USTA National Men's 45 Clay Court
Wilder Begins Title Defense at Lauderdale Tennis Club
A deep field, including several former ATP professionals, battles in Fort Lauderdale, Florida for the right to be called "USTA Clay Court Champion for 2008."
It is time for the USTA National Men’s 45 Clay Court Championship at the Lauderdale Tennis Club in Fort Lauderdale, FL to begin, and the field is as strong as any of the national events on the USTA schedule for that age group. Two of the best players in the world, Val Wilder, the No.1 seed and top-ranked player in the world in Men’s 45, and Mike Fedderly, currently ranked No.16 in the world in Men’s 45 and seeded No.4, are among the combatants in Fort Lauderdale.
Former ATP Pros Spice up Draw
Adding prestige to the field is Pablo Arraya, the no.6 seed who was once ranked No.29 in the world on the ATP Tour, and Egan Adams, the No.2 seed and former World No.109 on the ATP Tour. Arraya has wins over such ATP talents as Adriano Panatta, Johan Kriek, and Jimmy Arias. Other former tour players seeded in the event include Ned Caswell (No.5 seed) and Norm Schellenger (No.10 seed).
Top Florida Seeds
In addition to Adams (Palmetto) Arraya (Key Biscayne) and Schellenger (Miami Beach), three other Florida players earned top-15 seeds in the draw. Horacio Rearte tops that list at No.7, with No.14 Gary Clermont (Fort Lauderdale) and No.15 Mark Wagner (Oldsmar) rounding out the list. Rearte could go deep into the draw, if his reaching the final of the 2007 USTA National Men’s 40 Grass Court Championship is any indication of his ability.
Gary Clermont & Mark Wagner Tuned-up
Both Clermont and Wagner are coming off strong performances at the Category II Bocage Senior Invitational in New Orleans this week, with both reaching the semis. Clermont has been playing himself into shape after a slow start to the season, and edged Wagner 6-4, 6-4 to earn a match-up with Pat Serret, one of the few men to beat Wilder over the past year. Both Clermont and Wagner will have to dig deep to recover for their matches in Fort Lauderdale on Monday.
Val Wilder Remains the Favorite
Despite the strong field, one would suspect that this is Wilder’s event to lose, given that he won it without dropping a set in 2007, and has won the last two national events he has played. By the way, Wilder just missed being a top-100 player on the ATP Tour in his prime, topping out at No.105 in the mid-1980s, and he beat Arraya in straight sets the last time they played in the semis of this event last year.
Egan Adams & Michael Rose to Challenge
However, both Adams and Michael Rose, the No.3 seed and fourth-ranked in the nation, could make strong cases for being right there with Wilder as potential favorites. Rose is one of only two men to take a set from Wilder during competition in the last six months, taking the first set and losing 4-6 in the third in Ohio last month. Adams also could have a bit to say about Wilder claiming his third National title in a row. Although not very active of late, Adams won more money on the ATP tour than Wilder and battled the likes of Aaron Krickstein, Andres Gomez, and Jose Higueras during his hay day.
Follow the Action
Regardless of who is crowned USTA Clay Court Champion of the Men’s 45s in ’08, one can rest assured that there will be some epic battles among the rank and file as they tussle for the right to face the upper echelon players and pull off the unlikely upset. Click this link to follow the progress of this premier USTA National event.
