GLTF Blog

web hosting bug

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 04:30:58 GMT

to those of you who follow the gltf blog, we will temporarily be turning off the notification setting for it. the company that hosts our blog has a bug in their software that falsely detects updates when there aren't any, and as such has sent too many unnecessary notifications. with the recent lull in traffic on the blog anyway, it will be good to wait for the bug to be fixed before waking it up again anyway.

PAC Cup Update....Team San Francisco heads to Palm Springs 9/24!

Fri, 26 Aug 2011 18:33:08 GMT

Team San Francisco is pumped up and getting ready to head to sunny Palm Springs Sept. 24th & 25th to represent the GLTF and fight to bring back the PacCup to San Francisco. Teams from Vancouver, Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego and this year’s host city, Palm Springs will be competing for the PacCup this year. Tim Wu, Co-Captain for Team San Francisco states, “we are feeling strong and confident with the team that has been put together and we are ready to head to San Diego next month to bring back the PacCup”. Mitchell Hasty adds, “we are excited with our roster of both men and women this year and I too like our chances. The team spirit and determination to do San Francisco proud is a great motivator for us.”

Team San Francisco will be holding a raffle for a GREAT prize (September 17th, 4-7) at The Lookout! Please help support the team’s trip to Palm Springs by buying some raffle tickets. A list of all our players from the team’s final roster will be sent out later via email blast with details of the prize and date of the drawing; so be sure to find one of our guys to get your tickets. You will not have to be present to win.

Manic Monday Wimbledon Picks!

Mon, 27 Jun 2011 13:48:59 GMT

This is one of those times that I would drop everything if I had the chance for a “second Monday” ticket to Wimbledon! All of these jaw-dropping match-ups all on one day. I would be in heaven.
But even in heaven there would still be Wimbledon round of 16 picks to make. And man are there some great matches set for tomorrow.

Gasquet versus Murray
Danger Will Robinson! I mean danger Andy Murray! This will be Andy’s trickiest match so far. Richard has quietly won all of his matches without doing a set. He’s playing loose and comfortable tennis. If Andy doesn’t use the crowd to his advantage to get on top of his French opponent early it could be a tough one for him. But I still see Murray coming through this one no matter how tough given his confidence AND the venue.

Venus versus Pironkova
Another dangerous match against the woman who tool her out last year. Venus is playing well but sometimes you’re never sure who will show up in her matches. The good Venus or the bad Venus who can’t close out points. Let’s hope for the first.

Rafa versus JMDP
Rafa will have his hands full against Juan Martin. The Argentine is not known for his grass court prowess, and has struggled in earlier matches. But no one can deny his ball striking and his ability to serve his way out of trouble. Rafa has played well and got out of a tricky match against Muller in straight sets. This will be his strongest test yet. But his experience will help him immensely and he should be able to get through this match.

Serena versus Marion
On court 1 the easy favorites are Novak and Roger. Serena will have her hands full against Bartoli however. I initially picked Neroli to win this match. Now I’m not so sure. Serena has improved with each round while Marion has had back to back 3 setters. If Serena comes out sharp this match will be hers. Otherwise Marion will get into her ball-striking grove early and it will get very complicated.

Maria is playing well and should get through easily. Cibulkova will challenge Caroline greatly, but Caroline is playing fantastic and almost error-free tennis. She should get through this match. The last American male Mardy Fish? It will be a tall order for him to best Tomas Berdych. But he could pull out the upset depending on Berdych’s first serve percentage and mental state.

Victoria and Feliciano should both come through their matches. I know it’s bad of me but I want Vika to go down soon because of the whole grunting thing. I don’t want to listen to that sound next Saturday!

Jo Wilfried versus David
Ferrer will probably go down to Jo Wilfried Tsonga on Monday. Tsonga is playing well on grass this year and playing well in this tournament. Ferrer just doesn’t have anything other than his strong baseline game to take him deeper into this tournament where you need so much more than that.

Bernie Tomic versus Xavier Malisse
Tough call on this one. After all, who would ever have picked Tomic over Soderling? Tomic has notched improbable wins already this past week so you never know. His mix and match game allows his opponents no rhythm. If he keeps his focus and gets the X man out of his game and rhythm on his groundies he could pull off another upset.

Going out on a slight limb for some, here are my picks to make it to the quarters:
Men
Rafa
Fish
Murray
Lopez
Tsonga
Roger
Tomic
Novak

Women
Caroline
Maria
Sabine
Serena
Tamira
Victoria
Petra
Venus

This post is from GLTF member Kevin Ware. More of his tennis insights can be found on his blog, http://kevware.com/tennis

Documentary on History of the Gay Games, Sunday June 26 7pm KQED set your DVRs

Thu, 23 Jun 2011 11:46:17 GMT

CLAIMING THE TITLE: GAY OLYMPICS ON TRIAL: an award winning 30 min documentary on the history of GAY GAMES will be shown on KQED-TV PRIDE SUNDAY - 26 June - 7PM.

In 1982 a San Francisco athletic group headed by Tom Waddell MD (himself a medal winning Olympian) organized an athletic and arts competition for LGBT people from around the world based on the Olympic model but stressing "personal best as an out person". The multi day event was named "Gay Olympics". This was immediately challenged by the International Olympics Committee and ended with the US Supreme Court denying the usage of Gay Olympics, thus the origin of Gay Games. This legal defeat challenged the role of gay and lesbian people in sports. This video documents that history.

The 2011 Wimbledon Gentlemen’s Singles Champion will be… [Kevin Ware]

Tue, 21 Jun 2011 15:02:32 GMT

If you haven’t had a chance to read my breakdown of the draws that leads us to this point, you can check out that post by clicking here.

Assuming the top four make it to the finals, it’s almost anyone’s guess what will happen. But no one wants to read a post where I outline why each of the top 4 seeds could be the eventual champion, right? You expect more than that I’m sure. So here goes…

Even though I am not generally a betting man I would place Rafa and Roger into their 4th Wimbledon final together.

I would take Rafa over Andy Murray by simple virtue of the fact that by the semi-finals of the big events, Rafa is generally playing better and more focused tennis. One only has to look back at the French Open to remind us of what happens when Rafa makes it to the semis. After playing admittedly substandard tennis through many of his opening rounds, Rafa showed up to his semi-final with Any Murray and was pretty much back to his focused and brutal best. It was no cakewalk, but the outcome was never really in question.

As for Andy, and at Wimbledon in particular, he usually starts to play much tighter tennis in the latter stages as the pressure starts to become way too intense for most players to bear. He has done pretty well shouldering the burden of British tennis up to this point. And he has produced some great stuff at Wimbledon in past years. And last week he took the title in convincing style at the AEGON Championships. Still, if each show up to the semi-final focused and play their best on the given day on this particular surface, I choose Rafa.

Nole versus Roger is a much tougher call but one that is still fairly clear in my mind. On clay, I knew that Roger was the only player with enough variety and attack in his game to be able to challenge Novak. Rafa had tried in 4 successive finals to stick to a game plan of trying to break down Novak’s backhand and it had backfired on him each time. It was even odd to see such stubbornness from Rafa in not varying his game to get Novak “out” of his game. Roger too has such bouts of stubbornness, but is more willing to experiment as he gets older (and wiser). I knew that he would mix things up and take away the net whenever possible to help break Novak’s hitting rhythm.

The same could be said of Roger’s strategy on grass. Roger has enough experience and variety undefined read net game undefined to keep Nole from making it a contest of hitting (though Roger displayed at the French that he can still hit with the younger guys as necessary). There is also the belief factor. Roger knows what needs to be done to win here. Novak, confident as he is, still has a bit of doubt about his chances at Wimbledon. He desperately wants to win this title. But unlike clay, he has only had this two week period to hone his game for this “once a year” chance. And given that he pulled out of the Queen’s Club and doesn’t have recent match play under his belt, it could play against him at crunch time against Roger.

Rafa versus Roger in the final … Rafa in 5. I sat long and hard thinking about this choice before typing. It could easily have been Roger in 5. After all, Roger will be highly motivated to set things right after yet another French Open defeat at Rafa’s hands. Again, the experience will be in his favor and his variety on grass is always key in this match-up. Then again, with each successive final these two have played Rafa always managed to perform better than the last. The first final went to 4 sets. The second to 5. The third was finally a victory over Roger in a mammoth 5 set battle lasting into the darkness. Given that match history it’s hard to imagine that Rafa will produce a lesser result than his previous matches. And it must be noted that in that last match Rafa immediately jumped out to a 6-4 6-4 two sets to love lead. He was up in the third set tiebreak, and then fell apart at the finish. If not for that tiebreak performance he would have taken out Roger in straights.

Ultimately it will depend on who shows up the sharpest. These guys know exactly what to expect from one another. There are no secrets. It will come down to execution and desire in the moment. Like I said, it could go either way easily. But you can go ahead and put me down for the Rafa betting line.
Rafa in 5.

This article was written by Kevin Ware - More of his match predictions/event recaps can be found at - http://kevware.com/tennis/

Speak up for Dolores Park!

Tue, 14 Jun 2011 15:54:06 GMT

Please spread the word, it is very important that tennis players show up and be counted!

Public Workshop # 2 Thursday, June 30- 6:30 PM Mission High School Cafeteria 3750 18th Street

June 30th Workshop to Follow-up Successful Kickoff of Dolores Park Community Design Process

On June 30th at 6:30pm in the Mission High School Cafeteria, the Dolores Park Project Steering Committee and RPD will host the second Dolores Park community design workshop. During this session park users and neighbors will vote to determine the priorities of the project and then work in small groups to create conceptual plans for the rehabilitation of the park.

For more information about the project:

http://sfrecpark.org/doloresParkProject.aspx

Thanks for your help!

2011 CalCup is now forming

Tue, 14 Jun 2011 15:48:04 GMT

Cal Cup is an annual competition among the top players from California’s three leading cities, San Francisco, San Diego, and Los Angeles. 2011 marks the 26th anniversary of this prestigious tri-city event. The California Cup was first hosted by San Diego in 1986 and created to showcase the best gay tennis players in California.

This year’s event will be held on October 1 and 1 at the Golden Gate Park Tennis Complex.

Cal Cup is open to all current GLTF members with a USTA rating of 4.5 or higher. The Cal Cup team consists of best 24 singles players and best 12 doubles teams.

More info - Cal Cup Competition (Members only)

2011 USGO Winners!

Tue, 14 Jun 2011 15:46:24 GMT

Another USGO has come and gone. Our interlude at Golden Gate Park offered us a glimpse of that which defines San Francisco - the unpredictable rain, the exotic drumbeat, the wandering homeless, and the diverse hospitality. Next year, the USGO will return to Stanford and its secluded tranquility. We hope to see you there. In the meantime, let us know your thoughts about this year's tournament - the good, the bad, and everything in between.

The 2011 USGO Champions:

Men's Open Singles - Ian Shipps

Men's Open Doubles - Norm Burgos and Eric Schuettinger

Men's A Singles - Santi Soumpholphakdy

Men's A Doubles - Minh Chan and Howie Chang

Women's A Singles - Kathy Emery

Women's A Doubles - Merri Baldwin and Miranda Kolbe

Men's B Singles - Robert Beuther

Men's B Doubles - Andy Fouché and Rob Ferguson

Women's B Singles - Ann Robson

Women's B Doubles - Jojo Donetti and Marissa Myers

Men's C Singles - Julio Mora

Men's C Doubles - Julio Mora and Jeffrey Wang

Women's C Singles - Michelle Philpot

Women's C Doubles - Kaila Morris and Michelle Philpot

Men's D Singles - Leo Chan

Men's D Doubles - Dennis McGlotthin and Eric Nguyen

GLTF's Bunny Hop -- and that's a wrap! (thanks Martha for a great tournament!)

Tue, 26 Apr 2011 12:47:36 GMT

Well, the Peeps and Hot Cross Buns have all been eaten and the bunnies are off to their warrens, thank you to everyone for coming out and making it such a fun day. In the Chicken Division there were enough players to run a Compass Format. Winnie and Tom P made it through with three wins after a close match with Janelle and Tim H. The battle for third place was just as tight. Peg and Kirk took on Carla M and Jeremy. They split sets, it could have gone either way but Carla and Jeremy must have downed some chocolate eggs at the last minute to give them the edge to pull it out on in the third set.

Over in the Egg Division, there were 6 teams, which worked well for a pro set round robin. Many of the sets were very close with 8-7 wins on a no ad deuce point. Carla R and Brad, an experienced and steady team, came out on top with 5 wins, Barb and Michael were right behind with 4 wins and Kevin and Sherry, a new team, were in third place with three wins.

Special costume award went to Marissa and Tim W and pup Beanie Beanie for embracing the Easter Spirit.

Thanks again for putting up with my “creative” format and last minute rules. It was great to see long time members of the GLTF along side new members that just joined. A special thanks to Tom P for dying the eggs and my wife, Carla M, getting up early to help me make the score sheets, pack the car and pick up the Hot Cross Buns.

Chicken Division - Compass Format

Winners: Winnie Fink and Thomas Pelliccioni

Finalist: Janelle Lee and Tim Herzik

Consolation: Carla McKay and Jeremy Leffler

Egg Division - Round Robin

Winners: Carla Richmond and Brad Deal

Finalist: Barb Singleton and Michael Ahrens

Consolation: Sherry Benninger and Kevin Ware

The GLTF has been invited to the Club Lair Tennis Camp! Organized by Cal Alumni Association in Pinecrest, CA (September 3-9 2011)

Tue, 26 Apr 2011 12:42:25 GMT

Grab your racket and join Cal’s Lair of the Golden Bear in beautiful Pinecrest, CA forLair Golf and Tennis Camp. Your six-day stay is an extraordinary, high-energy tennis vacation and includes daily professional instruction on eight courts and features USPTA Pros Bob Klyce and Dynamite Doubles author and pro tour veteran Helle Sparre, and Cal tennis coaching legend Jan Brogan. Session curriculum caters to the more serious, accomplished, and competitive tennis player and will be focused on helping you become a complete player. Those around a 3.5 rating or higher will be right at home.

During your Lair stay, you’ll also enjoy a multitude of fantastic side activities in our mountain playground, including tie-dye, swim instruction and water aerobics, hot tubbing, nightly mixers, Lair Golf (with tennis balls), and evening campfire entertainment.

The cost is $795 per person and includes all food, lodging, and instruction. NOTE:USTA members will receive a $100 discount on their rate (You will be asked to provide your USTA number at time of registration). And GLTF members will enjoy an additional $50 discount on their rate if registering before May 31, 2011 (Simply enter “GLTF-SF Special” in the Special Request Box). Space is limited to 120 tennis players so you are encouraged to register early.

For more information or to make your reservation, visit alumni.berkeley.edu/lair (Click onBook A Tent) or call 510.642.0221. The Lair welcomes all - you do not need to be a Cal graduate to attend this or any Lair session!

USTA Match Recap - GLTF East Bay Men's 4.0 vs Oakland Hills TC (Capt Steve Nugent)

Wed, 30 Mar 2011 10:12:55 GMT

In the most dramatic fashion of all, we pulled out a massive 3-2 win against Oakland Hills TC today!!!

In our Doubles #2 match, Leo and Jeff pulled out a wild 6-7, 6-1, 7-6 match to secure the 3-2 win. Both teams had multiple match points but in the end our guys pulled it out with somegutsy play including aces, drop shots and deep heavy topspin balls, breaking the other team down.

Our other wins were:

Singles #2:
Warren started off our resurgence after we lost the first two points of the tie by coming back from a set down to win 2-6, 6-1, 6-4. Great serving and pinpoint accurate shots finally undid the opponent as at the end he was constantly shaking his head at Warren's aggressive play.

Doubles #3:
Eddie and Mason were steady and attacking, completely dominating the opponent and coming off with an easy 6-1, 6-2 win.

In our other matches I thought our players competed very well and the matches were very close. I thought each player played tough and with that intensity and focus I was hoping to see. Great job, we will get them next time!

Singles #1:
Oakland Hills def. Josh, 6-0, 6-4.

Doubles #1:
Oakland Hills def. Edgar/Kelly, 6-4, 6-3.

USTA Match Recap - GLTF Men's 4.0A team vs SFTC-A (Capt- Joe Belano)

Mon, 28 Mar 2011 16:49:03 GMT

Our first tie of the season all had hard fought matches, but unfortunately SFTC-A came out ahead with a well seasoned team.

In #1 Doubles, MattS and Josh (endearingly call Mash) pulled out a tough 3-setter. Having lost the first set 3-6, Mash rallied and took the second set 6-4. It was up to the nail-biting, super-set tie-breaker in which Mash took on the early lead of 4-0. However, at a turning point in the set, a long rally in which SFTC won the point seemed to swing the momentum. In the end, SFTC pulled out ahead in the tie-breaker 10-6 thus winning the match.

In #2 Doubles, Matt R and Derek were pulling out their own drama on court with another 3-setter of the night. The first set was tight, but our boys lost 6-7. That was enough for them to rally back in the second set, blasting away at their opponents and taking the second set 6-4. By this time, the other two doubles teams had finished, and Ms Matt was sniffing out the sweet smell of alcohol wafting down from the rafters. In no time, our boys again blasted their opponents in the super-set tie-breaker, winning 10-2. Ms Matt busted out in song, "Sistah..." as their opponents left the courts.

In #3 Doubles, Buster and Jarhow faced a well oiled SFTC doubles team which knew exactly where to hit so that that balls went straight into the curtains. After a rocky start, losing 1-6, our boys got into a rhythm, but the rhythm only took them so far, losing the second set 4-6.

The next wave of matches, the Singles, went on shortly after the Doubles ended. A combination of nerve, unfamiliarity with the indoor courts, and well-seasoned opponents brought both Singles matches to quick endings (would have preferred happy endings!). In #2 Singles, Karl was first to walk off the court, losing 1 and 3. Ming, Karl's long-time doubles partner, watched the whole set and certainly had plenty of words of comfort/coaching after that match. Not soon after, Hiro walked off the court after losing 1 and 2.

Captains, do you have a match recap you would like posted? Send it to webmaster@gltf.org

GLTF’S March Madness -- Senior women's team marching Thru the playoffs

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 12:20:49 GMT

Who says March Madness is all about college basketball? GLTF’s Eastbay Senior 3.5 Women’s USTA team has brought tennis’s version of March Madness directly to GLTF. The team, captained by Mary Beth Meyer, has put together an incredible season and is right now in the midst of enjoying a story-book run in the play-offs.

Making the run all the more remarkable is the fact that this is the first ever GLTF senior women’s team. Mary Beth has forged a supportive and cohesive team that never hesitates to cheer each other on and pick each other up. Every bit of that team spirit was needed for the team to reach the playoffs after an excellent and demanding regular league schedule.

After fighting its way to the playoffs, the women secured a miracle upset by knocking out top seeded powerhouse Harbor Bay in the first playoff round. That playoff tie, played away on Harbor Bay’s beautiful courts, came down to the wire. The tie was not decided until the last serve of the last match, which ended 7-5 for GLTF in the third and final set.

Next up, GLTF takes on Chabot College’s talented squad. Congratulations to Mary Beth, Joanne Watson, Kalliope Bellesis, Jan Gunn, Cindy Podren, RJ Bruno, Leslie Bowen, Jan Leger, Sandy Solis, Peg Morris, Rhoda Shaponik, Janice Hall and Rosario Ysip for a job well done!

Compass Doubles Wrapup

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 12:16:00 GMT

Compass Doubles 2011 wrapped up February 27th. Tournament Director Steve Nugent did an amazing job and the tournament was a blast. Here is Steve's wrap-up:

After two days of exciting doubles action and perfect weather we crowned our champions in both the Upper and Lower divisions.

In the Upper Draw, there were no real surprises in the early rounds as the #1 seeds Schulhoff Tam/Dat Mac progressed along with the #2 seeds Howie Chang/Minh Chan to the latestages. The top 2 seeds met in the finals for a titanic clash where the lone upset occurred as the #2 seeds Howie Chang and Minh Chan came out on top with a score of 7-5, 6-3. Congrats to Howie and Minh, Upper Division Champions!

In the Lower Draw, there were upsets aplenty as the top 2 seeds were bundled out of the main draw at the quarterfinals stage. Only the #3 seeds of Dax Johnson and Thai Lam made it to the semi-finals where giant killers Alexander Jones and Minh Ta won an exciting epic match to progress to the finals with a score of 6-4, 4-6, 6-4. Alexander and Minh had already defeated the #1 seeds in the first round!

The other giant killers in the lower draw came in the form of Mark Mays and Chip Graves. After downing the #2 seeds of Scott Burrell and Rick Li with a tight score of 2-6, 7-6, 6-0. They comfortably made their way into the finals to meet the streaking team of Jones/Ta. However, in the end Jones/Ta were no match for Mark and Chip as they eased their way to victory with a score of 6-2, 6-2. Congrats to Mark and Chip, Lower Division Champions!

Thank you to everyone who participated in the tournament and who came out to watch. You all made the tournament the great success that it was! Full draws can be found here:
Steve Nugent, Tournament Director

In the market for a new racquet? Dunlop has partnered up with the GLTA for some amazing discounts!

Wed, 09 Mar 2011 09:50:00 GMT

Do you play with Dunlop rackets? GLTA has negotiated with Dunlop to offer all GLTF members a significant discount on multi-racket and racket bag packages.

Check out the details on the order form: glta.net/documents/2011_DSquad_US_Player_Package_Form_SS.pdf

Facing Curtis Dunn (and living to brag about it)

Tue, 08 Mar 2011 16:15:47 GMT

Curtis Dunn knows a little about success on the tennis court. As a player for Division I powerhouse Stanford University in the late 1980’s, Curtis and his teammates collected three national championships. He has won the Men’s Open Division title a record six times at the USGO, besting GLTF legend Kerry Mitchell’s prior record of fivetitles. Last year in a highly anticipated final, Curtis defeated the wily and talented Russell Buchi. In fact, Curtis has never been defeated in a singles match at the USGO. Which brings up a simple question that Open Division players have been pondering for years – how do you beat this guy?

Well, we here at Ad/Out are here to help. After consulting with tennis experts from around the world, we present to you the top 5 suggestions on how to face and defeat Curtis Dunn at the USGO:

5. Line calls – If his ball was good, you would have been able to return it, right? Practice with me: “just out Curtis”; “sorry, Curtis, you just missed”; “what a great shot C.D., it pains me to have to call it out"; “In by 2 feet you say? That’s weird because I saw it out.”

4. Do not hit to his backhand – has he missed a backhand since 1988? Oh, and don’t hit to his forehand either.

3. Do you have hot friends? Do you have hot friends that are willing to dress scantily and stand up, scream and jump around every time Curtis is about to hit a shot? Just a thought.

2. After the match, quickly volunteer to report the scores – then report the scores under the established rules of “Opposite Day.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposite_Day.

1. Before the match you supply the homemade sandwiches -- food poisoning never tasted so good.

The United States Gay Open -- Introducing Tournament Director Alex Lin

Tue, 08 Mar 2011 16:14:34 GMT

Memorial Weekend, May 27-30, 2011, GGP, San Francisco

The United States Gay Open (USGO) is over 30 and it looks marvelous. For four days over Memorial Day weekend (May 27-30) players from all over the world will converge in San Francisco for great camaraderie, renewed friendships and the chance to play in North America's biggest and best gay and lesbian tennis tournament. Registration is open, and it's easy -- to learn more clickhere. GLTF's Alex Lin has taken up the challenge of Directing this historic tournament. After working with and learning from the exceptional and indefatigable Dave Campbell, Alex is looking forward to helping guide the USGO to the next stage in its storied history. Alex was gracious enough to agree to interview with Ad/Out:

Mr. Director, have you settled into your role as the Tournament Director of the 2011 United States Gay Open?

I think so. The initial trauma from the thought of having to plan such a big event steeped with history has passed. The role of director really is about organizing and supervising, to make sure every aspect of the tournament is covered.

Actually, you took on a big role during the 2010 USGO, assisting Dave Campbell, correct?

Yes, I was in charge of most things directly related to all the tennis matches – registration, seeding, draws, scheduling.

What part of the job of director is the most fun, thus far?

The most interesting and fun part is to try to come up with new ideas to make the tournament more fun and efficient for the players. My goal is to make every player feel like a VIP when they are out on the courts playing their hearts out. I want them to focus completely on their tennis game and not have to worry about anything else.

What part of the job is the most challenging?

There are two things that are challenging. One, since we are moving back to Golden Gate Park this year. I basically have had to plan the tournament as if it were brand new – things like negotiations for courts, host hotels, banquetfacilities all have taken a lot of effort. The other challenging piece of running a tournament is something I experienced last year and I am hopeful I will encounter less of this year – players should try to understand that we can’t please everyone in every way. We often have people asking for certain times off, registering for a different level than they should, and/or complaining about their draw, their seeding, and their match time – it takes a lot of energy and patience to deal with this, and it can be very stressful. I hope people understand that everyone on the tournament committee, including myself, is a volunteer, and we are all doing our best to organize a good tournament for everybody. There is one great tip I learned from Dave last year though – the next time someone comes up to me to question the seeding, that person will have automatically volunteered to be on the seeding committee the following year.

Does it sometimes feel like you are producing/directing a Broadway show?

I haven’t yet had the opportunity to produce or direct a Broadway show. So you should ask me again in 15-20 years, when I will be in New York directing my first Broadway musical. I imagine there are lots of similarities and each has its own difficulties – organizing people, negotiating with vendors, seeking donors and sponsors.

This year the tournament will return to San Francisco after a few years in Palo Alto, many people are excited about the return to the city – what are the most positive aspects of the return to San Francisco?

Most players liked Stanford for the stadium atmosphere. Since they’re hosting the NCAA Championships this year, we thought it would be a great opportunity to bring the tournament back to GGP. The courts were just resurfaced in the fall of 2010, and since it’s so close to home for those of us in SF, it will be convenient to have the tournament there. We are planning a few things to bring some excitement during the weekend, and the benefit of having it here in SF is to have people coming out to support their friends, even on the last day of the tournament when it will be just the finals.

Tell us about some of the interesting features of the 2011 USGO?

One new feature is that we will have ball boys and girls for all the final matches on Monday. Our beneficiary this year is Youth Tennis Advantage, and the kids in this great organization will be helping us out, which, along with USTA officials, will make for a very exciting final day of thetournament. I’m also working very hard to get more funds so we can have a great variety in our lunch options this year. So if anyone thinks that their employer may be interested in being a sponsor, please let me know. Another new feature will be the draw party. In previous years, the draw was done by the computer. This year, I am planning a manual draw where we will actually draw names out of a bowl. Sports Basement is sponsoring this event, which will be held one week before the tournament begins. There will be complimentary wine, beer, snacks, and everyone there will receive a significant discount on purchases made that evening.

I am sure you’ll need a whole cadre of volunteers – in which areas will you be needing help?

A tournament this size can’t possibly happen without volunteers, and we need two sets of volunteers. The first set will be volunteers interested in a leadership role to help plan the tournament. So far, we have Allison Duke and Katy Atkinson working on the parties, and Steve Brown and Aamir Vaid wiring on sponsors and donors. We also have Zoe Heimdel who designed the 2011 USGO logo and is handling promotion materials for us this year. There are two positions that need to be filled at the moment: a food coordinator and a public relations director. The food coordinator will serve as a liaison to the caterers and plan out all the food and snack needs over the four days of the event. The public relations director will help us promote the event to the general Bay Area community. One of the goals of the GLTF Board this year is to reach out beyond the gay tennis community, so this person will have the important function of coordinating local media. The second set of volunteers will be the folks helping out at the event itself. This will include setting up, purchasing food and snacks, transporting players, registering players, assigning courts, cleaning up. It will be crucial to have as much help as possible to help make sure the tournament runs smoothly.

How can members volunteer?

For those who are interested in volunteering or have ideas for the tournament, please contact me at usgo@tennis.org. If you didn’t understand how last year’s seeds were determined, contact me now so we can get you on the seeding committee. If you know someone who might be interested in providing massage therapy at the tournament or making a donation to help our auction or raffle, please let me know.

Thanks Alex!

GLTF First ever Senior Women's 3.5 team goes on to second round playoffs!

Tue, 08 Mar 2011 16:03:38 GMT

Pulling off a stunning upset, the East Bay team which plays out of Mills College in Oakland beat the number one seeded Harbor Bay. Going in without home courts advantage, the match at Harbor Bay was extremely close and exciting to the last serve; the third match to went to a 7-5 third set. The GLTF senior 3.5 women will take on Chabot Canyon at Chabot on Sunday, March 20th at 1 pm. Come out and cheer on the ground breaking GLTF team.

Link to Chabot Canyon Racquet Club
http://www.chabotcanyon.org/pages/index.cfm?siteid=10261

Steven Brown - USTA Northern California's Prestigious Adult League Volunteer of the Year Award Winner

Thu, 17 Feb 2011 13:59:49 GMT

Former GLTF President and Hall of Fame GLTF member Steven Brown was awarded USTA Northern California’s prestigious Adult League Volunteer of the Year at the annual awards banquet last month. Steven has donated an enormous amount of time as a member and chair of the USTA Norcal's Adult League Committee, and the award recognizes his hard work and vision. Steven was kind enough to answer a few of our questions.

1. How did you get involved in the Adult League Committee?

I was approached by the area league coordinator and invited to become a committee member.

2. What does the Adult League Committee oversee and how might this be relevant to a GLTF Member?

The Adult League Committee is responsible for overseeing the USTA League program in Northern California. The goals of the committee include maintaining and growing league participation by emphasizing fair and consistent programs across all 17 local areas in the section. The committee is comprised of 13 members, who are selected based upon the following criteria: played leagues, variety of experiences with leagues, shown interest, background of tennis pro/club experience, and or legal background. Each member comes with something to share and broadens the prospective of the committee. For GLTF members that want to play USTA tennis this committee is vital to fair play without prejudice.

3. What were some of the accomplishments during your time as chair?

Some of the accomplishments include increased fairness to all levels of play for men and women, a 70+ pilot league was expanded to the entire section, the High Level Tri Level league was created to give our highest rated players opportunity for team play, an Up-Down league in Sacramento gave able-bodied players an opportunity to team with our amazing wheelchair players. Our popular Flex League continues to attract more players with new offerings like mixed doubles and a daytime league for 2011.

Our marketing efforts to increase entry level Adult League and Combo Doubles League teams brought notable results and new USTA members. We trained 10-15 new volunteers for adult league, grievance (including GLTF’s own board member Joe Belano), and appeals committees. We also saw player participation increase in almost all of our leagues.

4. What is your next tennis project?

I will be assisting with the upcoming United States Gay Open and I will continue to work on the 15th Street Court Project.

Congratulations Steve! We're PROUD to have you in the GLTF. Thanks for the years of service and everything you've done to make the GLTF the best gay tennis organization in the world!

Amy Jensen - New GLTF Pro!

Thu, 17 Feb 2011 13:52:42 GMT

The Australian native is a former Cal player and 5-time All-American She posted a career record of 105-52 in singles and a remarkable 94-29 record in doubles. She had a career high singles ranking of No. 9 in college and finished with a national doubles ranking of No. 2 for three consecutive years. Jensen won NCAA doubles titles in 1998, 1999 and 2000, and also the ITA national indoor doubles crown in 2000. After closing out her third NCAA championship, Jensen entered the NCAA record books for the most number of consecutive championships by any collegiate tennis player, male or female. This is a record that still stands today.

Jensen was honored for her hard work as the Associate Head Coach with the Cal program, being named the 2004 and 2006 Intercollegiate Tennis Association Northwest Regional Assistant Coach of the Year.
She then went on to be the Head Coach at a newer, little known Division I program at the University of Denver, in beautiful Colorado. She was voted back to back Conference Head Coach of the Year in 2008 and 2009.
She took the team from No 60 to No. 19 in only 2 seasons.

Jensen was one of Australia's top juniors. She was an Australian Institute of Sport Scholarship holder and represented Australia on several national touring teams. Jensen earned a No. 15 world doubles ranking in 1996 and was a top 50 ITF world junior in singles. She competed in the junior Australia Open, French Open,Wimbledon, and US Open in 1995, reaching the semifinals of the doubles event at Flushing Meadows. In addition, Jensen competed professionally at the 2002 Australian Open and the 1998, 1999 and 2000 U.S. Open events and has held WTA world rankings in singles and doubles both before and after her college career. Jensen has competed against some of the best players in the world including Amelie Mauresmo, Martina Hingis, Mary Pierce, Mary Jo Fernandez, Arantxa Sanchez Vicario.

Jensen graduated from Cal in May 2002 with a pre-med degree in integrative biology. She has also attained an NSCA strength and conditioning certification, and worked as the conditioning coach for the Cal tennis program. Jensen is a P-1 certified teaching professional with the USPTA. She is currently complete a masters in psychology at JFKU where she is studying diverse interests such as sport psychology, consciousness, wisdom traditions, and neuropsychology and the applications to sport, peak performance, team cohesion, and coaching.
Amy Jensen, who is currently working with Mills College's tennis team.