James Murphy
THE return of the Mount Gambier and District Tennis Association mixed doubles tournament was hailed an ultimate success.
The event was played at Olympic Park on Friday evening and provided plenty of entertainment.
A barbecue and open bar kept spectators satisfied, while on court there was some quality tennis to be viewed.
Some colourful outfits added to the fun, with all games played in good spirits across the three divisions.
The largest of those was the Division 1 category, which was split into two pools due to its large numbers.
The minor round games were played in Fast4 format, before a finals series was held to determine the winner.
Andrew van den Hurk and Tessa Megaw ended up the pair to beat and at the end of the night they were undefeated.
They met Cade Kelly and Jayme Young in the first semi-final, winning the match 6-4 to progress to the decider.
The second semi-final was played between Bryan Haywood and Bailey Young against Kobe Cole and Erika Henning, where the former duo prevailed 6-2.
That set the scene for a thrilling grand final, but the van den Hurk, Megaw partnership was too strong and they claimed the win 6-2 for the tournament honours.
In Division 2 there was only one pool, with the results determined through a points system based on games won.
It was a close finish, as Mick Ellis and Rosie Collins secured the grade honours by a single point, with their 6-5 win over runners-up Matt Charlton and Sharon Edwards sealing the result.
Division 3 was played in the same format, but with sets played to five games rather than six.
Peyton Robinson and Kyra Kuchel claimed the top prize, winning three of their four sets to clinch the win by a point.
Their only blemish came in the form of a 4-5 loss to Justin Robinson and Rylee Kuchel.
Runners-up for the night were Tim Benny and Rylee Seidel, whose only loss came to the eventual winners 5-3.
For van den Hurk, who is also the president of the MGDTA, he deemed the event a roaring success.
“It was a very successful tournament,” he said.
“I think we had 38 players and there would have been about 30 or 40 people come out to watch as well, which was really good.
“Most divisions were quite even, especially in Division 1.”
He said the response he had received from the tournament’s return had been positive and all signs point towards
“The feedback was really good, everyone’s manner on the court was really good and everyone seemed to be having a lot of fun,” van den Hurk said.
“We will definitely look to do it again next year.
“We will probably start advertising it a bit earlier and see if we can make it bigger and better.”
All winners will be presented with their trophies at the season awards night following grand final day.
RESULTS
Division 1 – Group 1: C. Kelly/J. Young lt B. Haywood/B. Young 2-4; M. Heemskerk/A. Huyser lt Z. Young/M. Kelly 1-4; Z. Young/M. Kelly lt C. Kelly/J. Young 2-4; B. Haywood/B. Young lt G. White/E. Jolley 3-4; G. White/E. Jolley d Z. Young/M. Kelly 4-3; C. Kelly/J. Young d M. Heemskerk/A. Huyser 4-1; M. Heemskerk/A. Huyser lt G. White/E. Jolley 3-4; Z. Young/M. Kelly lt B. Haywood/B. Young 3-4; B. Haywood/B. Young d M. Heemskerk/A. Huyser 4-2; G. White/E. Jolley lt C. Kelly/J. Young 2-4.
Group 2: B. McInnes/N. Eastough d W. Boston/A. Hood 4-2; M. Jolley/E. Jollley lt A. vandenHurk/T. Megaw 0-4; A. vandenHurk/T. Megaw d B. McInnes/N. Eastough 4-1; W. Boston/A. Hood lt K. Cole/E. Henning 2-4; K. Cole/E. Henning lt A. vandenHurk/T. Megaw 2-4; B. McInnes/N. Eastough d M. Jolley/E. Jollley 4-3; M. Jolley/E. Jollley lt K. Cole/E. Henning 0-4; A. vandenHurk/T. Megaw d W. Boston/A. Hood 4-0; W. Boston/A. Hood lt M. Jolley/E. Jollley 1-4; K. Cole/E. Henning d B. McInnes/N. Eastough 4-2.
Semi Final 1: A. vandenHurk/T. Megaw d C. Kelly/J. Young 6-4; Semi Final 2: B. Haywood/B. Young d K. Cole/E. Henning 6-2; Final: A. vandenHurk/T. Megaw d B. Haywood/B. Young 6-2.
Division 2 – T. Biggins/A. Auld lt M. Charlton/S. Edwards 4-6; M. Ellis/R. Collins d H. Ellis/M. Collins 6-3; T. Biggins/A. Auld lt H. Ellis/M. Collins 4-6; M. Charlton/S. Edwards lt M. Ellis/R. Collins 5-6; T. Biggins/A. Auld lt M. Ellis/R. Collins 1-6; M. Charlton/S. Edwards def. H. Ellis/M. Collins 6-3.
Winners: M Ellis/R. Collins; Runners-Up: M. Charlton; S. Edwards.
Division 3 – J. Robinson/R. Kuchel d J. McGregor/S. Packer 5-0; P. Robinson/K. Kuchel d T. Benny/R. Seidel 5-3; T. Benny/R. Seidel d J. Robinson/R. Kuchel 5-1; J. McGregor/S. Packer d W. LeCornu/K. Cole 5-3; W. LeCornu/K. Cole lt T. Benny/R. Seidel 2-5; J. Robinson/R. Kuchel d P. Robinson/K. Kuchel 5-4; P. Robinson/K. Kuchel d W. LeCornu/K. Cole 5-4; T. Benny/R. Seidel d J. McGregor/S. Packer 5-3; J. McGregor/S. Packer lt P. Robinson/K. Kuchel 3-5; W. LeCornu/K. Cole lt J. Robinson/R. Kuchel 2-5.
Winners: P. Robinson/K. Kuchel; Runners-Up: T. Benny/R. Seidel.
