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The Mardy Fish Tennis Courts In Vero Beach – How It Came To Be

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By Randy Walker

@TennisPublisher

There’s Arthur Ashe Stadium and Rod Laver Arena and now there is The Mardy Fish Court.

While not nearly the arenas the stadium courts at the U.S. Open and Australian Open, it is still flattering to have a tennis court named after you and Mardy Fish, the 2004 Olympic silver medalist and former U.S. Davis Cup star, now has a court at the Riverside Park public tennis facility where he learned to play tennis named in his honor in the small, cozy beach-side town of Vero Beach, Florida..

The process took five years to happen, from the idea first being hatched to it finally happening on January 14, 2024. It actually happens 20 years after Fish’s silver medal performance at the Athens Olympic Games which, despite the disappointing five-set loss to Nicolas Massu in the gold medal match, was still the hallmark achievement in the Fish tennis career. This is how it came to be.

In early 2019, Rob Slezak, then the Recreation Director for the City of Vero Beach, Florida, reached out to Mardy’s dad Tom Fish to see if he could help with fundraising ideas to help spruce up the city’s public tennis courts at Riverside Park. The facility was growing tired and was losing money for the city and Slezak wanted to brain storm with Fish, himself a leading tennis voice in Vero Beach as a 40-year teaching pro in town.

Fish asked me, as his fellow tournament director for the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships USTA Pro Circuit event in Vero Beach, to come along to meet with Slezak at Riverside Park that morning for the brainstorm and to walk around the 10-court facility to see what specific upgrades needed to done. As we walked over to the group of four courts on the far east part of the footprint, we stopped at the court that stands in the far northeast corner. Fish then looked over a Slezak and I said “Do you know how many tennis balls I hit with Mardy on this court?” Fish and his wife Sally used to live just across the street from the courts on Honeysuckle Lane and after teaching tennis for his day job, Fish would then take a young Mardy – and an even younger daughter Meredith Fish – and hit balls with them in his spare time. It was the court where Mardy first started to learn to play tennis and where he went on to an amazing pro tennis career that brought him around the world to Centre Court at Wimbledon and Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York.

The significance of this did not pass me by and I immediately shouted out “This has to be ‘The Mardy Fish Court.’ We need to have a plaque here or something.” Said Tom Fish in 2022 in an interview with me as seen here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0BIDbPuaww of the days teaching tennis to young Mardy and Meredith, “I would teach tennis basically all day and then come home at night and hit tennis balls with Mardy and Meredith. We didn’t have any illusions of grandeur that Mardy has accomplished and actually Meredith accomplished too. We were just hoping to get some exercise, hang out with each other, and learn some tennis. Our biggest dream was maybe get a college scholarship. (which Meredith did at Florida State.)”

I’ve always been not only a tennis history buff but a history buff in general and have always found it fascinating when discovering historic sites that are commemorated, like the exact spot where historical events have happened, whether it was a place where George Washington slept or a place where a battle was or where someone famous once lived. In New York City, where I also live, it seems that on almost every street there is a commemoration of where some famous person lived, like Teddy Roosevelt, Ulysses S. Grant or Andy Warhol.

These kind of markers are also present here and there in tennis. There is a plaque commemorating where the first edition of the modern-day U.S. Open took place in 1881 at the Newport Casino in Rhode Island. When I worked at the U.S. Tennis Association, we implemented a program where a plaque was placed at every site in the United States that hosted a U.S. Davis Cup match. On a trip years ago driving from New York to Vero Beach, I stopped in Lynchburg, Virginia to a site that was just recently commemorated as the place where Althea Gibson and Arthur Ashe trained with Dr. Robert Johnson as you can see on YouTube here:

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At my alma mater, the University of Georgia named its center court in Henry Field Stadium “The Mikael Pernfors Center Court” in honor of the greatest Georgia tennis player who won two NCAA singles titles on that very court (A court I too had the privilege of also playing an official match on for the Georgia Bulldogs.)

Why couldn’t something similar be done in Vero Beach to commemorate the spot where Mardy Fish learned to play? While Mardy was not a world No. 1 or Grand Slam tournament champion, he did win the silver medal at the 2004 Olympic Games, was a stalwart on the U.S. Davis Cup team and was a top 10 player. While he wasn’t an International Tennis Hall of Famer, he was a Hall of Famer in Vero Beach circles. He might be the most well-known and accomplished athlete to come out of Vero Beach.

While having your name on a court is certainly about honoring someone for their achievements, as Mardy deserves in the context of his hometown, it can also serve as an inspiration to others. If a young kid can play tennis on the very same court where another Vero Beach kid learned to play the sport that brought him or her success around the world in international tennis, couldn’t that kid also believe that they could do it as well? Or at least they can aspire to play on a high school team, play national tournaments or college tennis or perhaps even some pro tennis. And all the while, learning life skills through tennis like independence, self-reliance and while learning a healthy form of exercise that would keep them healthy throughout their lifetime.

Having a plaque for a “Mardy Fish Court” would also, in a way, becomes a bit of a tourist attraction, at least for tennis fans. And it can be used to lure more attention to the Riverside Park community. One of my first discussions of the possibility of a Mardy Fish Court in public was in this video from 2019, shortly after the meeting with Slezak and Tom Fish, when I conducted a video tour of the Riverside Park tennis courts here  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErykLkpldJ0 to showcase the facility to those who were not in Vero Beach.

One of the efforts that came out of the meeting with Slezak was to put together a plan to refurbish the courts at Riverside Park with a fundraising effort, perhaps with sponsorship or a “brick naming” program to raise money. One of the great programs that the U.S. Tennis Association has, as I learned from my 13-year career working there, is not only the offering of facility grants to help refurbish public tennis facilities, but also a facility design program. Soon, I was working with Todd Carlson with the USTA on putting together a potential facility refurbishment design but also a profit-and-loss document with potential expanded programming so it could be determined just how much money needed to be raised. The project was going to be championed by the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation, Mardy and the Fish family’s non-profit foundation that helps at risk children in Vero Beach. The project was dubbed “The Riverside Dream” by Treasure Coast Tennis Association head Tim Palmer, the local “Johnny Appleseed” for youth tennis in Vero Beach, who, after visiting the amazing public tennis facility in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida wondered why a similar facility couldn’t be created in Vero Beach, which is an equal or even better tennis town than Palm Beach Gardens. The central part of this design, which was emphasized to Carlson, would be that the very court where Mardy first started hitting tennis balls would be a “Mardy Fish Court” or even a mini stadium – albeit it would only be a court surrounded by a few rows of seating and nothing like an Arthur Ashe Stadium or Rod Laver Arena.

The final designs for the facility came from the USTA in January of 2020 and only a few weeks later, the world went still with the global COVID pandemic. The project was put on hold for obvious reasons and the city and the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation did not even make any of the details or designs public. The climate and pulse of the country and the community was not conducive for this kind of fundraising at the time with the world facing many bigger problems.

While playing socially-distant tennis at Riverside Park during the summer and autumn months of 2020 and into 2021, Tim Palmer and I would always make sure that we played on “The Mardy Fish Court” and always referring to it as such, including the first day when I returned to playing tennis during COVID, as I documented in video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QPdd7ps5K0

When I played tennis at Riverside, I would always try to play on the “Mardy Fish Court” and tried to promote it as much as possible on social media.

On St. Patrick’s Day in 2021, I posted another plug for the “Mardy Fish Court” on Facebook with the hint that fundraising would soon start. This was done to make the initial move to start to get word out about potential plans for the court as the “Mardy Fish Court” came under threat by….pickleball.

Two separate groups were attempting to convince the City of Vero Beach to transform the four eastern court on the property – including “The Mardy Fish Court” – into pickleball courts. Transforming four of the 10 tennis courts at Riverside Park to pickleball would be a major blow for tennis in Vero Beach and would threaten the tennis programming that the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation was conducting at Riverside Park. Lynn Southerly, the executive director of the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation, as well as Tim Palmer and myself and others all went on an offensive to save Riverside Park from pickleball and keep the “Riverside Dream” alive, including the Mardy Fish Court. We decided that it would be a good idea to go public with the Riverside Park tennis design plans – that sat dormant in an email inbox for well over a year as the economy and investment climate improved as the pandemic conditions began to slowly improve. It was the lead story written by former New York Post sports writer Ray McNulty on April 1, 2021 in the influential Vero Beach weekly newspaper “32963” as you can read here https://veronews.com/2021/04/01/expansion-proposed-for-riverside-park-tennis-complex/#.YG3UGJ856tY.twitter I also posted a story on my TennisGrandstand.com tennis website here: https://tennisgrandstand.com/2021/04/11/u-s-davis-cup-captain-olympic-silver-medalist-mardy-fish-may-have-a-court-named-after-him-in-hometown-of-vero-beach-florida/

One of the arguments that the pickleball organizers had in favor of taking over tennis courts at Riverside Park was limited play and programming on the courts. This was largely due to their not being a director of tennis at the facility who was organizing and pro-actively promoting play at the facility. Pickleball was organized. Tennis was not.

I tried to think of people who could maybe put their hat in to be a tennis director at Riverside Park. I spoke with Carlos Goffi, the former coach of John and Patrick McEnroe who recently ran the tennis at Disney Wide World of Sports in Orlando and who I helped with his “Tournament Tough” book in the past. I also spoke with former Florida junior tennis standout Brian Rosenthal, who has a business that runs tennis operations at public facilities, as well other teaching pros I knew. However, there was no guaranteed salary with a job. It would be 100 percent entrepreneurial. It would not be an easy sell.

I then remembered that the USTA Florida section has a program where their office actually takes over and runs as the primary vendor for some public tennis facilities in Florida. The USTA could certainly take a financial risk and they know tennis better than anyone. The USTA’s mission is to promote and develop the growth of tennis so even if they break even or even lose a little money, it is money invested into their mission.

I emailed Laura Bowen, the USTA Florida section executive director about the pickleball dilemma at Riverside Park tennis and she agreed to meet me and pay a visit to the tennis courts. I made sure that I showed her “The Mardy Fish Court” and posted a photo on the TennisVeroBeach Twitter page (now out of service) of two of us on said court on June 11, 2021.

Shortly thereafter, the Vero Beach City Council officially rejected the idea of pickleball at Riverside Park and Bowen and USTA Florida began their effort to work to take over the operation of Riverside Tennis. There was some initial community reluctances based on unknowns, false information and rumors. However, the Riverside Park tennis facility needed more attention and care as I documented in many videos that I compiled here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UkVNfoVkUg&t=.

Other promotional videos in support of USTA Florida’s efforts can be found here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UkVNfoVkUg and, one including an endorsement from Mardy himself, here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2td0Ah8mgY and an interview with a former Riverside Tennis Director Ted MacBeth here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wb9Bd8C02gA

Bowen spearheaded an excellent community outreach program that included community discussion sessions and a question and answer document, as documented here:  https://tennisverobeach.com/index.php/2022/03/19/usta-florida-head-laura-bowen-discusses-potential-riverside-park-tennis-partnership-for-vero-beach/ to fully educate the public and the Vero Beach City Council. In February of 2023, the Vero Beach City Council voted to approve the USTA Florida’s proposal as you can read here: https://www.tcpalm.com/story/news/local/indian-river-county/2023/02/28/vero-beach-enters-contract-with-usta-over-riverside-tennis-complex/69936335007/ With the USTA in control of Riverside Tennis – and with the financial resources to renovate and upgrade the facility – the “Riverside Dream” is alive and “The Mardy Fish Court” becomes a reality, albeit not a mini-stadium as was first thrown out as a possibility, but a court still named for Vero Beach’s favorite tennis playing son that will surely inspire many generations of Vero Beach tennis players.

Vero Beach Public Tennis Courts, Where Mardy Fish Once Played (With Jake Owen), To Be Managed By USTA Florida

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The Riverside Park tennis courts in Vero Beach, Florida, where top 10 star and 2004 Olympic silver medalist Mardy Fish first learned to play tennis, will soon by managed by the USTA Florida, the Florida section of the U.S. Tennis Association.

USTA Florida announced the newest addition to its facility management program after the Vero Beach City Council voted 5-0 to enter into a licensing agreement with the organization. USTA Florida also manages the tennis facilities at the Racquet Club of Cocoa Beach, the Fort Walton Beach Tennis Center, and four tennis parks in Gainesville, Florida.

“My early dreams in tennis began at Riverside Park in Vero Beach and it led me down the road to be able to compete on Arthur Ashe Stadium, Centre Court at Wimbledon and many other wonderful places around the world and I hope that more players can start to realize their own dreams on those very same courts,” said Mardy Fish. “Me and my pals Robert Kowalcyck and Jake Owen and his brother Jarrod and all of our families spent so much time playing tennis at Riverside Park years ago and I know that the USTA Florida will do an amazing job to bring that excitement, joy and energy back and to even greater heights.” 

Said Mardy’s father Tom Fish, “As a tennis-playing Vero Beach resident for over 40 years, I am thrilled that USTA Florida will be taking over the management of the Riverside Park public tennis courts, because no organization knows tennis better than the USTA. Tennis is the ultimate family sport that can be enjoyed together, and Riverside Park is the place where I enjoyed playing the most with my family.  It’s where my two children, Mardy and Meredith, first learned to love the game. I know USTA Florida will bring excitement back to the Riverside Park courts to the benefit of all in our community who play tennis or wish to learn.”

Since USTA Florida took on its first facility in 2018, tennis participation in the state of Florida has grown by nearly half a million players. The latest tennis participation study shows that more than 100,000 additional Floridians want to start playing tennis, if given the chance.

“We got into this business five years ago to help save public tennis centers that were at risk of closing or struggling to keep players,” said USTA Florida President Phil Girardi. “Today, tennis is booming, and we are expanding our business to help municipalities deliver the best possible tennis experience and programs to their communities.”

USTA Florida was first contacted about the opportunity to potentially speak to the City of Vero Beach about the facility management in 2021 when local pickleball players and organizations bid to take over the once vibrant tennis courts and turn them into pickleball courts. The Vero Beach City Council eventually turned down the pickleball proposal.

For more information on USTA Florida’s mission and to learn more about its facility management services, visit USTAFlorida.com.

Jake Owen, Mardy Fish and children at Riverside Park

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Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation’s “Six Healthy Habits” Will Serve You Well In This COVID-19 Era

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by Randy Walker

@TennisPublisher

 

When the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation was founded in 2007 the main mantra of the non-profit organization helping at-risk children in Indian River Country was Mardy’s “Six Healthy Habits.” With the current heightened focus on personal health in this era of coronavirus / COVID-19, these healthy habits become even more important to children, and people of all ages.

“Fighting disease and viruses starts with having a good immune system and you build that up by having a healthy lifestyle,” said Tom Fish, the President Emeritus of the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation and Mardy’s father. “We want to teach children, early in their life, the importance of starting to live a healthy life. It’s not just good advice for children but for everyone.”

Mardy’s Six Healthy Habits are as follows:

  • Get Sleep
  • Drink Water
  • Eat Healthy
  • Exercise Daily
  • Brush and Floss
  • Make Friends

Sleep

Sleep performs a range of vital functions, including restoring damaged tissues, boosting learning and memory, and flushing toxins from the brain. Sleeping too little can have serious long-term health consequences, increasing the risk of obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

“Sleep is an important behavior and routine because that’s when your body regenerates and cures itself,” said Fish. “If you are sick or injured, one of the best things you can do to get rid of germs and illness is to sleep. It’s important to get about eight hours of sleep a night. Roger Federer recently posted that ideally he likes to get ten hours of sleep each night. That’s 10 pm to eight in the morning. Naps are also good if you can do it. Getting enough sleep keeps you alert, gives you more energy and allows you to learn more.

Drink Water

Being hydrated flushes out your system and gets any bad elements in your system out. It flushes out waste and helps your digestive system. Having properly moisturized skin, nostrils and mouth also prevents viruses and bacteria from infecting you and getting into your body. It also helps you have the proper blood pressure. It is recommended that you drink about two to three liters of water per day and to have at least a swig of a drink every 15 minutes, even when you do not feel thirsty.

“It’s good to have a water bottle with you and certainly drink during and after physical activity,” said Fish. “Water is the best liquid to drink and if you don’t like the taste, squeeze a little lemon in it for some extra flavor. It’s amazing the wonders your body will do when it is properly hydrated.”

Eat Healthy

Your body needs healthy food and a balanced diet to get all the vitamins it needs to grow and maintain strong muscles, bones and fight off sickness. Overeating and eating poorly – especially too much sugar – can cause conditions such as diabetes and heart disease. Studies show that when people, especially children, are well nourished, they perform better in at work and school and they have positive learning experiences. Healthy foods give you energy and keep your body feeling great.

“Food is fuel and you want to put ‘good gasoline’ in your tank and not bad,” said Fish. “Get a good balance of fruits, vegetables, proteins, carbohydrates and don’t eat too late in the evening and give your body a chance to fast and digest. Also make sure you don’t eat too much and avoid junk food and fast food.”

Exercise Daily

Exercise and moving your body is an essential every day activity. Exercise or physical activity is very important because it strengthens your heart, muscles, and bones. Exercise also helps your brain work and puts you in a great mood. It helps keep your mind active and alert throughout the day. When you exercise your body, you are also exercising the mind. It stimulates blood flow and brings oxygen to the brain to enhance its function. You are testing and conditioning your body and your lungs for stressful situations and when an unexpected stressful situation occurs, you are prepared and can endure.

“Your body is full of moving parts and you have to keep them moving to keep them functioning and strong,” said Fish. “Exercising creates a strong body that creates a strong person and a strong immune system. You can do powerful things when you are strong and in shape.”

Brush and Floss

Taking care of your teeth is essential, brushing and flossing your teeth twice daily is recommended. Tooth decay and gum disease can develop when plaque is allowed to build up on and between teeth, thus the need to brush and floss daily. Plaque is full of bacteria that you need to extract from your body. Healthy teeth allow you to chew thoroughly, which is important for digestion and also to allow you to speak clearly and look good when you smile. It also cleans your mouth and prevents you from having bad breath, which can also hurt you socially.

“Brushing and flossing your teeth in the morning and at night before you go to bed should be part of your every-day routine,” said Fish.

Make Friends

Social interaction is a vital part of daily mental health. Friends help you make better lifestyle choices and contribute to an overall state of well-being. Spending time with friends gives you a more positive disposition. You are also using your brain more when you interact with people. By contrast, loneliness is adverse to your health and contributes to a mental and physical decline.

“Personal relationships are important for mental health and promote your sense of general well-being,” said Fish. “Being with people, especially friends, creates improved mental sharpness. It helps create a more positive outlook on life a creates long, happier and more meaningful lives with the joyful interaction of friends and family.”

For more information on the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation, go to www.MardyFishChildrensFoundation.org

 

Mardy-Fish Children's Foundation Healthy Habits
Mardy-Fish Children’s Foundation Healthy Habits

 

Vero Beach, Florida Stadium Court Debut Not Unlike Arthur Ashe Stadium Debut For Randy Walker

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By Randy Walker

@TennisPublisher

 

Every Tuesday night, the beautiful Boulevard tennis club in Vero Beach, Florida hosts an advanced men’s night where some of the best tennis players in this tennis-loving beachside paradise are invited to play in a social but competitive two-hour round robin outing.

On Tuesday, October 1, 2019 during this twilight session, I finally had my first chance to play on the Stadium Court at The Boulevard, the main court for the annual Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships, the long-time a U.S. Tennis Association Pro Circuit and ITF World Tennis Tour event that is regarded as the best of this level tennis tournament in the world. Despite being a home-owner in Vero since 1998 and for the last five years running the previously mentioned pro tennis tournament along with Mardy Fish’s father Tom, I had yet to hit a tennis ball in this main stadium court at The Boulevard. This court is the most well-regarded in town, having featured most recently such players as Denis Shapovalov (as seen here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aH9vtD127e0), Kyle Edmund and Miomir Kecmanovic playing on it during the USTA Pro Circuit event.

However, circumstances that happened to me on this night quickly reminded me of the first time I played on another Stadium Court, a slightly larger one in New York City, that being Arthur Ashe Stadium, the home of the U.S. Open.

I just turned 50 years old in May (during the actual staging of the 2019 Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships) and, on this breezy night realized I may have just had my first “senior” moment.  As I stepped out of my car at the club to get ready to play the men’s advanced night, I grabbed my tennis bag out of the back seat of my car only to quickly realize that there were no tennis racquets in the bag!! Where were they? Were they stolen? I remembered that the last time I used my racquets was two days earlier during a casual Sunday morning hit with my friend Linda Maginness at my mother’s club, The Moorings on the other side of town. I vaguely remember taking all of my racquets out of the bag in the middle of one of our deep talks about Southeastern Conference football. (She is an Alabama grad and I’m a University of Georgia grad). I realized that I left the racquets on the court at The Moorings!!! I quickly called their tennis pro shop and they said that my racquets were safely there and I could pick them up the next morning. My panic somewhat subsided.

Meanwhile, for the advanced men’s night, which featured some former Division I college players, as well as, on occasion, 1986 French Open runner-up and Vero Beach resident Mikael Pernfors, I didn’t have a racquet to use. I ran into my new poolside tennis condo around the corner  from the courts (which is available for rental here: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/37823857?s=5&shared_item_type=1&virality_entry_point=1&sharer_id=149337030)  and rummaged around my tennis chest and found two Wilson graphite Pro-Staff racquets that were popular in the late 1980s and 1990s. It was the racquet that Stefan Edberg famously used when won the 1991 and 1992 U.S. Open titles. I could either play with those racquets or a wooden Dunlop Maxfli Fort or Jack Kramer Autograph. Obviously, I had no choice there.

With my ancient Wilson Pro Staff, that was only 90 square inches and loosely strung with dull-feeling “Pro-Blend” string that may have been in the racquet for at least 10 years, I was assigned to play for the first time on the Boulevard’s Stadium Court. I started to hit balls in the warm-up and felt no zing that I normally feel with my Wilson Burn FST racquet that I love and have used since I was first sent it as a trial racquet from Wilson a few years ago. (WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RGlKtPEJIs)

I had a hard time putting the ball in the court in the warm up and worry and panic immediately engulfed me that I was going to embarrass myself on the court this very evening. It was a feeling and circumstance that was very similar to the first time I had the amazing privilege of playing on Arthur Ashe Stadium in 1999, the third year the stadium was in use after debuting in 1997. On that day, I was invited into a doubles game on the cavernous and wind-engulfed open air stadium that seats 23,000 fans (only 22,700 more than the steel bleachers at the Stadium at The Boulevard) during a pre-U.S. Open social game. However, this social game was with the top brass at the USTA. I was paired with USTA President Judy Levering in a game against Rick Ferman, the Executive Director of the USTA and Pierce O’Neil, the Chief Marketing Officer of the USTA just days before the start of the U.S. Open. There was a little bit of pressure there, playing with, arguably, the three biggest honchos at the USTA as mid-level member of USTA’s Marketing and Communications Division. As a former walk-on member of Georgia’s 1988 and 1989 SEC Championship teams (with an 0-7 career record), I could play some good tennis and I had risen to the occasion playing against USTA top brass in the past, practicing once with Hall of Famer Pam Shriver when she was a USTA Board member and in her last year competing on the WTA Tour, and in perhaps an all-time set of tennis, beating Ferman 6-0 the first time he invited me for a morning singles game shortly after he assumed the head job at the USTA. That was an all-time “zone” set for me but shaky in the job security department.

After a 15 minute warm-up session alongside Levering against Ferman and O’Neil, I hit my last practice serve and… boink. A string in my racquet broke! And I only had one racquet with me!

“Just use my other racquet,” said Ferman, who handed me a one of his extras out of his bag and we immediately started the match. I did not have a chance to hit one practice ball with a completely different racquet, with a different string tension and a different grip size. And I was playing with all of my bosses, on Arthur Ashe Stadium!! Not surprisingly, it was the worst and most embarrassing set of tennis I think I have ever played. I barely could hit a ball in the court. It was probably the most pathetic performance in the history of tennis on Arthur Ashe Stadium and it completely ruined what should have been one of the great experiences of my life.

Fast forward 20 years to the much smaller confines of The Boulevard Stadium Court and I had very similar feelings of anxiety with this strange racquet that I was wielding for the first time in years! But at least I got to warm up with it and Andrew Harper, my partner and real estate guru in Vero Beach, held his own in our doubles match that featured former Vanderbilt University singles player Cliff Norris as one of our opponents. As the night wore on, I gradually got better and more used to the ancient racquet frame. After playing, and losing, the first two matches on the Stadium Court at The Boulevard, I played my third and final doubles set on Court No. 2. My feel was coming back a bit and I actually played quite well in the final games of the night, ripping some great returns and hitting some Edberg-like volleys and half volleys to save three match points in the tiebreaker in a losing 8-6 effort to end the night.

“You played three times as well tonight as you did earlier this summer when we played,” was the nice compliment said by one of my opponents Marcus Kramer, a former standout at Virginia Tech, who had beaten Vince Spadea and 1991 NCAA singles finalist from Georgia Patricio Arnold in his career.

So, the night ended on a somewhat positive night, just as my career on Arthur Ashe Stadium actually did years later. I had a few more chances to hit on Ashe to make up for my disaster in doubles from 1999. The last time I had a chance to hit on the court was before the 2003 U.S. Open, when the USTA wanted to get some play on the court after it had just been resurfaced. I remember remarking at the time after a fun and much more positive hitting session that the court was playing incredibly slow.

“The way these courts are playing, it’s going to be a Juan Carlos Ferrero versus David Nalbandian U.S. Open final” I remember remarking, referencing the reigning French Open champion Ferrero at the time and fellow leading slow-court/clay court standout Nalbandian from Argentina. And I was almost right as Ferrero got to the final, where he lost to Andy Roddick, who saved match point against Nalbandian in the semifinals.

 

Randy Walker with his Wilson Graphite Pro Staff at The Boulevard
Randy Walker with his Wilson Graphite Pro Staff at The Boulevard

Windsor Club in Vero Beach, Florida Adopts Anastasija Sevastova

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By Randy Walker

@TennisPublisher

 

Anastasija Sevastova may be from Latvia but she has a special home in the United States in Vero Beach, Florida.

For the past three years, following the Miami Open, Sevastova has trained at the ultra-luxury Windsor community in Vero Beach, Florida, where Tom Fish, the father of former U.S. Davis Cup Team member Mardy Fish, serves as the director of tennis. The community is also the home of three-time U.S. Open champion Ivan Lendl, former 1960s tennis standout Herb Fitzgibbon and Advantage International co-founder Lee Fentress among other titans of business, entertainment and government.

“She’s such a sweet girl, one of the nicest people you would ever meet,” said Fish of their “adopted” female tennis pro. “She’s just so friendly and nice to everyone and she’s so easy to talk to and she’s become friendly with our members and we all look forward to her coming. We all hope she’ll keep coming for a long, long time.”

Sevastova’s coach, Ronald Schmidt, is good friend’s with Fish’s assistant pro Jony Leitenbauer, who facilitated the invitation to Windsor. While at the beach-side Florida paradise, Sevastova frequently encouraged the Windsor pro shop staff out on the courts to hit balls, knowing that they might be shy to ask to hit with a professional player, and gives these 3.0-level players a chance to hit with her. She also will play hit-and-giggle matches with members or, in some cases, competitive matches against top men’s club members.

“She’ll hit with anybody,” said Fish, who also runs the U.S. Tennis Association Pro Circuit men’s tournament in town, the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships, the benefits the family foundation in his son’s name.

“We could be her lucky charm,” joked Fish, when presented with the fact that Sevastova has reached at least the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open each time she has visited Windsor.

Fish was in attendance in New York for Sevastova’s third-round victory over Elena Makarova and fourth-round victory over Elina Svitolina and was impressed with improvement and her increased belief in being a top professional player.

“I feel like the sky is the limit to her,” said Fish. “I really think she could be one of the best players in the world. She keeps getting better and better and better. She’s very, first of all, talented physically. Mentally she’s very, very creative and she makes it real awkward for her opponents to play. She’s got this incredible drop shot and she mixes her speeds really well. She’s really improved her serve. She’s a great returner. She moves well and she’s really fit. The sky is the limit for her for sure.”

Since Windsor only has clay courts, Sevastova’s visits works perfectly for her preparation for the clay-court season, starting in Charleston, S.C. If Vero Beach is able to add more hard courts in town, Sevastova could also train in Vero Beach leading into the Australian Open in January and also leading into Indian Wells, Miami and during the summer leading into the U.S. Open.

Burned out from pro tennis, Sevastova quit pro tennis in 2013 and began courses in “Leisure Studies” in anticipation of a new career. However, missing the professional circuit, she returned to the tour in 2015, with her goal being simply to be a top 100 player. In 2016, en route to her first run to the U.S. Open quarterfinals, she discussed  her visit to Windsor and how it linked to her “Leisure Studies” here: http://www.worldtennismagazine.com/archives/13434

 

Sevastova
Sevastova

Vero Beach’s Fed Cup Near Miss Provides Future Hope For Bigger Tennis Events

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By Kevin Craig

 

Vero Beach, Fla., is known as the site of what is regarded as the best “Futures” level professional tennis tournament in the world. Now the tennis-crazed hamlet town just north of West Palm Beach, Fla., is starting to be considered for higher grade tennis events.

As the annual Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships $15,000 USTA Pro Circuit begins at Grand Harbor Golf & Beach Resort, the xxth year the Futures event has been staged in Vero Beach, it has been reported that the city and venue received strong consideration as the site of the USA vs. Czech Republic Fed Cup semifinal

In an article in the Vero Beach newspaper 32963 entitled “Vero Rises In Tennis World; Considered for Fed Cup” Jeff Ryan, the USTA Senior Director of Team Events said to staff writer Ray McNulty that Vero Beach was considered as a potential site but chose Tampa as the location due to market size.

“Vero Beach probably isn’t big enough for a semifinal or final, because the ITF prefers to play those rounds in larger markets and especially major cities,” Ryan told 32963. “For an earlier round, however, we recognize what Vero Beach has to offer as a potential site in terms of climate, hotels, and local support.”

Ryan also said that a lack of a permanent stadium in the Vero Beach market is a deterent as well.

“The size of the market will be an ongoing issue as is not having a permanent structure, which impacts our costs,” Ryan said to McNulty. ”If we went to Vero Beach, we’d have to erect a temporary stadium that can get expensive.”

Tom Fish, the father of tennis star Mardy Fish and Chairman of the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation, along with Randy Walker, co-tournament director for the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation, have been in discussions with Vero Beach city officials about the concept of a permanent multi-purpose stadium that also could be a home for the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation and its youth activities.

Fish and Walker worked with the Vero Beach government in 2011 on an initial attempt to bring the USA vs. Belarus Fed Cup series to Vero Beach, with a temporary stadium at Dodgertown being the suggested venue.

Some of the best tennis players in the world have made stops in at the event including Andy Roddick, Milos Raonic, and Tim Henman. Ivan Lendl, a former No. 1 player in the world, and Mikael Pernfors, the former top 10 Swedish star, are also residents of the city. Mardy Fish, the 2004 Olympic silver medalist, grew up in Vero Beach and annually visits his hometown from his new home in California to visit family and support the foundation.

“I have no doubt this community, as much as it loves tennis, would support the Fed Cup. And I’m sure we also would’ve drawn fans from neighboring areas, maybe all of Florida,” Walker told Vero Beach 32963.

According to Walker, the Fed Cup could’ve had a $5 million impact on the local economy, which also would have been a huge boost to that Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation and all of its initiatives to promoting tennis and healthy lifestyles for children.

The Mardy Fish Children's Foundation Tennis Championships at Grand Harbor
The Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships at Grand Harbor

Popular Long-Time Vero Beach Doubles Tournament Now Doubles Qualifier For Mardy Fish USTA Futures

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The Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships announced today that the winner and runner-up of the 22nd annual “King of the Hill” tennis tournament that starts Tuesday, January 17 at The Moorings Club in Vero Beach, Fla., will receive a main draw doubles wild card into its annual U.S. Tennis Association (USTA) Pro Circuit “Futures” event to be held April 21-30 at Grand Harbor Golf & Beach Club.

“The King of Hill” (KOTH) is the annual doubles competition featuring tennis professionals from the Vero Beach area who compete in round-robin competitions on Tuesday nights to the determine the “king” of the local tennis professional. Proceeds from “King of the Hill” benefit the Youth Guidance Mentoring & Activities Program.

The Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships is the USTA’s $15,000 Futures-level tournament played in Vero Beach since 1995 and regarded as one of the best entry-level professional tennis tournaments in the world. Proceeds from the event benefit the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation, the non-profit tennis foundation benefiting children, named for Vero Beach native son Mardy Fish, the former top 10 tennis star and a U.S. Davis Cup standout.

“We are happy to award a main draw doubles wild card to the winner and runner-up of the annual ‘King of the Hill’ competition that showcases the top tennis talent in the Vero Beach area,” said Tom Fish, Chairman of the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation. “We are happy to work and partner with King of the Hill founder and organizer Gigi Casapu to work together to promote our respective events that are contested and promoted to raise funds to help the youth of our area.”

Many former KOTH champions and competitors have played in the Vero Beach USTA Futures, including four-time champion Robert Kowalczyk, the former USTA National Boy’s 18 Hard Court Champion, four-time champion Aldo Burga, now of The Legacy club, two-time champion Kriegler Brink, a singles semifinalist at the Vero Beach Futures in 2011, and defending KOTH champion Mike Alford, a former standout at the University of Florida, among others.

KOTH matches run every Tuesday starting at 6 pm from January 17 through February 21 at The Moorings club. Admission is $8.

Advance tickets for the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships are available at www.VeroBeachTennisTickets.com. Admission for children 18 and under is free. Approximately 3,000 fans annually attend the event, which is seen as one of the best-attended events in the world on the “Futures” level of professional tennis tournaments. The 2016 event featured 13 players who played Davis Cup for their country and was won by Jonas Luetjen of Germany, who defeated Latvian Davis Cupper Martins Podzus in the final.

Some of the past competitors at the USTA Vero Beach Futures have gone on to succeed at the highest levels of professional tennis, winning major singles and doubles titles, Olympic medals and Davis Cup championships and earning No. 1 world rankings. Andy Roddick, the 2003 U.S. Open champion who attained the world No. 1 ranking and helped the United States win the Davis Cup in 2007, competed in Vero Beach in 1999. Thomas Johansson of Sweden, who reached the second round of the Vero Beach Futures in 1995, won the Australian Open seven years later in 2002. Nicolas Massu, the 1998 singles runner-up in Vero Beach, won the singles and doubles gold medals at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece, beating Fish in the gold medal singles match. Kyle Edmund, the 2013 champion in Vero Beach, helped Great Britain to the Davis Cup title in 2015. Other notable former competitors in Vero Beach include former world No. 2 Magnus Norman, former world No. 4 Tim Henman, 2016 Wimbledon finalist Milos Raonic among others. Former Vero Beach competitors have combined to win 19 titles in singles, doubles and mixed doubles at Grand Slam tournaments. Six former Vero Beach players have gone on to play Davis Cup for the United States – Roddick, Fish, Taylor Dent, Jared Palmer, Donald Young and Ryan Harrison.

 

"King of the Hill" at The Moorings Club, Vero Beach, Florida
“King of the Hill” at The Moorings Club, Vero Beach, Florida

Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation USTA Futures Event Moves To Carl Icahn Property Grand Harbor In Vero Beach, Florida

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VERO BEACH, Fla. — The Grand Harbor Golf & Beach Club will return as the host venue for the 2017 Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships, the $15,000 “Futures” tennis tournament – one of the longest-running and best attended events on the U.S. Tennis Association (USTA) Pro Circuit.

Grand Harbor previously hosted the event from 1995 to 2009 before being played the last seven years at The Boulevard tennis club. The 2017 tournament will be held Friday, April 21 to Sunday, April 30. The event benefits the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation, the non-profit tennis foundation benefiting children, named for Vero Beach native son Mardy Fish, a former top 10 tennis star, U.S. Davis Cup hero and silver medalist at the 2004 Olympic Games.

“We are excited to bring the tournament back to its original home at Grand Harbor, where we will look to continue to improve the event and expand the experience for our fans and players,” said Tom Fish, Chairman of the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation. “The expanded space and resources at Grand Harbor are a better fit for our long-term vision for the event and will help us in our goal to raise more money for our foundation while also leveraging the tournament to promote tennis to all demographics of our Treasure Coast community. We are very thankful to The Boulevard for being a terrific site for this community event for the last seven years and we look forward to continuing our strong relationship with other Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation activities.”

“We want to expand this event beyond tennis and Grand Harbor provides us with a lot more resources,” said co-tournament director Randy Walker to VeroNews.com

Walker said to VeroNews.com that the return to Grand Harbor, a full-service club owned by billionaire Carl Icahn via Icahn Enterprises, allows for the tournament to expand to offer improved dining, beverage and non-tennis offerings, including live music and youth activities. There will also be more room for parking and other amenities and more room to wander the tournament grounds.

“A big part of my background is the US Open, which made a very successful transformation from a tennis tournament to an entertainment event,” Walker said to VeroNews.com “People go there to watch tennis have lunch or dinner, have cocktails, walk around the grounds, listen to music… You don’t need to be a tennis fan to have a good time. We want to do the same thing here. Albeit on a much smaller scale.”

Founded in 2007, the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation (www.MardyFishFoundation.com and @MardyFishFound on Twitter) currently supports over 2,100 children in 15 elementary schools and six middle schools in Indian River County, Florida by providing after-school exercise, nutritional and enrichment programs in a safe environment to prepare them for healthy, productive and successful lives. The Foundation introduced the “Six Healthy Habits” in 2012 which are Get Sleep; Drink Water; Exercise Daily, Eat Healthy; Brush and Floss; Make Friends.

Tickets for the qualifying rounds of the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships from April 21 – April 24 will cost $10, while tickets for the main draw of singles and doubles from April 25 – 30 will be $20. Season tickets that include both the qualifying and main draw events cost $100. Advance tickets can be purchased at www.VeroBeachTennisTickets.com. Admission for children 18 and under is free. Fans can follow news and developments on the tournament on Facebook and on Twitter at @VeroFutures.

The annual USTA Vero Beach Futures has an economic impact of approximately $500,000 per year on the Vero Beach local economy. Approximately 3,000 fans annually attend the event, which is seen as one of the best-attended events in the world on the “Futures” level of professional tennis tournaments.

Some of the past competitors in Vero Beach have gone on to succeed at the highest levels of professional tennis, winning major singles and doubles titles, Olympic medals and Davis Cup championships and earning No. 1 world rankings. Andy Roddick, the 2003 U.S. Open champion who attained the world No. 1 ranking and helped the United States win the Davis Cup in 2007, competed in Vero Beach in 1999. Thomas Johansson of Sweden, who reached the second round of the Vero Beach Futures in 1995, won the Australian Open seven years later in 2002. Nicolas Massu, the 1998 singles runner-up in Vero Beach, won the singles and doubles gold medals at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece, beating Fish in the gold medal singles match. Kyle Edmund, the 2013 champion in Vero Beach, helped Great Britain to the Davis Cup title in 2015. Other notable former competitors in Vero Beach include former world No. 2 Magnus Norman, former world No. 4 Tim Henman, 2016 Wimbledon finalist Milos Raonic among others. Former Vero Beach competitors have combined to win 19 titles in singles, doubles and mixed doubles at Grand Slam tournaments. Six former Vero Beach players have gone on to play Davis Cup for the United States – Roddick, Fish, Taylor Dent, Jared Palmer, Donald Young and Ryan Harrison.

The 2016 event featured 13 players who played Davis Cup for their country and was won by Jonas Luetjen of Germany, who defeated Latvian Davis Cupper Martins Podzus in the final.

Grand Harbor Golf & Beach Club is majestically set upon the Indian River in Vero Beach, and overlooks a mile of scenic Intracoastal Waterway. Grand Harbor presents exceptional value with two nationally acclaimed golf courses, an oceanfront beach club, a richly appointed Mediterranean-style clubhouse, 10 Har-Tru court tennis complex and fully equipped fitness center. A diverse enclave of home designs captures the essence of a romantic Mediterranean Village. A 144-slip, deep water protected, Marina is also located in the Grand Harbor Community for boating enthusiasts. Exciting new construction began in 2016 with plans for more than 200 new residences including condominiums, courtyard homes, estate homes and direct riverfront homes with prices from the mid 400’s to over two million. Dale Sorensen Real Estate is the exclusive broker onsite for new construction sales as well as resales in the community. For more information please visit www.GrandHarbor.com, www.grandharborverobeach.com, www.grandharborsalescenter.com, www.sorensenrealestate.com

Grand Harbor
Grand Harbor

Latvian Anastasija Sevastova Puts Leisure Management Studies Aside To Achieve Career Heights

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By Randy Walker

@TennisPublisher

 

The world of leisure management’s loss is the tennis world’s gain.

Leisure management is what the Latvian pro tennis player Anastasija Sevastova studied when she first retired from tennis three years ago. However, after almost two years off the tour, she abandoned her studies in Austria to once again pursue her pro tennis dreams that she is now realizing by advancing into the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open.

Sevatsova, ranked No. 48, followed her win second-round upset win over No. 3 seed Garbine Muguruza with a fourth-round upset of No. 13 seed Jo Konta of Great Britain 6-4, 7-5.

“It was some accounting, some management, marketing,” said Sevastova of her leisure management studies, where she said she attended class two days a week. “It was actually interesting.”

The 26-year-old Sevastova said she had designs on working at a resort or in sports management.

Earlier this year, after losing at the Miami Open, she spent 10 days at the prestigious Windsor Club in Vero Beach, Florida. Her coach and boyfriend Robert Schmidt is a friend with the club’s assistant professional Johny Leitenbauer.

“I learned that they always bring you water!” Sevastova said asked what she learned about leisure management while at Windsor, where Ivan Lendl is among the residents and members and Tom Fish, the father of Mardy Fish, is the head tennis professional.

“They had amazing facilities there,” said Sevastsova of Windsor. “Great clay courts. Practicing there was very nice. I learned a lot about leisure management there.”

Sevastova is the first Latvian woman to make the final eight at a Grand Slam tournament since Larisa Savchenko Neiland at Wimbledon in 1994.

“I still cannot believe it,” she said. “Mentally I’m spent. Totally spent. But it’s amazing.”

She will next face in the quarterfinals former world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki, also age 26 and unseeded with a ranking of No. 51.

Sevastova
Sevastova

A Common Thread For US Open Rabble-Rousers Kyle Edmund, Anastasija Sevastova – Vero Beach, Florida

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By Randy Walker

@TennisPublisher

 

Vero Beach, Florida is one of the best – if not the best – tennis town in the United States. I’m a bit biased, being a part-time Vero resident, but passing through the town on the east coast of Florida – for training or an event – may give you good fortune.

Just ask Kyle Edmund and Anastasija Sevastova, two of the break-out surprises at the 2016 US Open.

Edmund, who upset Richard Gasquet and John Isner to reach the US Open’s fourth round, came through Vero Beach in 2013 when he won the USTA Pro Circuit Futures event, now called the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships.

Sevastova, who upset French Open champion and No. 3 seed Garbine Muguruza also en route to the fourth round, spent 10 days training in Vero Beach this March at the Windsor Club. Sevastova’s coach and boyfriend Ronald Schmidt is a good friends with Jony Leitenbauer, the assistant tennis pro at Windsor and hosted the duo following the Miami Open last March.

“They really loved Vero Beach, but especially Windsor,” said Leitenbauer.

“We loved having them at Windsor,” said Tom Fish, the head tennis pro at Windsor and the father of Vero Beach’s favorite tennis pro Mardy Fish. “Anastasija is a delightful young woman and worked very hard during her stay with us. It’s nice to see all the hard work that she is putting in paying off with some high-profile success.”

Ranked No. 48, Sevastova registered the upset of the tournament so far with her win over Muguruza, who had a chance to take over the No. 1 ranking at the event. To Sevastova’s credit, she followed up the biggest win over her career with another solid win, taking out former US Open quarterfinalist Kateryna Bondarenko 6-4, 6-1 in the third round.

Edmund registered his best result in a major with his 6-4, 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (5) win over Isner, the top-ranked American player. Edmund, 21, is now ranked No. 84 in the world and played singles next to Andy Murray last year when Great Britain won the Davis Cup final against Belgium.

In 2013, Edmund came to Vero Beach to compete in the USTA Futures as an 18-year-old just getting his first taste of professional tennis. Former US Open runner-up Greg Rusedski was also in tow as a coaching consultant.

You can read Rusedski’s comments at the time, from the story that I wrote at the time here http://www.worldtennismagazine.com/archives/9227 after his semifinal victory in Vero Beach and after winning the championship in this story entitled “Young Kyle Edmund May Provide Glimpse of the Future of British Tennis” here http://www.worldtennismagazine.com/archives/9234

Perhaps the biggest Vero Beach presence at the 2016 U.S. Open is Ivan Lendl, who has returned to his coaching role with Andy Murray, the No. 2 seed. Since Lendl returned to coaching Murray, the Scot has won Wimbledon and the Olympics and has lost only one match – to Marin Cilic in the final of Cincinnati.

 

Louis Armstrong Stadium During Kyle Edmund vs. John Isner match
Louis Armstrong Stadium During Kyle Edmund vs. John Isner match

Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Student Micah Nalzaro Receives Call-Back For Potential US Open Singing Performance

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Micah Nalzaro, a 14-year-old from Vero Beach, Fla., and a tennis participant in the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation program, has been selected for a call-back try-out to potentially perform “America The Beautiful” at Arthur Ashe Stadium during the 2016 US Open tennis championships.

Nalzaro submitted a video of him singing “America The Beautiful” performed before the men’s semifinal matches in Vero Beach during April’s Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships, a $10,000 “Futures” event on the U.S. Tennis Association Pro Circuit.

Nalzaro is one of a select number of contestants chosen from online submissions from children around the country for the in-person call-back audition June 28 in New York City. Winners selected from the call-back audition will perform “America the Beautiful” live during the night sessions at the 2016 US Open, which will be held Aug. 29 to Sept. 11.

“We are so proud of Micah, who is a terrific young man, an enthusiastic tennis player and a talented singer and performer,” said Tom Fish, chairman of the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation and the father of Mardy Fish. “Our Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships is kind of like a mini-US Open for us in Vero Beach and it certainly would be amazing if Micah was able to turn his performance at our event into an opportunity to sing during the real US Open in New York.”

To view Nalzaro’s online submitted audition from the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships, click here on YouTube: https://youtu.be/XI_bb7h5d3w

The program is part of the USTA’s nationwide online casting as part of its 10th annual US Open anthem audition. For the second consecutive year, the audition age will be extended to children 14 years of age or younger to submit an online audition performance. Previously, the casting call was only open to those 12 and under. The USTA first launched an open casting call in 2006. All entries were reviewed by a panel of judges from the music and entertainment industry.

Nalzaro has appeared in Vero Beach stage performances since 2012, including his most recent role as the Prince in the Vero Beach Theatre Guild presentation of “The King and I” in 2016. He is currently a participant in the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Middle School Tennis League and also volunteers with the Foundation mentoring younger children. Micah and his father Edmund also participated in the foundation’s Team Fish Community Outreach program, where he volunteered to work in different philanthropic community events such as The Special Olympics. He also has served as a ball person at the USTA Pro Circuit event the last few years.

Founded in 2007, the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation (www.MardyFishFoundation.com and @MardyFishFound on Twitter) is a non-profit foundation benefitting children and named for Vero Beach native and former top-ranked American player Mardy Fish. The Foundation currently supports over 2,100 children in 15 elementary schools and six middle schools in Indian River County, Florida by providing after-school exercise, nutritional and enrichment programs in a safe environment to prepare them for healthy, productive and successful lives. The Foundation introduced the “Six Healthy Habits” in 2012 which are Get Sleep; Drink Water; Exercise Daily, Eat Healthy; Brush and Floss; Make Friends.” Mardy Fish completed his ATP professional tennis career at the 2015 U.S. Open, highlighted by a career-high ranking of No. 7, six ATP singles titles, eight ATP doubles titles and an Olympic silver medal in singles at the 2004 Olympics. He reached the quarterfinals at the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open and was a mainstay on the U.S. Davis Cup team from 2002 to 2012.

The Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation recently completed its first year as the new operator of the $10,000 “Futures” tennis tournament in Vero Beach, one of the longest-running and best attended events on the USTA Pro Circuit. All proceeds from the event benefit the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation.

Micah Nalzaro Singing at Mardy Fish Children's Foundation Tennis Championships
Micah Nalzaro Singing at Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships

Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Takes Over Management Of Vero Beach, Florida USTA Pro Circuit Event

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The Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation today announced it has taken over the management of the $10,000 “Futures” tennis tournament – one of the longest-running and best attended events on the U.S. Tennis Association Pro Circuit. The tournament – to be called The Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships – will now benefit the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation, the non-profit tennis foundation benefiting children, named for Vero Beach native son Mardy Fish, a former top 10 tennis star, U.S. Davis Cup hero and silver medalist at the 2004 Olympic Games.

The event was managed for 20 years by Vero Beach tennis teaching professional Mike Rahaley, who made the annual Vero Beach stop one of the crown jewels on the USTA Pro Circuit. The 2016 tournament will be held April 22 through May 1 at The Boulevard tennis club.

“This announcement is all about the future of Vero Beach – to continue this important event and keep it in this community that is so passionate about tennis and to use the tournament to help raise funds for the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation which serves as an investment in the future of our community through the kids,” said Tom Fish, Chairman of the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation. “We salute Mike Rahaley for the amazing job he has done with this event that last 20 years and we look forward to continuing his legacy for years to come as the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships.”

Tom Fish, Mike Rahaley, Mardy Fish
Tom Fish, Mike Rahaley, Mardy Fish

Founded in 2007, the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation (www.mffkids.org and @MardyFishFound on Twitter) currently supports over 2,100 children in 15 elementary schools and six middle schools in Indian River County, Florida by providing after-school exercise, nutritional and enrichment programs in a safe environment to prepare them for healthy, productive and successful lives. The Foundation introduced the “Six Healthy Habits” in 2012 which are Get Sleep; Drink Water; Exercise Daily, Eat Healthy; Brush and Floss; Make Friends.” Mardy Fish recently completed his ATP professional tennis career at the 2015 U.S. Open, highlighted by a career-high ranking of No. 7, six ATP singles titles, eight ATP doubles titles and an Olympic silver medal in singles at the 2004 Olympics. He reached the quarterfinals at the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open and was a mainstay on the U.S. Davis Cup team from 2002 to 2012.

“We are so appreciative to the USTA and Mike Rahaley for allowing the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation to take over this tournament and keeping it in Vero Beach,” said Mardy Fish. “Vero Beach is one of the most enthusiastic and sophisticated tennis communities in the country and we are looking forward to seeing this event continue to grow in the years to come. Most importantly, we are excited that the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation can use this event as a promotional and fundraising platform to benefit children in Vero Beach, Indian River County and beyond.”

The annual USTA Vero Beach Futures has an economic impact of approximately $500,000 per year on the Vero Beach local economy. Approximately 3,000 fans annually attend the event, which is seen as one of the best-attended events in the world on the “Futures” level of professional tennis tournaments.

Mardy Fish Children's Foundation Tennis Championships
Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships

Some of the past competitors in Vero Beach have gone on to succeed at the highest levels of professional tennis, winning major singles and doubles titles, Olympic medals and Davis Cup championships and earning No. 1 world rankings. Andy Roddick, the 2003 U.S. Open champion who attained the world No. 1 ranking and helped the United States win the Davis Cup in 2007 competed in Vero Beach in 1999. Thomas Johansson of Sweden, who reached the second round of the Vero Beach Futures in 1995, won the Australian Open seven years later in 2002. Nicolas Massu, the 1998 singles runner-up in Vero Beach, won the singles and doubles gold medals at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece, beating Fish in the gold medal singles match. Kyle Edmund, the 2013 champion in Vero Beach, helped Great Britain to the Davis Cup title in 2015. Other notable former competitors in Vero Beach include former world No. 2 Magnus Norman, former world No. 4 Tim Henman, 2016 Australian Open semifinalist Milos Raonic among others. Former Vero Beach competitors have combined to win 19 titles in singles, doubles and mixed doubles at Grand Slam tournaments. Six former Vero Beach players have gone on to play Davis Cup for the United States – Roddick, Fish, Taylor Dent, Jared Palmer, Donald Young and Ryan Harrison.

Tickets for the qualifying rounds of the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships from April 22 – April 25 will cost $10, while tickets for the main draw of singles and doubles from April 26 – May 1 will be $20. Season tickets that include both the qualifying and main draw events cost $100. Advance tickets can be purchased at www.VeroBeachTennisTickets.com. Admission for children 18 and under is free. Fans can follow news and developments on the tournament on Facebook and on Twitter at @VeroFutures.

Mardy Fish Children's Foundation Press Conference
Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Press Conference