Rain last Friday forced organizers to move a few matches indoors, but the South Cowichan Lawn Tennis Club still managed to get the 128th Vancouver Island Grass Court Championship completed in the sunshine the next day, which was a good thing, because it ended up raining again on Sunday.
Despite the rain on one day, tournament director Charles Ayers was pleased with the tournament as a whole.
“It went very well, although the entry list was on the low side,” he said. “Everybody seemed pretty happy about it.”
Entries were around 115 this year, Ayers noted, down from about 130 last year, and 200 when the event was at its largest. That seems to be following a trend.
“Most senior tournaments seem to be down a bit,” Ayers said.
Competitors came from across Vancouver Island, the Lower Mainland and Interior of B.C., as well as Washington and Oregon.
“The Americans always come up, but there were less than usual,” Ayers noted.
Ayers expressed his gratitude to the efforts of the SCLTC groundskeepers, as well as club pro Art Hobbs and his wife Rita, who manages the club.
“Those were the bits and pieces that make it work well,” he said.
Winners of the individual events were:
Mixed 100 combined doubles: Richard McMichael and Johane Mui
Mixed 120 combined doubles: Dave Tooby and Debbie Harit
Mixed 135 combined doubles: Allan Gale and Lynne Cowan
Men’s 45 singles: Tim Hopper
Men’s 45 doubles: Geoff Bourne and Steven Klees
Women’s 45 singles: Johane Mui
Women’s 45 doubles: Debbie Harit and Kim Rogers
Men’s 55 singles: Ranjan McArthur
Men’s 55 doubles: Art Hobbs and Richard McMichael
Women’s 55 singles: Aidrienne Avis
Women’s 55 doubles: Judith Clarke and Carol Ann O’Brien
Men’s 60 singles: Alan Osborne
Men’s 60 doubles: Ken Babcock and Alan Osborne
Women’s 60 doubles: Elly McKeague and Barbara Skillings
Men’s 65 singles: Tom Gunton
Men’s 65 doubles: Tom Gunton and Dave Tooby
Women’s 65 singles: Jean Martin
Women’s 65 doubles: Sheila Anning and Lynne Cowan
Men’s 70 singles: Michael Stone
Men’s 70 doubles: Allan Gale and Alan Robinson
Men’s 75 singles: Peter Lamb
Men’s 75 doubles: Alan Robinson and Peter Wilson
Next up for the club is the 27th Biondo Junior Grass Court Championships on July 31-Aug. 3.
