The Crawford-McMillan Pro Cup tennis tournament will be played for the 14th year next weekend, but a new twist could provide a boost to the popular fan-friendly event.
The tournament, which features area teaching pros from the five Fort Worth country clubs and TCU, is scheduled for Jan. 24-25 on the indoor courts at Shady Oaks Country Club.
This year six doubles teams will compete in two round-robin flights with the winners squaring off in a championship match. There will also be third- and fifth-place matches.
Shady Oaks Country Club pro Doug Crawford said the change in format should be entertaining for both fans and players.
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“Every team is guaranteed three matches,” Crawford said. “In the past, if you lost in the first round, you and most of your fans didn’t come back. This way there’s a reason to stick around for both days.”
Mira Vista is the defending champion of the tournament named for Crawford’s father, Ken, a longtime club pro at Ridglea and coach at TCU, and former River Crest Country Club pro Warren McMillan.
“It’s been a great tournament,” Doug Crawford said. “The club members really get into it. We promote it as a Davis Cup style event, and the fans really hoot and holler for their pros. It’s a lot of fun.”
Matches begin at 3 p.m. Jan. 24 and 2 p.m. Jan. 25. A Welcome Party is scheduled for Jan. 23 at Shady Oaks. Weekend courtside tickets are $30 and can be purchased at local tennis pro shops.
Junior champion
Chelsea Kung of Fort Worth and Jayci Goldsmith of Dripping Springs teamed up to win the Girls’ 14 doubles championship at the USTA National Winter Championships on Jan. 2 at the Reffkin Tennis Center in Tucson, Ariz.
Kung and Goldsmith, both 14, defeated Shelly Yaloz of New York and Marlee Zein of Sugar Land 6-4, 6-1 in the finals. Kung also reached the semifinals in singles before falling to eventual champion Cali Jankowski of Carlsbad, Calif., 1-6, 7-5, 6-3.
Kung, who is ranked No. 18 in the USTA national rankings and No. 1 in Texas, earned a Bronze Ball by winning the third-place match with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Salma Ewing of Long Beach, Calif.
Krueger rolling
After coming close but failing to win a tournament in 2014, Aledo’s Mitchell Krueger is on a nice roll that could move him into the top 300 in the ATP rankings.
After winning his second career Futures title Monday at Southern Cal, the 21-year-old reached the quarterfinals this weekend before bowing out at the Eldorado Tennis Center in Long Beach, Calif., the facility where Billie Jean King got her start.
Krueger, the No. 7 seed, lost to No. 3 seed Jason Jung 6-7 (7), 7-6 (9), 6-4 on Friday. Krueger defeated Jung 6-1, 6-2 in the final at USC.
Krueger reached the finals of six tournaments last year, but came up short each time. His only previous other singles title came in the Netherlands in 2013. He won three doubles titles last year.
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