the playoffs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">High Point/Martin lost to JCC/Reiman 3-2 and likely took
itself out of the playoff hunt as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>Reiman even pulls out a third set tie breaker himself at line three
doubles to secure the victory.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">And in the battle for the basement, previously winless
Greenhill/Ohl edged Gleneagles/Juhn 3-2 to pass them in the standings based on
lines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ohl's guys sweep singles and in
what is becoming a trend, another captain wins a big match and clinches the
victory.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">In other news, 55s has now wrapped up as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">9.0 finished as follows: Oak Creek/Sweeney,
Brookhaven/Bartlett, Gleneagles/Juhn, TBar/Hackett, John Paul II/Gradick and
Eldorado/Entrekin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">8.0 finished as follows: Greenhill/Kayser, Springpark/Blesi,
Brookhaven/Bartlett, Lifetime/Heflin, Canyon Creek/Rainwater, TBar/Snow,
Brookhaven/Tarangioli, Stonebridge/Cummings and High Point/Meyers.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">So far it looks like Sweeney and Bartlett are having good
senior seasons.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com27tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-20269185570078796282017-02-20T16:35:00.000-06:002017-02-20T16:35:01.492-06:00Quick seniors update<br /><br />
4.5+ over 40 - the tight race that was anticipated is holding true to form. Six matches in with five remaining there is no team that is undefeated so far. Oak Creek/Sweeney and Brookhaven/Harllee are the only one loss teams with OC holding a slight line lead even though BH beat them head to head. In third with two losses is Lifetime Fitness/Arcaria and Greenhill/Rossouw. The big question is what happened to JCC/Reiman? 4-3 at the halfway mark isn't a typical JCC season.<br />
<br /><br />
4.5 is at the halfway mark and 4.0 is already done. Is that right? Seems so. Advancing out of the two 4.0 flights are, in order of strength of record, Oak Creek/Ramasami (6-1, 27-8), Springpark/Walters (6-1, 26-9), Canyon Creek/Patterson (6-1, 21-14), and Huffhines/Clark (5-2, 24-11). Oak Creek had a dominant season until the last match of the season against CC. Having already wrapped up first place in their flight they lost a tight 2-3 match. Does that match have a different conclusion at city playoffs? This a much more competitive field than in years past but I'm not yet sure if that's because Dallas is weaker or there are just more good teams.<br />
<br /><br />
9.0 over 55 has Oak Creek/Sweeney clear of the field at 7-0 and having already beaten second place and one loss Brookhaven/Bartlett. Gleneagles/Juhn sits alone with two losses and could still work their way back into the mix.<br />
<br /><br />
8.0 over 55 has a very similar look with Greenhill/Kayser sitting alone and undefeated (with a mighty impressive 17-1 line record to date), Springpark/Blesi alone with one loss, and Lifetime/Heflin alone at two losses. Greenhill and Springpark square off the last match of the season so it could come right down to the wire.<br />
<br /><br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-38375218188072678042017-02-15T16:05:00.002-06:002017-02-15T16:05:46.700-06:00Tri-level in the rear view mirror<br /><br />
Sorry I didn't get out a preview and I'm a little late on my post-view but I got called out of town on work for about nine days and was swamped. Just got back so here we are. I hate it when my day job gets in the way of tennis.<br />
<br /><br />
What to say? Dallas had an unbeatable tri-level team but it didn't make the finals. It actually does happen. Everyone is beatable. Admittedly, I really felt like Dallas would win and from looking at the results I still think Dallas could have won, but it didn't happen. It's amateur tennis. Anything can happen. <br />
<br /><br />
For those of you not following along at home, NOHO took the final in a closer match than I would have anticipated. They look to have been built on some good 4.5s, 4.0s that we've seen a lot of, and good but not great 3.5s. Definitely not a lock at the 4.0 or 3.5 lines so good job by NOHO getting over the top in some close matches. But that is probably the theme from this year's tri-level - closer matches than I would have expected. <br />
<br /><br />
I actually got back into town Monday evening and could have posted something earlier but I was generally surprised by some of the match results on tennislink so I tried to make a few subtle inquiries of people who were there or might know something. That was largely a confusing bust. This person is a cheater, that person had dumb lineups, these people dumped, somebody is mad at someone else, we should have won, they weren't very good - exhausting. The one thing that I did hear a few times that seems to explain a lot was that the level of play at tri-level this year was maybe higher than in years past across the board. That seems to make some sense.<br />
<br /><br />
No team at this year's event went undefeated. Four teams finished 3-1 in their flight. No team went winless. Knowing some of the players and how good they are, it just looks to me like it was a very competitive event this year. <br />
<br /><br />
As for Dallas, they beat San Antonio 2-1 after splitting three setters at the 4.5 line (win) and 4.0 line (loss). They swept Lubbock, then lost 1-2 to NOHO losing the 4.0 and 4.5 lines. They finished with a sweep of Austin. All in all, not a bad finish but if Dallas wins one more line in any match it advances to the final over NOHO. Their 4.5 lines went 3-1, their 4.0 lines went 2-2, and their 3.5 lines went 4-0. So for the event, Dallas only lost three lines and two of those were in three setters. Pretty close.<br />
<br /><br />
Quick shout out to the Dallas guys on the Fort Worth team. They went 2-2 for the weekend. Not bad for a bunch that won Fort Worth by a razor thin margin.<br />
<br /><br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-59289046421659221502017-01-30T17:29:00.000-06:002017-01-30T17:29:09.684-06:00And the beat goes on
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">40 – 4.5 – at this point it looks like hockey, lots of
matches but barely anyone eliminated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A
full seven teams are all sitting with one loss.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>All I can really say at this point is that Greenhill/Ohl and TBar/Fikes
are out of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Past that, everyone else
still has a shot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">40 – 4.0 – flight A – much like 4.5 above, many teams still
technically in the running.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The leaders
at this point all have one loss and still have a lot of big matches left to
play.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Springpark/Walters, Huffhines/Clark
and Greenhill/Ohl have the advantage at this point with Springpark in the lead
on lines won.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">40 – 4.0 – flight B – things are a little clearer here with
Oak Creek/Ramasami and Chandlers Landing/McLemore sitting atop the heap in the
undefeated column.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Canyon
Creek/Patterson lurks close behind with only one loss.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">55 – 8.0 – still a four horse race at the moment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Greenhill/Kayser sits alone and undefeated,
with one loss Springpark/Blesi, TBar/Snow and Lifetime/Heflin in the wings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t make Lifetime to be a contender at
this level but let’s see how it all shakes out.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">55 – 9.0 – looks like Oak Creek/Sweeney is in the driver’s
seat here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have a one match lead at
the moment but still need to beat second place Gleneagles/Juhn in the first
round of a double round robin to secure the lead at the halfway mark.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Tri-level is two weeks away so I’ll try to sit down this
week and have a closer look now that the flights are out.</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-13927211926200433882017-01-09T17:21:00.000-06:002017-01-09T17:21:10.833-06:00Halftime Break<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a h="ID=images,5275.1" href="http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=alabama+clemson&view=detailv2&&id=A9511087D24A68DAA12ED4F5D0204AEDAA6CB10D&selectedIndex=22&ccid=hbz3lrx2&simid=608052918137521918&thid=OIP.e5b4be70329c983e58af29a647017dff" id="detail" style="height: 168px; width: 300px;" title="View image details"><img role="presentation" src="https://tse1.mm.bing.net/th?&id=OIP.e5b4be70329c983e58af29a647017dff&w=302&h=171&c=0&pid=1.9&rs=0&p=0&r=0" /></a><br />
<br />
<br />
<br /><br />
So it's pretty slow. The 40s/55s season is just getting started. Tri-level sectionals is a full month away. Hell, it was COLD on Saturday and windy on Sunday. Not exactly my favorite tennis weather either way. As much as people can take a dim view of nationals on this blog, I have a feeling many of us will be watching another group of amateurs compete in the national finals tonight.<br />
<br /><br />
I'm a college football fan and this promises to be as good a game as last year. At least for the state of Texas tennis, this Freeman versus...uh...well, whoever from Dallas is trying to dethrone him this year.<br />
<br /><br />
Yes, I do see a few similarities in the USTA tennis scene and college football. A version of amateur athletics, lots of recruiting, a few rules violations, underperformers, overachievers, I could go on and on. Throw in one Lane Kiffin per major market and you have plenty to keep Todd Reed fully employed. <br />
<br /><br />
So, dynasty or new kids on the Power 5 block? What's it gonna be?<br />
<br /><br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-89865315168996051862017-01-02T12:05:00.000-06:002017-01-02T12:05:30.740-06:00Let's Play Some Old Guy Tennis<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"> <img alt="Image result for old guy tennis" class="mainImage accessible nofocus" data-bm="15" height="200" src="https://25.media.tumblr.com/7HeISNO1Jbv1qkmw1gYvzX0H_500.jpg" title="View source image" width="200" /></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Since there’s only one over 40 flight in 4.5, it looks like
the top three teams from the flight will make the playoffs with the format
being #2 versus #3 and the winner plays the top seed in the final.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">There are some tough teams in 4.5 this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From playoffs past we see TBar/Fikes,
Gleneagles/Juhn, Greenhill/Rossouw, Oak Creek/Sweeney, Brookhaven/Harllee, and JCC/Reiman.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s six recent playoff teams and only
three can advance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also see a couple
of dark horses who could make some noise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s going to be a very interesting season to watch in 4.5 this
year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With a few of the weaker teams
falling out and not fielding squads, it really puts a premium on availability and
having some quality depth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There won’t
be many easy matches to play the bottom of your roster.</span><br />
<br /><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">4.0 has two flights again with the first and second place
team advancing from each flight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unless
we change our mind, or we don’t like the weather, or whatever.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Flight A has Brookhaven/Bartlett, Springpark/Walters, Greenhill/Ohl
and Huffhines/Clark.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All of these teams
could be playoff contenders.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In flight B
I like Oak Creek/Ramasami, McKinney/Jacobson and Canyon Creek/Patterson.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Flight A looks to be a tad tougher but both
flights will have quality teams sitting home for city playoffs.</span><br />
<br /><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">In 55s, there are only six 9.0 teams: Brookhaven/Bartlett,
Gleneagles/Juhn, Eldorado/Entrekin, TBar/Hackett, Oak Creek/Sweeney, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and John Paul II/Gradick.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A couple of these rosters don’t look full yet
so we’ll keep an eye on this one. </span><span style="font-family: "calibri";">At the 8.0 level there are several familiar names:
Brookhaven/Bartlett, Greenhill/Kayser, Springpark/Blesi and Canyon
Creek/Rainwater look to be the cream of the crop.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of these teams will be on the outside
looking in come playoff time.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-4780822947780076732016-12-12T09:13:00.001-06:002016-12-12T09:13:18.491-06:00Odds and Ends Grab Bag<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"> <a h="ID=images,5290.1" href="http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=tennis+swag+bag&view=detailv2&&id=D3FF24ECBDDED6DF37A1812E1A530A08DC9037F8&selectedIndex=25&ccid=xLzwlWaY&simid=608035360263307665&thid=OIP.Mc4bcf09566981eac3e379a62f434c6ado0" id="detail" style="height: 243px; width: 243px;" title="View image details"><img role="presentation" src="https://tse1.mm.bing.net/th?&id=OIP.Mc4bcf09566981eac3e379a62f434c6ado0&w=243&h=243&c=0&pid=1.9&rs=0&p=0&r=0" /></a></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Not<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>a whole lot going
on at the moment but we can take a look in the grab bag and see what’s of
interest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><u>Fort Worth tri-level</u> ended yesterday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Normally not a big deal, although the
national championship Sisk team did play out of FW last year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not the case this year, Sisk decided to stay
in Dallas, but a couple of Dallas teams did decide to crash the party: Team
Arcaria and Team Kanchi.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As some of you
might remember, Arcaria took a team to tri-level nationals a few years ago and I
believe finished third in an odd format they had that year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So while his 2017 team is no killer, he does
know something about how to win at tri-level.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Not surprisingly, the two Dallas teams finished 1-2.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What was a surprise to some was that Team
Arcaria beat Team Kanchi 2-1.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It couldn’t
have been much closer with Team Arcaria having to win a third set tie breaker
on the 4.0 line as well as a second set AND a third set tie breaker on the 3.5
line.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Clutch play by his guys and good
competition all around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Good luck at
sectionals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hope you don’t get tired
with only two 4.5s on the roster.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><u>The senior season</u> is rapidly approaching.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Today is the last day to have your minimum
roster filled out to reserve your slot for flight play.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>4.5 currently has 12 teams and it looks like
all may make.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>4.0 currently has 17 teams
but one has no one on it yet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Shaping up
to be a good over 40s season.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The 55s crew has six teams at 9.0 and nine teams at 8.0 but
one is currently unpopulated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Finally, <u>40s mixed</u> has had a rumor circulating around it for
a while now that the DTA may make it a one weekend tournament instead of a
flight play format as in years past.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Anyone have any concrete information on this?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t play mixed so I don’t care enough to
ask them but it seems some inquiring minds want to know.</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com45tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-32030362100163598752016-12-05T10:19:00.001-06:002016-12-05T10:19:55.147-06:00<br />
<h4 style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<a h="ID=images,5158.1" href="http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=tiny+trophy&view=detailv2&&id=00FEC565F884EE317A71BE6F4F1A1C7092833AC2&selectedIndex=3&ccid=893dWD%2bG&simid=608041678154435701&thid=OIP.Mf3dddd583f86c77423b9f86e123bccaco0" id="detail" style="height: 199px; width: 300px;" title="View image details"><img role="presentation" src="https://tse1.mm.bing.net/th?&id=OIP.Mf3dddd583f86c77423b9f86e123bccaco0&w=300&h=199&c=0&pid=1.9&rs=0&p=0&r=0" /></a></h4>
<h4 style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
Presentation ceremony for the fall trophy winners.</h4>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">In the Red Flight of 4.5, Greenhill/Rossouw was the only
undefeated team taking out Canyon Creek/McHugh and TBar/ McColpin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the Blue Flight, Brookhaven/ Harllee also
went undefeated taking out SamGrand/Hanna and Lakes/Way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The final was a pretty tight affair with
Brookhaven taking home a 3-2 win.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Two of
the lines went 9-7, which is about as close as it’s going to get playing pro
sets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was a little curious how the
Greenhill team (with 25 guys on the roster) ended up playing a 4.0 in the final
though.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">In the Red Flight of 4.0, McKinney/Kanchi went through the
field with a 13-2 record, defeating Huffhines/Jayaram, Garland/Sisk and
McKinney/Jacobson.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the Blue Flight,
there was a tie at 2-1 but Canyon Creek/Nolan edged out Brookhaven/Bartlett by
one line, with Greenhill/Davalos and Oak Creek/Iyer close behind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every team in the Red Flight finished 8-7,
7-8 which should have given some indication that McKinney/Kanchi would take
home the title, which it did with a relatively close 3-2 victory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The start of the old guy leagues is right around the
corner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Until then, the only thing that
looks a little like Dallas tennis is the FW tri-level cities this weekend where
several Dallas guys are playing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Good
luck beating up on our brothers to the west.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-57998425381566926702016-11-29T13:20:00.000-06:002016-11-29T13:20:16.352-06:00Ratings, ratings go away, come again another day<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><a h="ID=images,5152.1" href="http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=andy+murray&view=detailv2&&id=B4420299C9374B52323A29AB3E1648CF4EA1FE8F&selectedIndex=2&ccid=aJ%2bX8xAa&simid=607995880920320319&thid=OIP.M689f97f3101a0d945c1fd41017e2604ao0" id="detail" style="height: 200px; width: 300px;" title="View image details"><img role="presentation" src="https://tse1.mm.bing.net/th?&id=OIP.M689f97f3101a0d945c1fd41017e2604ao0&w=300&h=200&c=0&pid=1.9&rs=0&p=0&r=0" /></a></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you play on television, you're a 7.0. Past that you're just gonna have to wait.</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As many of you are aware, the Monday after Thanksgiving is a
very popular day for USTA year end ratings to come out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While it isn’t always the case, it did seem
that the USTA had initially targeted Monday (yesterday) as the target
date.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am know hearing and reading that
the new target release date is this Thursday, although next week is a
possibility.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Personally, I don’t care,
but it does remind me of several years ago (2009?) when the USTA did its last
massive reorganization bump.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For those
of you who weren’t around or didn’t notice, in the 3.5/4.0/4.5 categories the
bump up percentages ranged from about 38% to about 25% that year compared with
a more normal range of high single digits to low double digits. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I neither seen nor heard any speculation at
this point that another mass bump is coming but it does seem curious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As for the fall playoff predictions, ehh.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Since there was approximately zero interest in the last fall
post about flight play finish and who would make the playoffs, I decided to
save my energy and pass on predictions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ll
dutifully report the final results but past that no one seems to care.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Good luck to all the combatants this weekend.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And congrats to Murray on his world #1 ranking.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com57tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-86735474525473012712016-11-21T08:57:00.002-06:002016-11-21T08:57:48.097-06:00Fall Flight Play Wrap Up<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"> <a h="ID=images.1_7,5083.1" href="http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=fall+tennis&view=detailv2&&id=7C079B6934B928524C185327726D40C9B08C2C15&selectedIndex=10&ccid=IOHX3Xs%2b&simid=608015792366093297&thid=OIP.M20e1d7dd7b3ee89029147c9a9834a435o0" id="detail" style="height: 187px; width: 300px;" title="View image details"><img data-bm="309" role="presentation" src="https://tse1.mm.bing.net/th?&id=OIP.M20e1d7dd7b3ee89029147c9a9834a435o0&w=300&h=187&c=0&pid=1.9&rs=0&p=0&r=0" /></a></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">5.0 only had one flight but it finished up with a clear
winner in Lakes/Jannasch at 9-0 and two teams coming in at 7-2,
Prestonwood/Perkison then JCC/Reiman.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4.5 Flight A was the tightest race I've seen in a long time. With the final match now posted, Greenhill/Rossouw and Lakes/Way finished at an identical 9-1, 36-14. For the curious, Greenhill lost two less sets but as you will recall the USTA changed the tie breakers a couple of years ago and now head to head comes after lines. So its Greenhill as the flight play champion on HTH. That was a 3-2 win the first match of the season. Kudos to Canyon Creek for what I thought was a somewhat surprising third place finish. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4.5 Flight B also shows two 9-1 teams but Samuell Grand/Hanna squeezed into first place on a two line lead over TBar/McColpin. Third place was also a nail biter with Brookhaven/Harllee and JCC/Reiman both coming in at 9-3 but Brookhaven ahead on a commanding line lead.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4.0 flight A has Garland/Sisk as the only undefeated team,
Brookhaven/Bartlett in second and Canyon Creek/Nolan just getting nudged to
third by three lines.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4.0 flight B has Greenhill/Davalos the only undefeated team
followed by McKinney/Kanchi in second and a distant McKinney/Jacobsen in third.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4.0 flight C has Oak Creek/Iyer as the only undefeated (I’m
sensing a pattern here) followed by two loss Huffhines/Jayaram then third place
Tbar/Snow.</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'll have my playoff predictions out after the holiday.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Also, congratulations to Team Sisk/Kanchi on winning tri-level this weekend. They went an impressive 4-0, 12-0 for the event. Can't say who finished second because one match isn't posted yet but I hear Team Kingsley edged out Team Myers.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com57tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-83886739319488514042016-11-17T11:43:00.001-06:002016-11-17T11:43:18.987-06:00Tri-level Preview - Mission Impossible 3 - And Then There Was One<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><a h="ID=images,5219.1" href="http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=mission+impossible+3&view=detailv2&&id=AC42D02D019C20A9EE1BC634DFF6AE4E3EC38A34&selectedIndex=13&ccid=XuPZky%2bs&simid=608037937200170446&thid=OIP.M5ee3d9932fac7140c6452c19d8bf2ba1o0" id="detail" style="height: 240px; width: 300px;" title="View image details"><img role="presentation" src="https://tse1.mm.bing.net/th?&id=OIP.M5ee3d9932fac7140c6452c19d8bf2ba1o0&w=300&h=240&c=0&pid=1.9&rs=0&p=0&r=0" /></a></span></div>
<h3 style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
Well, not just one. I have to find something to do with my weekend.</h3>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Lineups,
let’s talk lineups.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s always the
easiest thing for us Monday morning captains to criticize.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why didn’t that guy play?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was out of town; he was injured; he was
cramping; he throws up on himself in matches that matter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even easier, why DID that guy play?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is the captain’s buddy; he pays for the team parties; I promised him he’d
play when I didn’t realize I’d find better players.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I
don’t see Team Mayer or Team Myers having trouble deciding on a lineup.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hell, they may have trouble fielding a full
lineup for all four matches.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also don’t
see Team Jeung having trouble deciding on a lineup.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’ll have a lot more guys offering to sit
than they will guys bucking for more match time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">So
let’s start with Team Kingsley.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m
afraid if I start with Team Sisk/Kanchi I may run out of gas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Personally I’d like to see Foster/Foster on
the 4.5 line.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since one of them is a
self rate, let’s rule that out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well then, let's go with Foster/Hill. Oops, Hill is also a self rate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> This is getting awkward. </span>Faris and Shreiner will want to play together but Foster is the cream of the crop here. Another opportunity for a goofy lineup decision, great.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">As
for the 4.0s, I’m envious of this Waters guy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The last two years he’s only played tri-level and I can’t even get on a
team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sawires only went 1-3 in 4.0.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s not the kind of record I’d look for if
I was importing someone from Austin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
he has accounted himself well against 4.5s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’d guess big, inconsistent hitter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Vince loves those.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another
Kingsley on the team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He held up pretty
well at 8.5 combo so that will be interesting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I don’t know exactly what to make of these guys.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are all over map and none of them seem
to have ever played together before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They
clearly have some talent here so it will be interesting to see what they come
up with.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Team
Sisk/Kanchi, I’m tired already.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not the
expert here, and these guys are better than me, but on the 4.5 line I’d start
with Davidson, Kelly and Davis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do I need
to go any further?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, yes, the other
six 4.5s would be line one on several teams but that’s other teams.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The only real question here is who doesn’t
play.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m sure someone will be injured
when the time comes.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">As
for the 4.0s, I’d start with Kommineni (a 3.5C).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did you see this guy and Jay Benjamin go
three sets against Davidson and Abbruzzese?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He had the biggest serve on the court and played fantastic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As we saw at 4.0 sectionals, he needs a
partner, but they have several to choose from.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If Abbruzzese can replicate his play from that same 8.5 combo match I’d
start with him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They look like they’d be
a natural fit on a doubles court.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They also
have Josh Rivera who was a terror in 4.0 singles this year (12-0 in the
playoffs).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While he only played singles
in the playoffs his game did look like it would translate to doubles more than
most singles guys.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, I would start
with those three.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course Kanchi is a
4.0 so I’d expect his to push for playing time in the big match with Kommineni.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s see who really has the pencil in this
captaining duad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">As
I’ve often said, I don’t know the 3.5s so I pass on them but this time I’ve
done the research and made some inquiries.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Here’s what I found.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For Team
Sisk/Kanchi we can easily see that Hans Valaparla was Kanchi’s #2 singles guys on
his spring 4.0 team and he plays nothing but Open level tournaments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s start there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sean Luh went 3-1 at 4.0 and I have it on
good authority that he was working out regularly this year with a certain
SpringPark 4.5 team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Good enough for me.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">As
for Team Kingsley, good but not great.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All
seem to be known commodities though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Plenty of USTA results to look at.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Based on what I saw, think we’ll go with Hutchison and Chhajed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">So, if I had
the pencil it would be:</span></b></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Davidson/Kelly
versus Foster/Faris</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Kommineni/Abbruzzese
versus Hanna/Kingsley</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Valaparla/Luh
versus Hutchison/Chhajed</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I
see that as a win for Sisk/Kanchi with the results getting progressively more
lopsided as you go down the ladder.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-52712606159296338402016-11-12T08:14:00.000-06:002016-11-12T08:14:00.203-06:00Tri-level Preview - Mission Impossible 2 - Man Down<a h="ID=images,5249.1" href="http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=mission+impossible+2&view=detailv2&&id=B94CFEF27BE0386474AE123A5800A1C515878B59&selectedIndex=18&ccid=2vgPEwQh&simid=608052467079054510&thid=OIP.Mdaf80f13042116d6526d616a932fb03fo0" id="detail" style="height: 196px; width: 300px;" title="View image details"><img role="presentation" src="https://tse1.mm.bing.net/th?&id=OIP.Mdaf80f13042116d6526d616a932fb03fo0&w=314&h=205&c=0&pid=1.9&rs=0&p=0&r=0" /></a><br />
<h3>
All dressed up and no team to play on.</h3>
<br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Getting
me on a tri-level team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Seems to be
impossible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know it’s too late this
year but what would I have done anyway?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I
could have tried to join Sisk/Kanchi but what would they do with ten 4.5s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I’d imagine I wouldn’t even get a T-shirt
if I didn’t play at cities anyway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Clearly
I’m not saying I’m better than the guys they have, although I’ve heard that Davidson
guy is pretty rusty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Where’s the love for blog
guy?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did pick you to win after
all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Team
Vince, what to say.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These guys are
pretty likeable and I don’t think I’d embarrass myself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I mean I wouldn’t be the worst 4.5 on this
lineup.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But man, I really don’t think I could
take the team practices.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve heard it’s
boot camp with a bunch of crazy-ass drills and games that make very little
sense.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe you
should practice by just playing tennis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m
pretty sure that’s still how the event is played.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Team
Jeung is more my speed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I said in the
last post that this is the team I’d join and I stand by that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Traylor, Robinson, Carlquist, Bearden, Somabut
and Williams; those are some guys I could hang out with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And you’d certainly be able to maintain your
proper hydration levels.</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"></span><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Team
Mayer and Myers, I’m sure you’re good guys but you fall into a void.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I wanted a T-shirt I’d join Team Sisk/Kanchi.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I wanted to drink I’d join Team
Jeung.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I wanted to spend all year
explaining my team’s lineups I’d join Team Kingsley.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just don’t know where you guys fit into the
mix for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">So
there you have it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe next year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you have a spot for 2018 let me know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ll even bring the beer.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br clear="all" style="mso-special-character: line-break; page-break-before: always;" />
</span>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
</div>
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6372029287243637381.post-63485471417520743622016-11-07T14:51:00.001-06:002016-11-07T14:51:26.564-06:00Tri-level Preview - Mission Impossible 1 - Not Everyone Get's Out Alive<a h="ID=images,5279.1" href="http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=mission+impossible+one&view=detailv2&&id=D6AA8A646F3CC475E9D929C672E9236B724CFEEE&selectedIndex=23&ccid=3sIFAfLy&simid=608003594646194888&thid=OIP.Mdec20501f2f2e720d0345c611b6bbcf6o0" id="detail" style="height: 180px; width: 300px;" title="View image details"><img data-bm="194" role="presentation" src="https://tse1.mm.bing.net/th?&id=OIP.Mdec20501f2f2e720d0345c611b6bbcf6o0&w=300&h=180&c=0&pid=1.9&rs=0&p=0&r=0" /></a><br />
<h3>
I'm still trying to figure out Sisk's lineups.</h3>
<br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Evidently
someone told Sisk/Kanchi that all tri-level matches for the weekend would be
played simultaneously because they have signed up 500 guys on the roster.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t know if it’s good news or bad news
guys, but they actually play the matches one at a time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With only five teams total I’d expect they
will play a round robin format, so each team will get four matches.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And wouldn’t you know it, that still isn’t enough
matches to get the NINE 4.5s all qualified for any post-Dallas play.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mission Impossible indeed.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria";"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Not
sure about you, but I noticed someone posted that Red Benzon moved to San
Antonio last weekend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At least he moved
on tennislink.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s also playing on a
Dallas team and a San Antonio team for tri-level.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since I don’t captain I’m not as up on all the
rules as some of you but help me out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Does
Dallas still have a rule where you can’t play tri-level in Dallas and another
city?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because Kanchi is playing in
Dallas and San Antonio too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Inquiring
minds want to know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But let’s move on.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">20)
Team Sisk/Kanchi wins this on sheer bulk.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’m like the college professor who takes all the papers to the top of
the stair well and tosses them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The heaviest
papers hit the bottom first and get the A.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This team is definitely the heaviest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Twenty guys, wow, I still can’t wrap my head around that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ultimate in participation awards.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s at least hope the tri-level T-shirts
are nice this year because that’s about all some of these guys are going to
take away from this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That being said, I still
think they win.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And hey, maybe they know
something the rest of us don’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As you
can see below, picking the order of finish by the size of the team isn’t the
worst way to go this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria";"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">(15)
Team Kingsley is always a contender and accounted itself pretty well last
year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s not get into the whole
lineup snafu again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Too painful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>More interesting this year is how a guy who
has done this several years seems to have forgotten that high tri doesn’t allow
self rates.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, maybe I’m not up on
the rules but its looks to me like both Hunter Foster and Chris Hill are self
rates.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That still leaves him with four
other 4.5s but I don’t follow what’s going on here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This team has all it needs to finish second
and watch for the wildcard again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria";"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">(12) Next is Team Jeung with a very sensible
twelve guys.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everyone can play twice if
they want.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Somabut can sign up and not
play if he wants.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s not so many
people that Bearden can’t handle the team beer needs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And to keep it interesting they brought a 3.0
along.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They seem to have all their bases
covered.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This team wins the boy scout
award for preparedness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I was going
to join a tri-level team (yeah, yeah, I have to be asked first) I’d join this
one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It looks like the most fun.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria";"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">(10)
Team Mayer rolls in with ten guys.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Again, fairly sensible but they don’t come close to the strategic
preparedness of Team Jeung.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>More
importantly, this is a Fort Worth captain with several FW guys.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Evidently they decided FW was too difficult
this year and came to Dallas to steal one of our sectionals invites.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s horrible; who would ever do that?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh wait, this just in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Evidently Mayer and Shawn Arcaria got their
RSVPs switched and Mayer went to the Dallas party while Arcaria RSVP’d for the FW
party.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So confusing, happens all the
time.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria";"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">(8)
Coming in lean and mean is Team Myers with eight total guys.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Won’t they be intimidated when the team
busses pull up and Sisk/Kanchi unload an army.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>At least you won’t have to wonder a lot about what their lineup is going
to look like.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’d guess Dendy and LaMoy
play a lot.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria";"><br /></span><br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">So, your
mission, should you choose to accept it: 1) Can self rates play in high
tri-level now, 2) can you play in Dallas tri-level and still play in another city’s
tri-level event, and 3) where does Red Benzon live?</span></b><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: "cambria";"><br /></span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">And,
as always, this message will self destruct in five seconds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, at least the Sisk/Kanchi team may self
destruct at sectionals when people start getting really pissed about playing
time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From some of the stories I heard
from last year’s sectionals win you’d have thought Team Sisk lost.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those guys won the national title, only had
twelve players on the team, and there were still at least four guys not named
Rigney that were pissed they didn’t play more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You won nationals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t you
think the captain might have played the right people?</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">With
any luck they will make nationals again and have to cut this team in half.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With some of the egos on that team it would
be fun to watch.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As always, good luck to
all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria";"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Final
thought: I really miss there not being an Alzuro team this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a shameless plug, but I thought the tri-level
blog post that featured his team prominently was one of my highlights. Every great artist needs an inspiration.</span></div>
<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14039264870146209891noreply@blogger.com29