Perfect weather and playing conditions provided the back-drop for some first-class tennis at the 39th annual Sunshine Coast Open tennis tournament Aug. 22 to 24.
A total of 37 participants competed in the five main draws. There were new and old faces this year, with competitors from Edmonton, Victoria and several Lower Mainland tennis clubs.
Chad Brachat of Victoria recaptured the men’s single trophy over young newcomer, Michael Brzezinski of Surrey.
Fran Allain of Maple Ridge won the women’s singles over local Janet Schembri in a hard fought two-hour match.
Aaron Peterson from Edmonton and Tony Fong of Richmond captured the men’s doubles trophy over locals Darcy Lawrence and Gord Halloran.
Fong paired with Irene Cheung of Richmond to win mixed doubles over locals Shelley Lawrence and Yev Shvarstman in an entertaining final. Lawrence and Cheung won the women’s doubles over Cathy Bond and Anne Maki of Vancouver.
Consolation matches saw Alexis Lum of Vancouver defeat Ian Lim of Vancouver in a tight, tie-breaking match.
Kelly and Marte Metcalfe took the mixed doubles consolation over Halloran and Caitlin Hicks.
The event was highlighted by an outstanding social event at Russell Crum and Janis Johnson’s private grass court in Roberts Creek. Tennis enthusiasts raved that this was “the best tournament yet,” loving the specially designed event T-shirts. Newcomers commented on how well put together the tournament was and the amazing community feel to the event. There were lots of laughs as guests were invited to play on the grass tennis court, the majority for the first time — the Sunshine Coast’s own Wimbledon!
Many thanks to the numerous sponsors who make this long standing event possible.
