Lleyton Hewitt made a triumphant debut on the Invesco Series QQQ circuit Sunday winning his debut event at the International Tennis Hall of Fame by defeating Tommy Haas 7-6(2) in the one-set championship match.
Hewitt, the Australian Davis Cup captain and still active on the ATP World Tour, handed Haas his first-ever loss on the North American tennis circuit for champion tennis players over the age of 30 in the final. Haas made his Invesco Series debut earlier this year in Charleston, S.C. where he won the title beating Andy Roddick in the final. Haas also won the title at the Kohala Coast in Hawaii, defeating John McEnroe in the title match.
Haas took the early lead against Hewitt, breaking serve for 2-0, before Hewitt bounced back to reeled off five consecutive games, buoyed by his amazing return of serve. With Hewitt serving for the match at 5-3, Haas was able to break back with the help of some incredible passing shots to eventually force the deciding tiebreaker. In the tie-breaker, Hewitt proved to be relentless getting off to an early mini-break and never looked back.
“This is the first time I’ve played on the Invesco Series and it was really fun,” said Hewitt. “The conditions were a bit tough as we had to wait out the rain for most of the day but I played well when we got out there and had a great time doing it”.
Due to threatening weather Sunday in Newport, the Invesco Series QQQ matches were delayed to be played after the 12:30 pm ATP singles final, instead of before, as originally scheduled. Hewitt defeated James Blake 6-3 in the first semifinal match, while Haas followed by beating U.S. Davis Cup captain Jim Courier 6-3.
Despite the loss, the 40-year-old Haas remains on top of the Invesco Series QQQ rankings earning 200 ranking points to increase his ranking point total to 1,000. Philippoussis, who won the last Invesco Series QQQ event in May in Toronto, remains in second with 500 points. By winning 400 points with the title, Hewitt, age 37, moves into a tie with the 59-year-old McEnroe for third place in the rankings.
The Invesco Series QQQ continues on August 19 at the ATP World Tour’s Winston-Salem Open in Winston-Salem, N.C. featuring Blake, Roddick, Ginepri, and Michael Chang. The remaining schedule, with player fields, is as follows
The remaining 2018 Invesco Series QQQ schedule is as follows:
- August 19: Winston-Salem, N.C. (Wake Forest University) – Andy Roddick, James Blake, Michael Chang, and Robby Ginepri
- August 23, 24: New Haven, CT (Connecticut Tennis Center at Yale) – John McEnroe, Tommy Haas, James Blake and Todd Martin
- October 4: St. Louis, MO (Chaifetz Arena) – John McEnroe, Andy Roddick, Jim Courier, and Mark Philippoussis
- October 6: Houston, TX (Tudor Fieldhouse) – John McEnroe, Andy Roddick, James Blake, and Jim Courier
- October 21: Los Angeles, CA (Sherwood Country Club) – Andy Roddick, James Blake, Tommy Haas, and Mardy Fish
- December 6: Orlando, FL (USTA National Campus) – Jim Courier, Andy Roddick, James Blake and Mardy Fish
2018 Invesco Series QQQ Results
April 7: Charleston, SC (Family Circle Tennis Center) F: Tommy Haas def. Andy Roddick 6-1; SF: Tommy Haas def. Michael Chang 6-2; Andy Roddick def. Mark Philippoussis 6-3
May 5, 6: Kohala Coast, HI (Mauna Lani Bay Hotel & Bungalows) F: Tommy Haas def. John McEnroe 7-5 SF: Tommy Haas def. Mardy Fish 6-3, John McEnroe def.Jim Courier 6-3
May 17: Toronto, ON (Ryerson’s Mattamy Athletic Centre) F: Mark Philippoussis d. John McEnroe 7-5, SF: Mark Philippoussis d. James Blake 7-6 (5); John McEnroe d. Jim Courier 6-2.
July 22: Newport, RI (International Tennis Hall of Fame) F: Lleyton Hewitt d. Tommy Haas 7-6(2) SF: Lleyton Hewitt d. James Blake 6-3; Tommy Haas d. Jim Courier 6-3
Each Invesco Series QQQ event features special VIP experiences, including hit-with-the-pros opportunities and special back-stage access. All ticket, experience and event information can be found at www.InvescoSeries.com
In 2017, the year-long points championship was decided in the final match of the season when Andy Roddick defeated James Blake in the Los Angeles final at the Sherwood Country Club. Roddick, the 2003 U.S. Open champion and world No. 1, won four Invesco Series QQQ titles in all in 2017, winning in Birmingham, Ala., Chicago, Lincoln, Neb., and Los Angeles. Blake, the former world No. 4 and former U.S. Davis Cup star, won series titles in Charleston, S.C., Winston-Salem, N.C. and in Lynchburg, Va.
In 2016, Mark Philippoussis won the Series points title with 1600 points and tournament titles in Memphis, Tulsa, Newport, Winston-Salem and New Haven. Roddick finished in second place, also earning 1600 points but losing the head-to-head tiebreaker with Philippoussis 5-2, while winning titles in Charleston, St. Louis, Los Angeles and Orlando. Blake finished in third place with 1100 points and tournament titles in Chicago, Portland and Brooklyn.
In 2015, Roddick won the Series points title in his second year of competing on the series with 1,600 points. Roddick won a record eight events Los Angeles, Lincoln, Chicago, Austin, Little Rock, Dallas, Richmond and Minneapolis. Blake finished second in the points rankings with 1,200 points, winning events in Boston and Cincinnati. Philippoussis finished in third with 1,100 points, winning titles in Salt Lake City and Vancouver. The year before in 2014, McEnroe won the points title for the first time in the nine-year history of Invesco Series QQQ tennis by winning events in Kansas City, Indianapolis, Nashville and Charlotte.
ABOUT INSIDEOUT SPORTS + ENTERTAINMENT
InsideOut Sports + Entertainment is a Los Angeles based producer of proprietary events and promotions founded in 2004 by former world No. 1 and Hall of Fame tennis player Jim Courier and former SFX and Clear Channel executive Jon Venison. In 2005, InsideOut launched its signature property, the Champions Series, a collection of tournaments featuring the greatest names in tennis over the age of 30. In addition, InsideOut produces many other successful events including “Legendary Night” exhibitions, The World Series of Beach Volleyball and numerous corporate outings. Since inception, InsideOut Sports + Entertainment has raised over $4 million for charity. In 2014, InsideOut Sports + Entertainment merged with Horizon Media, the largest privately held media services agency in the world. For more information, please log on to www.InsideOutSE.com or InvescoSeries.comor follow on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
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