Professional tennis returns to Atlanta

By early last week, the build-up for the return of pro tennis to Atlanta had turned as fuzzy and bouncy as a new can of balls.

This is "the greatest tennis city in the United States," according to United States Tennis Association COO (and Georgia native) Gordon Smith.

More than that, added Rex Maynard, president of the USTA's Southern Section, it is the "center of tennis in the world."

In such a light, Atlanta without a pro tennis tournament seems as incomprehensible as Kansas City without a steakhouse or Vegas without a single Elvis impersonator. So, after nine years of doing without, supporters of the sport were not going to get back into the tennis business without making a little noise.

The Atlanta Tennis Championships, running all next week at the Atlanta Athletic Club, represent the latest attempt to establish a professional beachhead here in the land of the swim/tennis subdivision and the ubiquitous recreational player.

One local seems particularly enthused about the pro game's return.

"I'm ecstatic about finally being able to play here," said Kennesaw's Robby Ginepri. "I remember when I was little going with my dad to watch the AT&T and players like [Andre] Agassi, [Michael] Chang and [Jim] Courier. And to now get to play [here] is incredible."

Organizers can only hope the competition is as heated as the maneuvering to revive pro tennis in Atlanta.

For close to a decade since the men's tournament here died for lack of sponsorship, tennis folk have shopped for a replacement. But spare tennis tournaments are not exactly available in bulk at Costco.

Organizers began snooping around for someone else's tournament to poach.

Bill Oakes, the tournament director for the last Association of Tennis Professionals event in Atlanta, the springtime Verizon Tennis Challenge in 2001, said he romanced events in Las Vegas and Houston. The wooing went unrequited.

Failing then, he said, "was the best thing that could have happened because this is the best opportunity we've had." When the long-running tournament in Indianapolis became available, and along with it a leadoff spot in the Olympus U.S. Open Series, Atlanta was still wanting and eager. And yet another northern enterprise was convinced to move south.

In the current economic desert, sponsorships have withered and blown away. The USTA's Southern Section had to step up with the financing. As the group's director of sales, marketing and pro tennis, Oakes is once again directing Atlanta's pro event.

The field for the first Atlanta Tennis Championships includes one Top 10 player, Andy Roddick (9), and decidedly domestic appeal: the No. 2-ranked American in the world, former University of Georgia star John Isner (18); hometown player Ginepri; and Mardy Fish, winner of last week's ATP event in Rhode Island.

Former world No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt, ranked 31st, lends an Australian accent to the proceedings.

What will be almost as closely watched as the matches is Atlanta's reaction to them.

How will the heat of July in Atlanta affect the crowd and the players? Will all the tennis fans who live in the vicinity come out in numbers, slap a sweaty embrace on the tournament and ensure its survival?

One of the enduring conundrums of the Atlanta sports scene involves tennis.

Between primarily Atlanta Lawn Tennis Association and USTA leagues, there are an estimated 100,000 participants in these parts.

Given those numbers, how could there not have been an established, successful pro event in town all these years? Is there a disconnect when it comes time for all those players to put down their rackets and post-match finger sandwiches, leave the subdivision and go watch some mercenaries hit it really hard?

"There are a lot recreational players in Atlanta and there has always been the question of how many want to come out and watch someone else play," said Joan Appelbaum, president of the 75,000-member ALTA league.

"I'm hoping the answer to that is yes," she said. For the first time, she said, the league is actively supporting the pro event with a booth at the event and a midweek ALTA night at the matches.

Rebutting the notion that the market for pro tennis here is anything less than promising is Oakes: "It's one of those things that's focused on, where people don't let facts get in the way of their suppositions."

He said the 2001 event drew a combined 75,000 people, which compared favorably to any American tournament of its scale that year.

"But we had a stadium that was a little larger than we probably could use so you could see some empty green spots," he said. The configuration for this week's event will seat a maximum 5,300, compared to the 7,000-seat setup at the Athletic Club nine years ago.

Nine years is a lifetime in tennis. When Roddick blew out Xavier Malisse in two sets to win that 2001 Verizon Tennis Challenge, he was an 18-year-old sensation winning his first ATP title. Today, he is the grand old (27) standard bearer for American men's tennis. It was only Thursday he agreed to play in the Atlanta Tennis Championships (singles and doubles), adding some much needed luster to the field.

Fixing this event as a permanent part of the Atlanta sports calendar will depend on such factors as attracting title sponsorship, rebuilding a consistent relationship with tennis fans in the area and upgrading the field.

On that last point, Oakes said that many of the top-ranked players already had their summer schedules mapped before Atlanta had regained its tournament. "As time goes on, I think we'll continue to draw more of the top players," he said.

Ginepri said that, beyond the money, players are attracted to events by the promise of large, enthusiastic crowds, good on-site facilities and a hip surrounding cityscape. "I think Atlanta should be a great match for all the guys," he said.

Asked what he foresaw for this event five years down the road, Mark Young, who oversees American tournaments for the ATP tour, said, "An entrenched event with consistent attendance above 50,000 for the week, support from the corporate community and one or two Top 10 players in the field."

What a concept: A tennis town with a real tennis tournament to call its own.

Atlanta Tennis Championships

Where: Atlanta Athletic Club

When: Main draw Monday-Sunday

Top seeds (world ranking): Andy Roddick (9), John Isner (18), Lleyton Hewitt (31), Horacio Zeballos (43), Janko Tipsarevic (47), Mardy Fish (49).

Surface: Hardcourt

Purse: $600,000