Go To Timberhill TennisRecent News

DATE: September 2007 [PDF not available]

President's Parlay | From the Manager | Hunter's Lair | Results | New Members | Last Month's News

President's Parlay [Top]

This month the board is taking a break - no board meeting in August. However, scheduled for the next few weeks are several maintenance projects. These include

  1. Replacing the garage door on court two with a larger door which will allow easier entrance of lift equipment necessary to change lights, clean up high, etc.
  2. Skylight repair (still working on leaks)
  3. Carpet cleaning in the clubhouse
  4. Scrubbing of the courts.

While the major project we had hoped to carry out on courts 4-6 won't come to pass (at least not this year), late summer is a good time to get some of these more minor items completed. There will be some court closure while these tasks are being carried out, but we hope to keep the inconvenience at a minimum.

See you on the courts,
Wayne Phillips, TTC President

From the Manager [Top]

HOW TO COMBAT THE JITTERS
Do you get violent when you play? Many people are great ralliers but can't play when it counts. They two most feared words on the tennis court is "Play these." People get too emotional.

Tennis is a difficult game to play when you are overly excited. Your body doesn't respond. Although your head knows what to do, your obstinate arms and legs won't listen to what you're telling them.

Is it possible to force yourself to relax and keep your poise? Sure it is. Athletes in all sports have subtle tricks to remind themselves to stay relaxed. Here are some things you can do to relax and play up to your potential in tennis.

  1. Don't serve the ball until you are ready. Your opponent can't do anything until you serve the ball, so take your time. Calm yourself by bouncing the ball a few times before starting. Take a deep breath and think the ball to your target and plan the kind of point you are going to play. Look forward to the next point and not look back at previous blown opportunities.
  2. Relax your grip. Gripping your racquet firm all the time is a major cause of tennis elbow and a characteristic of a nervous game. When serving check to see that you are allowing the grip to breathe. During the point you can develop the automatic reflex of turning the racquet in your hand between shots. You only need to grip the racquet hard just before a split second before you contact the ball. After hitting the ball relax.
  3. Relax your legs. A tennis player bounces between shots. After he hits the ball, he recovers his court position and bounces (hopefully) gracefully on the balls of his feet. This action reminds him to relax and helps his mobility.
  4. Shrug your shoulders. Before serving and returning serve, check your nervousness by relaxing your shoulders and neck. Think jello.
  5. Don't watch your opponent. Don't become paranoid anticipating your opponent's next move. Many inexperienced players habitually take their eyes off the ball to see where their opponent is. Watch the ball! You see many professional players moving their strings on the racquet. This is a form of keeping their thoughts inward and focused on the task at hand, which is the next point.

With USTA League tennis, tournaments, and high school tennis arriving this spring hopefully this will give you some time to practice some or all of these techniques to make you perform when it counts.

OPEN HOUSE WEEK
Timberhill will be hosting our annual Open House Week September 21-30. All of the open house activities will be open to the public and we encourage you to bring or invite any friends or co-workers to try out our facility during this time. This is a great way to introduce some potential members to Timberhill and turn them into members. Remember that if you sponsor a new member who joins then you will receive a free month's dues, so it is a winning situation for everyone. Listed below are the activities.

TTC Open House Week September 21-30

If you have any questions please contact Gary at the club.

ALL COMERS TOURNAMENT
Timberhill will be hosting our 23rd annual All Comers Tournament September 21-23. This is an NTRP level tournament for all adults and juniors, members and non-members. We will offer singles, doubles and mixed doubles in four different NTRP skill levels. The entry deadline is September 15. Don't miss this great local event and find a partner or get your singles game in shape for it. You can pick up an entry blank at Timberhill.

DEMO RACQUETS
Looking for the latest in racquets to help your game? Gary has all the latest racquets from Prince, Wilson and Head. Just see Gary, Hunter or Becky and they can let you try the latest in racquet technology. My, how racquets change in just a few years.

Hunter's Lair [Top]

As the summer ends, we can look back on a really successful season of tennis for TTC. We hosted four adult and junior USTA sanctioned tournaments this summer, the barbeque was a hit once again, and many balls were struck all during what seemed like a cooler than usual summer. During September, our focus will be on gearing up for Open House Week. If you have a friend who you think would like to be a member, invite them out to one of the open house events during the week.

Our annual All-Comers Tournament will kick off the week during the weekend of September 21-23, and the following weekend will wrap it up with the first Junior Fest of the fall on September 28, a free clinic on September 29 and the Mixed Doubles on September 30.

The fall junior and adult clinic programs will start soon: you can call the club, visit the web site, or stop by for registration information. Continuing this fall is TTC's participation in the Tennis Welcome Center program. We are offering introductory level classes with drills and match play for new and returning players. If you have a neighbor or co-worker who have always wanted to try tennis, this is a great opportunity. Have a great end to the summer!

Results [Top]

It's been a busy tournament month here at the club. Our outstanding juniors had some great results and we have listed TTC members names in bold. Congratulations to all those that played.

Corvallis Junior Championships held at Timberhill August 3-5

Boy's 12 Singles: Jamie Fisher (Corvallis) def. Rajul Chikkalingaiah (Corvallis) 7/5, 6/7, 7/5
Girl's 14 Singles: Natasha Prohnevska (Corvallis) def. Katie Edwards (Aloha) 6/2, 6/3
Boy's 12 Doubles: Rajul Chikkalingiah-Jamie Fisher (Corvallis) def. Stefan Ball (Roseburg) - Macgregor Beatty (Portland) 6/0, 6/1
Girl's 14 Doubles: Charlotte Fisher - Natasha Prohnevska (Corvallis) def. Britanny Banna - Elanor Grossman (Eugene) 6/3, 6/1
Boy's 16 Doubles: Clark Lawton (Corvallis) - Aaron Howath (Beaverton) def. Preston Mann - Jackson Martin (Salem) 7/5, 6/3
Girl's 18 Doubles: Leah Hoffee (Tualatin) - Martha Pellicano (Sherwood) def. Allison Bostrom (Corvallis) - Shannon Plamer (Salem) 3/6, 6/0, 10-8

Corvallis Rookies played July 28-29

Girl's 14 Singles: Claire Kamara (Corvallis) def. Hayden Vlhandreas (Salem) 6/1, 6/1
Girl's 16 Singles: Ashley Laing (Eugene) def. Rian Kunke (Corvallis) 6/1, 6/4
Boy's 12 Doubles: Kyle Heim (Boring) - Richard Prahl (Portland) def. Matthew Koski - Ben McNair (Corvallis) 6/4, 6/7, 10-6
Girl's 18 Doubles: Claire Kamara - Rebecca Phillips (Corvallis) def. Anne & Natalie Esterberg (Philomath) 6/3, 4/6, 12-10

New Members / Substitute List [Top]

Welcome New Members! Looking for new players to try out your skills? Please feel free to call any of these new members and line up some tennis matches.

Debby Vajda 602-6388: Debby is a 3.0 level player that will play at any time. She enjoys doubles but will also play singles.

Remember that we have a substitution list posted by the telephone in the clubhouse to sign-up on if you are interested in getting a call to sub into a group. Members are encouraged to use this list to find a substitute or just find a new partner to play.

Do you need a partner to play with? If you can’t find players to play against, please contact Gary at the office or use Timberhill’s web page - MatchMate.