Seventeen-Year-Old Tiafoe Takes Har-Tru Pro Circuit Wild Card Challenge Lead
With two weeks in the books, 17-year-old Frances Tiafoe is at the top of the men’s Har-Tru USTA Pro Circuit Wild Card Challenge Standings. He reached the semifinals of the $50,000 St. Joseph’s/Candler Savannah Challenger in Savannah, Ga. last week to move into the lead with 47 points (29 points for reaching the semifinals in Savannah and 18 points for advancing to the quarterfinals of the $100,000 Sarasota Challenger) going into the final week of competition for a main draw wild card into the 2015 French Open.
The women’s wild card challenge kicked off last week with the $50,000 Hardee’s Pro Classic in Dothan, Ala. Eighteen-year-old Louisa Chirico won her first USTA Pro Circuit singles title since 2012 by capturing the Dothan title and earning 80 points for the early advantage. Fellow teenagerKaterina Stewart reached the Dothan final and is in second place with 48 points.
The men’s Har-Tru Wild Card Challenge concludes this week with the $50,000 USTA Tallahassee Tennis Challenger in Tallahassee, Fla. The second week of the women’s wild card challenge will take place at the $50,000 Boyd Tinsley Clay Court Classic in Charlottesville, Va., this week. Both Tallahassee and Charlottesville will be streamed live on www.procircuit.usta.com.
USTA Player Development will award a French Open main-draw wild card to one American man and one American woman who earn the most ATP World Tour and WTA ranking points in a series of USTA Pro Circuit clay-court events this spring.
Ranking points from two out of the three men’s and women’s events will be used and combined to calculate the point total and determine the French Open wild card recipient. If a player competes in more than two events, only his or her two best tournaments will be counted in calculating the point total. In the event of a tie, the player with the best ATP or WTA singles ranking in the published rankings of Monday, May 4 (men), and Monday, May 11 (women), will be awarded the wild card. Only players who have not earned direct acceptance into the French Open are eligible for the wild card.
The standings, as of April 27, are as follows:
The USTA first used this wild-card challenge format for its 2012 French Open wild cards, won by Melanie Oudin and Brian Baker. Oudin and Baker each advanced to the second round at that year’s French Open and subsequently broke into the Top 100. In 2013, Alex Kuznetsov and Shelby Rogers earned the wild cards, with Rogers winning her first-ever Grand Slam singles match at the French Open. Last year, young American Taylor Townsend and veteran Robby Ginepri earned the wild cards, with Townsend becoming a top storyline at Roland Garros by reaching the third round.
Har-Tru Sports, a provider of clay tennis courts, is in its third year as title sponsor of the challenge. In conjunction with the wild card challenge, Har-Tru is launching a new campaign to recognize court maintenance professionals through the “Love Your Court, Love Your Game” campaign and also introducing “Court Care Professionals Day” on June 7. Har-Tru’s “Love Your Court, Love Your Game,” campaign and contest empowers tennis players, club staff and contractors to nominate their court-care professional(s) who go above and beyond to create great playing experiences for their members. The impetus of this campaign is to demonstrate appreciation for the people who create an optimal tennis environment that is key to players’ success. Fans of all ages can create a video, showcasing their appreciation for court-care professionals and the impact their work has had on their game. The winner or winning team’s video will be announced on Sunday, June 7, which will also mark “Court Care Professionals Day,” and receive a $5,000 cash prize. Submissions can be made by visiting www.loveyourcourt.com.
