The Racquet & Tennis Club played host to the Silver Racquet Weekend in conjunction with the US Amateur. The Silver Racquet brought high level play across all courts at the club and, on the social side of things, included a Thursday evening stag in the Library, a 500-person Saturday evening gala, and ample lunches and libations throughout weekend.
Racquets draws in the Silver Racquet Paired Doubles and the US Amateur Singles and Doubles were well-stocked with familiar faces and newcomers. The Paired Doubles included well-balanced teams with many tight, three-game matches. Ultimately, the favorites fell unexpectedly and a strong, albeit hastily reconstituted pair of John Beam and Ed de Barros won the finals over the New York pair Winston C. Simone and Pete Roessler and, with it, their place on the coveted board which may or may not be relocated to the Club’s boiler room.
Both US Amateur draws were well-stocked with strong seeds (including two former World Champions and Open winners) and high quality early round matches. For the most part, the draws went to the seeding through the semifinals. In the singles, Will Hopton was on flying form, dispatching Maxime Aubin, Zach Sacks, and Freddie Bristowe en route to a final against Peter Cipriano. Cipriano’s route to the final included Henry Smith, Louis Winstanley, and his own doubles partner, Christian Portz. Hopton, looking every bit as sharp as in his Professional days, proved to be too much for Cipriano, besting him in a very high level four games.
In the US Amateur doubles, the four-time US Amateur champion pair of Cipriano and Portz saw their way unceremoniously to the finals. On the other side, number two seeds Hopton and Jon Crowell fell to the new, UPenn pair of Sacks and F. Bristowe in a hard-hitting, very tight four games. The finals were another high-quality affair with long rallies and exceptional put aways from all competitors. In the end, the well-practiced pair of Cipriano and Portz prevailed in a hard-fought and close four games.
With nearly five full days of on and off court action, every Silver Racquet is a monumental undertaking. The Racquet & Tennis Club’s professionals, staff, and membership manage to pull of the weekend to an exceptional caliber every year. Thank you all. Kudos to yet another incredible weekend!
US Amateur Doubles- Cipriano/Portz Over Zacks/Bristowe 15/12, 9/15, 15/9, 15/12
US Amateur Singles- Hopton Over Cipriano 16/13, 15/8, 9/15, 15/5
Paired Doubles- Beam/ de Barros Over Simone/Roessler 15/6, 9/15, 15/5
