:When Seven “Lucky Losers” Didn’t Bother To Sign-In, The Ninth, Tenth Players Got In, Despite Not Even Reaching The Qualifying Final
By Randy Walker
@TennisPublisher
There were a whole lot of unlucky losers on the lucky loser list at the men’s $15,000 USTA Pro Circuit ITF World Tennis Tour event in Huntsville, Alabama.
Try seven lucky losers, who were losers for not showing up and signing in to get their chance to get into this entry level pro tennis event. For those who follow tennis closely, this is a crazy number. Three players ended up being “upgraded” with second chance opportunities to play in the tournament, including two who lost in the first round of the qualifying. For those who follow tennis closely, this almost never happens, if it has ever happened before.
The lucky loser list is what is made at a pro tennis event after the conclusion of the qualifying rounds, where a list is made of players, in a pecking order, who could get another shot at playing in the main draw of the tournament if one of the directly accepted players in the main draw has to pull out for whatever reason. The player on the lucky loser list, however, has to sign in to the lucky loser list with the tournament administrator in the morning when the first round matches are being played.
After the qualifying rounds in Huntsville was finished, the eight players who lost in the final round of qualifying were placed on a lucky loser list, with Aleksa Ciric of Serbia being the lone player with an ATP singles ranking, putting him at the top of the list. In random order to follow, the lucky loser list was made up of the following seven players.
2 HanQin Wang
3 Henry Lieberman
4 Jake Trondson
5 Fabiran Mauritzson
6 Adam Lynch
7 Jim Hendricx
8 Rohan Sachdev
But as the hours neared for the start of the first round of the main draw, three players ended up pulling out of the tournament. One was a no show, one pulled out electronically just before the start of play and one was sick. Before the sign-in deadline for the lucky loser positions the morning of the start of the first round, two other players who had lost in the FIRST round of qualifying did sign in to be lucky losers as well, perhaps sensing that the seven players on the lucky loser list had not signed in and perhaps hearing that there were going to be withdrawals from the main draw, thus giving a spots to lucky losers. Those two very smart and opportunistic players were Americans Dakotah Bobo and Kyle Overmyer, who ended up getting into the main draw, despite their first round loss in qualifying.
As I always see to young people… “Good things happen when you show up.” And indeed this was the case for Bobo and Overmyer.
I emailed David Littlefield, the USTA and ITF Tour supervisor in Huntsville to clarify what happened and how the process goes when all the players on the lucky loser list don’t sign in the morning of the first round and spots open up in the draw.
“ANY player who has competed in qualifying can be considered for a possible Lucky Loser spot,” he wrote. “When the Lucky Loser list is drawn, only the eight players who lost in the final round will appear on the list…. Extra lines are on the Lucky Loser List for ANY player(s) who competed in earlier rounds in qualifying so that they can ADD their name(s) to the list.”
Bobo and Overmyer were diligent enough to add and sign their names on those extra lines. And, as it happened, none of the seven remaining players on the lucky loser list who lost in the final round signed in for a lucky loser spot that morning, so the second and third vacancies in the main draw went to the players who signed in despite losing in the opening round. Both Bobo and Overmyer lost in their first round matches in the main draw, but they were in the draw with a chance. Ciric, the only player who lost in the qualifying final and did sign the lucky loser list, won his first round match – earning him an ATP ranking point – and won his second round to earn another ATP point and an appearance in the quarterfinals, so he is one who really took advantage of his opportunity born out of his diligence.
The moral of this story, to players who are competing in any level of pro tennis, is to be diligent and sign-in as a lucky loser, not matter what round you lose in, because you just never know. Also, if you don’t get into the qualifying rounds or in the doubles, sign in as an alternate on site, which is lucky loser list for those events that don’t have
Strange things can happen and unexpected good fortune can shine on you by taking advantage of every possible route into an event. As I always say, good things happen when you show up!
