MILLBRAE TENNIS TEAM FINISHES SECOND AT USTA LEAGUE ADULT 55 & OVER 9.0 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

A tennis team from Millbrae, Calif., representing the USTA Northern California Section, finished second at the USTA League Adult 55 & Over 9.0 National Championships held at the Surprise Tennis and Racquet Complex in Surprise, Ariz.

The Millbrae team lost to a team from Dallas, Texas, 2-1 in the Championship match.  Earlier in the day, the Millbrae team defeated a team from Carmel, Ind., 3-0 in the semifinals.  They advanced this far by winning their round-robin flight contested Friday and Saturday.

The team is captained by David Barrows and features Jeffrey Heely, Joaquin Wolff, Tom Kent, Daniel Grossman, Mark Jee, Geoff Cykman, Milan Odehnal, Barney Barnato and plays at the Millbrae Racquet Club.

The USTA League Adult 55 & Over division is for men and women 55 years of age and older. Teams are formed by combining the two player’s individual National Tennis Rating Program (NTRP) ratings. The team’s total rating must equal: 6.0, 7.0, 8.0 and 9.0. The total NTRP rating cannot exceed the level of the team. For example, a 7.0 team could be a combination of two 3.5 players, or one 4.0 partner and one 3.0 partner. Play format consists of three doubles matches.

Established in 1980, USTA League has grown from 13,000 participants in a few parts of the country in its first year, to over 820,000 players across the nation today, making it the world’s largest recreational tennis league.

USTA League was established to provide adult recreational tennis players throughout the country with the opportunity to compete against players of similar ability levels.  Players participate on teams in a league format, which is administered by the USTA through its 17 Sections.  The league groups players by using six National Tennis Rating Program (NTRP) levels, ranging from 2.5 (entry) to 5.0 (advanced).  USTA League is open to any USTA member 18 years of age or older. 

Last year, USTA League changed its structure and format. The change offers USTA League participants three age categories (Adult 18 & Over, Adult 40 & Over and Adult 55 & Over and Mixed 18 & Over) to better align participants with players their own age. The restructuring guarantees more frequency of play opportunities at more appropriate age groups.

Head Penn Racquet Sports is in its 26th year as official ball of USTA League. 

For more information about USTA League or the USTA as a whole, visit www.usta.com.