Ponte Vedra Beach tournament is no more

For decades, women played their first (of two) green clay tournaments in April, at the Bausch & Lomb Championships in Amelia Island, Florida. Then, when Bausch & Lomb was no longer legally permitted to entertain physicians at the event, the company withdrew its sponsorship. The tournament was taken over by the MPS Group, and it was moved to Ponte Vedra Beach. Now, because of tour re-scheduling, the sponsors have decided to cancel the the event altogether. The tournament, in some form or other, has been held for 31 years.

The tour suggested that the tournament be moved to February or to some time during the summer. However, challenges regarding weather and court surface have resulted in the event's demise. The Sony Ericsson WTA Tour hopes to create a new tournament in the U.S.

Wozniacki defends Ponte Vedra title

Top seed Caroline Wozniacki defended her 2009 title in Ponte Vedra Beach today, defeating Olga Govortsova 6-2, 7-5.

Top seeds Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Yan Zi won the doubles championship, defeating Chuang Chia-Jung and Peng Shuai 4-6, 6-4, 10-8.

Govortsova upsets Cibulkova and advances to Ponte Vedra Beach final

Olga Govortsova, unseeded at the MPS Group Championships, upset 3rd seed Dominika Cibulkova 6-4, 7-5 in the semifinals today. Govortsova will play top seed and defending champion Caroline Wozniacki in the final. Wozniacki defeated 4th seed Elena Vesnina 1-6, 7-6, 6-4 in the semifinals.

2nd seeds Chuang Chia-Jung and Peng Shuai will play number 1 seeds Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Yan Zi in the final. 

Semifinals set in Marbella and Ponte Vedra Beach

Top seed Victoria Azarenka retired in the Marbella semifinals today because of a left thigh strain. The beneficiary was 5th seed Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez. Martinez Sanchez will play 8th seed Carla Suarez Navarro in the semifinals. In the other semifinal, Sara Errani will play 2nd seed Flavia Pennetta.

In Ponte Vedra Beach, 1st seed and defending champion Caroline Wozniacki is set to play 4th seed Elena Vesnina in the semifinals, and 3rd seed Dominika Cibulkova will play Olga Govortsova.

Bondarenko out in Ponte Vedra Beach

2nd seed Alona Bondarenko made a first round exit in Ponte Vedra Beach today. Bondarenko was defeated 6-3, 4-6, 6-0 by Olga Govortsova. Top seed Caroline Wozniacki advanced with a 6-0, 6-4 win over Patty Schnyder.

In Marbella, 6th seed Maria Kirilenko was upset 4-6, 7-6, 6-4 by Sorana Cirstea.

Paszek and Larcher De Brito out of 1st round qualifying in Marbella and Ponte Vedra Beach

Seeded 4th in qualifying, Michelle Larcher De Brito made an early exit from Ponte Vedra Beach today when she was defeated in the first qualifying round by Anna Tatishvili. Tatishvili won no games in the first set, but won the second and third, 6-4 7-5.

The 3rd qualifying seed, Sharon Fichman, was defeated 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 by Sesil Karatantcheva.

Meanwhile, in Marbella, 4th-seeded Masa Zec Peskiric defeated Tamira Paszek 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 in the first round of qualifying.

Jankovic wins Marbella, Wozniacki wins Ponte Vedra Beach

Jelena Jankovic has won her first tournament of the season. She defeated Carla Suarez Navarro, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3. Jankovic was the second seed, but became the top participating seed when Serena Williams withdrew. The doubles title was won by 2nd seeds Klaudia Jans and Alicja Rosolska. They defeated top seeds Anabel Medina Garrigues and Virginia Ruano Pascual, 6-3, 6-3.

In Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, Caroline Wozniacki--who suffered from illness during her semifinal match--defeated Aleksandra Wozniak 6-1, 6-2. The top doubles seeds lost in this final, too. Kveta Peschke and Lisa Raymond were defeated 6-3, 4-6, 10-7 by the unseeded team of Chuang Chia-Jung and Sania Mirza.

Top seed knocked out of MPS Group Championships

Number 1 seed Nadia Petrova lost her semifinal match in Ponte Vedra Beach today. She was defeated by Aleksandra Wozniak, 6-4, 4-6, 6-2. Wozniack will meet--of all people--Caroline Wozniacki, in the final. Wozniacki had to fight her way to the end of her semifinal match against the newly dangerous Elena Vesnina, in a contest that went on over two and a half hours. Wozniacki won it 2-6, 6-3, 7-6.

Meanwhile, in Marbella, Spain, 2nd seed Jelena Jankovic defeated Anabel Medina Garrigues, 7-5, 6-2 in the semifinals, and Carla Suarez Navarro defeated Sorana Cirstea, 6-2, 6-7, 6-2.

Serena Williams withdraws from Family Circle Cup

As expected, defending champion Serena Williams has withdrawn from the Family Circle Cup. Because of this withdrawal, Katie O'Brien is now in the main draw.

We arrived in Mt. Pleasant late this afternoon, after enduring a late flight (maintenance issues) and barely making our connecting flight to Charleston. We are staying in a hotel that is having trouble with its wireless connection (we had a similar problem last year), though the wireless service is being upgraded in the next few days. There is at least one tour player who will be staying here, but she called to say she would be late because she is doing so well at the Ponte Vedra Beach tournament.

We are going to qualifying tomorrow and I will provide a report (assuming I have reasonably working wireless) after that.

In the meantime, Elena Vesnina--who is having the best season of her career--has upset Dominika Cibulkova in Ponte Vedra Beach, and top seed Nadia Petrova barely squeaked by Alona Bondarenko, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6.

And in Marbella, Anabel Medina Garrigues and Sara Errani had a predictably grinding three-hour match, which Medina Garrigues won, 6-2, 6-7, 7-5.

One Bondarenko out of Ponte Vedra Beach

The Bondarenko sisters, Alona and Kateryna, had to play each other today in Ponte Vedra Beach. The match went to three sets, with one second set game containing thirteen deuces, and with Alona emerging the winner. The winning Bondarenko said "We have different styles....I have to play the long points and she doesn't." They are now 3 and 3 against each other.

Edina Gallovits and Olga Govortsova lost their doubles match to Peng Shuai and Yan Zi, but the good news is that they are playing together again! I hope they will play in Charleston, where they were last year's finalists.

Nadia Petrova said that Madison Keys "took me by surprise." Petrova, the top seed, said she was trying to blow Keys off the court, and that wasn't working, so she adjusted her game. Keys was pleased with the quality of the match, though Petrova beat her, 6-3, 6-2.

Some losers are luckier than others

Lucky loser Varvara Lepchenko upset 4th seed Patty Schnyder 6-2, 6-0 today in the first round of the MPS Group Championships in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. Once again, Schynyder's service game suffered, and helped to give her yet another early defeat in what is, so far, a poor season for her.

Lepchenko, who was seeded third among qualifiers, was upset by Anastasia Rodionova in the final round of qualifying. She entered the main draw when Jelena Dokic withdrew.

Also upset in the first round was 6th seed Peng Shuai, who lost to Elena Vesnina.

Madison Keys wins her first-ever tour match

Fourteen-year-old Madison Keys played her first Sony Ericsson WTA Tour match today in Ponte Vedre Beach, Florida, and won it. Keys defeated Alla Kudryavtseva, 7-5, 6-4. Keys hit four aces, and served out the match at love. A product of the Evert Academy, Keys is known for her tendency to come forward and rush the net, a delightful oddity in this age of heavy (and often boring) baseline smacking.

She may have all she can handle in the second round of the MPS Group Championships. Her opponent is likely to be world number 10 Nadia Petrova.

Dokic withdraws from MPS Group Championships

Jelena Dokic has withdrawn from the new tournament in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida (formerly the Amelia Island tournament) this week because of fatigue issues. I expect her to withdraw from Charleston, too, which is quite disappointing.

Amelia Island drops to the wayside with Bausch & Lomb

This spring, when Bausch & Lomb ended its 22-year sponsorship of the Tier II green clay tournament at Amelie Island, Florida, tournament officials announced they were searching for a new sponsor. The good news is that a new sponsor has emerged--the MPS Group. The sad news for those who have attended the tournament for so long is that it is being moved to the Sawgrass Country Club at Ponte Vedre Beach, Florida.

The tournament will be called the MPS Group Championships and will be held at the same time the Amelia Island tournament was held. Matches will be played on HAR-TRU clay courts.