Tennis Tour Tidbits

Written by: Bob Larson Tennis on 21st May 2013

Tennis Tour Tidbits

epa03707794 Swiss tennis player Roger Federer serves the ball to Rafael Nadal of Spain during their final match of the Italian Open tennis tournament at Foro Italico in Rome, Italy, 19 May 2013. Nadal won 6-1 and 6-3. EPA/CLAUDIO ONORATI |

American Express will continue to expand its footprint at the US Open this year. Last year’s it fan experience for members was housed in a 20,000 square foot building. . Former WTA CEO Larry Scott, who now runs the Pac-12 conference, earned more than $3 million last year, grabbing a $1,376,000 bonus largely because he brokered a broadcast rights deal with ESPN and Fox worth $3 billion over 12 years. He’s said to be the highest paid college commissioner in the US. . . Aussie John Millman has pulled out of Roland Garros. . . In the upcoming issue of Tennis-Journal, Kathy Horvath, who was the only player to score a win over Martina Navratilova in 1983 when she upset her at Roland Garros, says that Navratilova doesn’t give her enough credit for her fine play that day. . . One odds maker has Rafael Nadal at 5/6 to win the French, Novak Djokovic at 7/4 and Roger Federer at 16-1. Unseeded Ernests Gulbis is 40-1. . . Ramsey Smith, the coach of the Duke men’s tennis team is celebrating the birth of his first child, Sofie. Ramsey’s wife is Kathy Sell, a former top US junior.