With 95 men and women in the open divisions, the IcyHot Tennessee Valley Open Championships tennis tournament is beginning today at 4 p.m. at Manker Patten instead of starting on a Thursday like usual.
There are almost 300 players in all, counting age-group competition from 35s to 75s, according to co-tournament director DeWayne McCamish.
“We’ve got some big-time players coming in. There’s not going to be a bad match in the open,” McCamish said. “And there is no charge to attend.”
The TVOC includes singles, doubles and mixed doubles play, and the finals are planned for 9 and 11 a.m. Sunday, said Ned Caswell, Manker Patten’s director of tennis.
This is the 12th TVOC for Caswell since he came to the riverside club, and he said this is the tournament’s biggest set of open draws. The professionals are playing for $13,000 in prize money, including $2,000 for the men’s open champion.
Defending champion Robbye Poole, a former University of Mississippi All-American, is seeded second in the men’s open division behind Julio Peralta of Chile, who has been ranked as high as No. 200 in the world, Caswell said. Another Ole Miss alum, Mattias Wellerman, is seeded No. 3, and Chattanooga’s recent University of Georgia signee, Bo Seal, is the fourth seed.
Francisco Rodriguez, a former Alabama standout who has won the tournament multiple times, is seeded fifth.
Chattanooga’s Claire Bartlett is seeded fourth in the women’s draw, behind No. 1 Dianne Hollands — a touring pro from New Zealand — Ole Miss’s Karen Nijssen and Tennessee’s Samantha Orlin.
Former TVOC open champion Chris Groer is seeded No. 1 in men’s 35s.
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