CALABASAS, Calif., (March 13, 2012) – Paul Steele woke up Tuesday morning and couldn’t wait to get on the court, like a kid rushing down the stairs on Christmas morning.
“That was so much fun,” said Steele, age 51 and the director of tennis at the Sunset Hills Country Club in Thousand Oaks, of playing in the first round of the USTA Men’s Pro Tennis Championships of Calabasas. “Just being out there and warming up with the music playing and the chair umpire and the balls kids. It’s like something I haven’t felt in 30 years.”
Steele and partner Quinn Borchard, the head teaching pro at Steele’s club, decided to enter the pre-qualifying tournament two weeks ago at the Calabasas Tennis & Swim Club event for a shot at a main draw wild card. After winning that tournament, the pair drew two young studs in the first round Tuesday in 17-year-old Alexios Halebian and 18-year-old Bjorn Fratangelo, who would go on to win the match, 6-2, 7-5, despite have two set points against them with Borchard serviing at 6-5 in the second.
Asked by tournament director Jeff Richards when was the last time he played in a pro event like the one on Tuesday, Steele told the crowd, “Longer than those two guys are old.”
Steele said the hardest part was adjusting to the lighting and the shadows. “And just picking up the rotation of the ball,” he added. “These guys are out here every day doing this.”
Also picking up wins on Tuesday on a competitive day in singles were among others, Tennys Sandgren, Sekou Bangoura and former Fresno State player Rudolf Siwy. Of the first five singles matches played on the day, three went to a third-set tiebreak and the fourth 7-5 in the third.
Tuesday’s First-Round Scores
Singles
Tennys Sandgren, U.S., def. Greg Ouellette, U.S., (4) 6-0, 6-3
Takanyi Garanganga, Zimbabwe, def. Ivo Kleck, Slovakia, 6-3, 3-6, 7-5
Sekou Bangoura, U.S., (wc) def. Phillip Simmonds, U.S., 7-6 (3), 2-6, 7-6 (6)
Rudolf Siwy, Czech Republic, def. Alexander Sarkissian, U.S., (wc) 5-7, 6-2, 7-6 (7)
John Peers, Australia, def. Mitchell Krueger, U.S., (wc) 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (4)
Doubles
Carsten Ball, Australia-Andre Begemann, Germany, (1) def. Jason Jung, U.S.-Daniel Stahl, U.S., 6-2, 6-3
Keith-Patrick Crowley, South Africa-Takanyi Garanganga, Zimbabwe, def. Greg Ouellette, U.S.- John Peers, Australia, 6-4, 6-4
Nick Lindahl, Australia-Vladimir Obradovic, Serbia, def. Boris Bakalov, Bulgaria, Jiri Vesely, Czech Republic, 7-6 (4), 3-6, 10-5
Tennys Sandgren, U.S.-Di Wu, China, def. Daniel Kosakowski, U.S.-Dennis Novikov, U.S., 5-7, 6-4, (10-6)
Arthur Karagezian, U.S.-Joel Kincaid, U.S., (wc) def. Michael Redlicki, U.S.-Mac Styslinger, U.S., (wc) 6-3, 2-6, (10-7)
Nima Roshan, Australia-Artem Sitak, New Zealand, (2) def. Clayton Almeida, Brazil-Joshua Zavala, U.S., 3-6, 6-2, (10-5)
Sekou Bangoura, U.S.-Rudolf Siwy, Czech Republic, (4) def. Roko Karanusic, Croatia-Ivo Klec, Slovakia, 7-6 (2), 6-1
Bjorn Fratangelo, U.S.-Alexios Halebian, U.S., def. Paul Steele, U.S.-Quinn Borchard, U.S., (wc), 6-2, 7-5