Stircrazy wrote:

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QR1:  Karl Poling (USA) UNR vs (q10) Jack Findel-Hawkins WR 1063 (CH = 1057 earlier this month)

QR1:  (q5) Ryan Peniston WR 952 (CH = 943 last November) vs Jeremy Taylor (AUS) UNR

QR1:  Matthew Story UNR vs Nevin Arimilli (USA) UNR

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And another Brit in QR1:

QR1:  Sergey Belov (RUS) UNR vs (ALT) Darryl Hale UNR

QR2:  (q10) Jack Findel-Hawkins WR 1061 defeated Ian Chadwell (USA) UNR by 4-6 6-2 6-1

QR2:  (q5) Ryan Peniston WR 952 defeated Carson Haskins (USA) by 4 & 4

*****

FQR:  (q2) Florian Lakat (FRA) WR 684 (CH = 680 last month) vs (q10) Jack Findel-Hawkins WR 1061

FQR:  (q5) Ryan Peniston WR 957 vs Charles Sullivan (USA) UNR

For personal - and slightly mean-spirited reasons on my part - I am very pleased about that result !

Stircrazy wrote:

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Jack qualifies:

FQR:  (q10) Jack Findel-Hawkins WR 1061 defeated (q2) Florian Lakat (FRA) WR 684 by 4 & 0 

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 Asuming he wasnt injured that is a fairly good thumping of one of last years top College players from a top college programme who one would anticipate progressing more quickly than Jack

I am intrigued!

Regardless Jack has done very well to lift himself from the ASUN to thumping boys from Cal, who incidentally are our boys now! Jack Molloy settled in at No 3 as the top (of 7) freshman and Ben Draper beginning to get some game time at No4. Unfortunately Jack came up against UCLA freshman Keegan Smith who is a very level headed giant of a man who I feel will grace the ATP tour in a couple of years time, chuck in Axel Geller and the mens PAC 12 has some magnificent freshman this year. Gutted I am not in Ojai this year.

-- Edited by Oakland2002 on Monday 2nd of April 2018 07:56:44 PM

Florian Lakat was a top player at one of the top programmes in College Tennis. The Universitg of California at Berkeley Cal. Along with UCLA and USC and this year Stanford they are perennial producers of college players that do translate to the ATP tour, indeed after the Australian Open Cal were celebrating a GS finalist Ben Mclachlan in the mens doubles.

Virtually the whole Cal roster was seniors last year so this year they recruited 7 Freshman. Including Jack Molloy and Ben Draper, both have done well very well and are establushed st 3 and 4 in the line up brhind the remaining seniors. The level of tennis played in the PAC 12 (Pacific coast conference 12 big colleges great facilities well resourced) now includes last years Wimbledon Junior winner who has been recruited to Stanford (and plays no 2 on the roster ie hasnt walked straight into the number 1 slot) indeed he lost last week in the match against UCLA and their Freshman Keegan Smith (67) although in the no 3 slot is higher ranked at #45. USC have Brandon Holte force himself in as their number 1 as a Freshman last year (his Mum is Tracey Austin) regardless of his parentage he is a talent, Guy Forgets son plays no 5.

At present there are two other conferences that are also strong although the PAC 12 is probably the strongest ie the SEC and ACC, there are also two other power conferences with some elite programmes Cam did very well at a TCU.

Jack FH played in the ASUN a minor Div 1 conferences which he dominated even as a freshman and as the best player in the whole conference did manage to make an impression at the National tournament but didnt really get the type of day to day training with other top players or in conference competition that Lakat would have got at Cal. A bit like playing in the old Rnglish 3rd division but getting a run in the FA and League Cup.

There is playing Div 1 college tennis and playing Power conference elite programme college tennis. This is the first time I have seen British players recruited to an elite PAC12 School who generally get the best picks from within the US.

-- Edited by Oakland2002 on Monday 2nd of April 2018 11:00:53 PM

L16:  Lény Mitjana & Santiago Rodríguez (FRA)/ARG CR 1881 (1037+844) vs Jack Findel-Hawkins & Ronnie Schneider (USA) CR 1576 (1132+444)