Once In A Blue Moon, Racquet Club Delivers Great Tennis

Wednesday - July 29, 2009
By Jack Danilewicz
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Retention has never been an issue at Kailua Racquet Club’s Blue Moon Men’s Nights Doubles Tournament, as it welcomes back an all-star cast of players year after year.

When this year’s event began on Monday, the tournament field was at its highest ever with 55 teams competing for $7,000 in prize money. Perhaps more impressive, however, is that two-thirds of the field are returnees.

Kailua resident Nick Sporik is among them, making his sixth appearance in the tourney this week, albeit with a new partner, fellow Kailua resident and friend Mark Walker.

“It’s unique in that it’s in Kailua and it’s probably the most popular tournament on the Island,” said Sporik, a former Aloha Airlines pilot.“It’s also a way to support tennis in Kailua.”


 

The atmosphere at the doubles tourney, which will run through Aug. 8, always has been considered fan-friendly with spectators up close to the action. Sideline entertainment, including music at intermission, only adds to the naturally beautiful venue.

“There’s more fanfare,” Sporik added. “At most tournaments, you don’t have that many spectators, so it can be intimidating, I guess. A lot of people train for this. I’ve been playing more lately and getting into tennis condition.”

The Sporik-Walker team is an interesting one to track for another reason. At 60 and 58 years of age, respectively, they are the oldest team in the tournament. Both also are left-handed.

“We’ve lost a step or two, but at one point we were pretty sharp,” mused Sporik, who has been playing tennis for 25 years. The men play regularly on the Kailua District Park courts, and although they’ve paired up before, this week is their first time playing together at the Blue Moon, where they’re sure to see stellar competition. Sporik likes the fact that it’s attracted its share of top-level international players in recent years.

“I used to play a lot of tournaments, and you would run into the same people,” he said. “It’s interesting playing against players from various countries.”


Sporik and Walker were among 46 teams that began play in the qualifying bracket on Monday. Should they make it out of their bracket, they would go on to the Main Draw, which houses the top eight seeded teams. Because of the large number of entrants, instead of needing one or two wins to make it out of the qualifying rounds, this year a team must win two or three to advance. The Main Draw begins Sunday. Matches are at 6 and 7:15 nightly. The club also now boasts five lighted courts after operating with three for several years.

Three-time defending champions Minh Le and Wei Yu Su highlight the overall field. Also back are Jan Tribler and Mika Maatta, who have been the runner-up for each of those three years. University of Hawaii’s Dennis Lajola, an ex-Davis Cup participant, also will take part, pairing up with Ikaika Jobe, who has been competing on the pro circuit recently. Past champions Michael Bruggeman and Erich Chen also will be returning to the field.

The club tournament is free and open to the public. Food and beverages may be purchased from the on-site Kaminski’s Café. Thousands of dollars in door prizes will be given away during the second week. Partial proceeds will benefit the Boys and Girls Club in Kailua. The tournament is run by the club’s general manager and director of tennis Bruce Nagel.

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