Guests sat at small tables or relaxed on bleachers around the perimeter of Landfall’s Drysdale Sports Center tennis court, watching a furious volley between Olympic gold medalist Lindsay Davenport and Grand Slam champion Rennae Stubbs.
Davenport and Stubbs, along with former tennis champions Mikael Pernfors, Jimmy Arias and Bobby Reynolds, entertained attendees of the Landfall Foundation’s Legends of Tennis Tournament Sept. 19 and 20 with world-class tennis and good-natured banter.
Despite the high level of talent on the court, the players kept the audience laughing with light-hearted antics. As chair umpire, Arias was given a microphone to amuse the crowd with his colorful commentary.
When it was time for Arias to play a match, Stubbs took his place in the chair and subjected him to the same friendly teasing.
“We try and rib each other as much as possible,” Stubbs said. “It’s fun for the crowd to hear us give each other a hard time.”
Pernfors entertained the audience with his tennis serves, which became progressively more creative throughout the day. He served the ball behind his back, with his weak hand and through his legs. Arias then challenged him to set the ball on the ground and swing his racquet like a golf club, which he did, sending the ball sailing over the net to the cheers of the crowd.
Guests also enjoyed watching local players of all ages share the court with the professionals. Zander Veys, a freshman on the University of North Carolina Wilmington tennis team, took on Bobby Reynolds in an eight game pro set.
The Country Club of Landfall’s (CLL) professionals Lauren Isenhour and Cassie Causey took on Stubbs and Davenport in a doubles match. The local players won the first few games in the match while Stubbs and Davenport endured some gleeful needling by Arias.
Members of the CLL’s ACE Junior Program, which recently placed second in the USTA National Jr. Team Tennis Championships, served as ball boys and ball girls for the matches. Occasionally, Arias, from his perch as chair umpire, would call for one of the younger ball boys to take a turn on the court in place of Davenport or Reynolds.
Charlie Owens, director of tennis at the Country Club of Landfall, said one of his favorite parts of the event was watching the young children become inspired by the tennis legends. Owens, who played in the U.S. Open and Wimbledon himself, said he found his passion for tennis after serving as a ball boy for a professional match when he was 9 years old.
“You want the kids to feel like it’s fun,” he said. “Sometimes tennis looks so serious, like it’s work, so we want them to see the fun part, and then sometimes the pros might even say something to you when you’re out there, so that’s really cool.”
It was Owens’ connections in the tennis world that brought the world-class players to Wilmington for the event. Arias, Stubbs and Pernfors have participated in years past, in large part because of Owens. Although Owens had not previously met Davenport, he said he only had to send a few text messages and emails before she agreed to fly from California to Wilmington for the weekend.
“It’s a chance to get back out on the court and have fun,” Davenport said, “and Charlie is a wonderful man; it was fun to get to know him. It’s always nice to go to places where they’re truly excited about the event. … Sometimes on tour you go to the same cities year after year so they’re used to it. It’s nice to go to different markets.”
Davenport said she also supported the charity aspect of the tournament. All proceeds of the sold-out event benefitted the UNCW Seahawk Club and the Landfall Foundation.
Event chair Cindy Worden said the Landfall Foundation expected to raise more than $35,000, which will be used to distribute 72 grants to local nonprofit organizations. She said it is exciting to see the unique event gain so much support from community members and world-famous tennis legends alike.
“There are not many events like this,” she said. “The players are nice, we have great weather here on the coast, and for us to be able to be little Wilmington and get Lindsay Davenport, who was just inducted into the Hall of Fame, that’s huge.”
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