Women's Tennis Tour Rising Stars to Compete in 16th Dow Corning Classic
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Angela Haynes, 19, comes in from Hawaii to try to emulate meteoric rise on women's tour of hometown stars Venus and Serena Williams.
Mike Woody, managing director of the Midland Community Tennis Center, explains Dow Corning Classic details to reporters at press conference.
Rising stars on the women's tennis circuit will begin arriving in Midland this week for the 16th Dow Corning Tennis Classic, Feb. 7-15. Crowds estimated at a total of 20,000 will begin seeing great tennis on Feb. 8.
The players will include lanky Angela Haynes, who conducted a telephone interview with sports reporters from Hawaii, where it was 7 a.m., last Thursday.
Haynes is from Compton, California, where the famous Williams sisters, Venus and Serena, got their start before moving to Florida. Angela is often compared to the Williams girls, but she doesn't mind the halo effect. She just wants to replicate their rise to the top and has a good start, going from No. 851 ranking in the world a year ago to No. 183 now.
"I think a top 50 ranking is very realistic and that's my goal this year," said a sleepy Angela on a speakerphone.
The 19-year-old rising star will contend with the likes of Carly Gullickson, 17, daughter of former Detroit Tigers pitcher Bill Gullickson, who is ranked in the top 200.
Also on hand to thrill crowds at the Midland Community Tennis Center will be 14-year-old Nicole Vaidisova, of the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy, Tampa, Florida, via the Czech Republic. She won her first Women's Tennis Association tournament and holds a junior ranking of No. 8 in the world.
The player with the highest world ranking in the tournament is Slovakia's Martina Sucha, 24, who has been ranked as high as No. 37 and now is No. 89. She has five major singles championships to her credit.
The Midland event is the only professional tennis tournament in Michigan, explained Mike Woody, managing director of the tennis center.
Woody spoketo the Bay City Rotary Club last week and noted that many Bay County residents are members of the club, which has a total of 3,500 members. MCTC has 32 courts, the most of any club in the Midwest, and conducts about two dozen tournaments including the Dow Corning Classic.
The Midland club won the honor of the nation's outstanding municipal tennis facility from the U.S. Tennis Association last year.
Tournament events include: Sat., Feb. 7, Mid-Michigan Medical Center High School Play Day and Dow Chemical Kid's Fun Day; Sun., Feb. 8 and Mon., Feb. 9, Qualifying rounds and Dow Corning pros to schools/schools to matches and VIP reception sponsored by Holiday Inn of Midland; Tues., Feb. 10, first round matches and Mid-Michigan Medical Center "train like the pros" clinic and "Fandemonium" nightly matches; Friday, Feb. 13, Holiday Inn adult tennis clinic and "Feel Good Friday" presented by Horisons Conference Center; Sat., Feb. 14, "Family Power" presented by Midland Cogeneration Venture, "Family Frenzy" presented by the Dow Chemical Co. and "Sweetheart Night," presented by Meijer's. Sunday, Feb. 15 is Championship Sunday, with 1 p.m. singles and doubles final matches.
There is free admission to qualifying rounds onSunday and Monday, Feb. 8-9. For other events, tickets are $8-$16 general admission, $39 box seats with food/drink provided. Information on the draw is available on the web at www.dowcorningtennisclassic.com.
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