RANCHO LAS PALMAS 2011 TOURNAMENT SUMMARY

AMTA just returned from the fall meeting at Rancho Las Palmas, Rancho Mirage, CA, November 6-11, 2011. Outside of drizzles on the Sunday tennis mixer, the weather was great….sunny and not too hot (70s), and no wind! Perfect tennis weather.

We welcomed 7 new members and spouses, and they filled out the draw nicely. There were many 3rd set 10 point tie-breakers! First-timers were: Ron and Barbara Coe, Bellevue, WA; Bruce and Monika Dalkin, Seattle, WA; Phillip and Pedie Jolly, Seattle, WA; Denise LeDoux, Decatur, GA; Richard Sall, Bakersfield, CA; Steve and Jan Waszak, Seattle, WA; Lily Wu, Granada Hills, CA. And since this was a member/guest meeting, Green Hsueh brought her doubles partner, Susan Chang, and Denise LeDoux brought her doubles partner, Danuta Radzio. Great additions!

This meeting was tennis-packed! We had only 3 days for our tournament due to the Wednesday Davis Cup Match with the dentists at Shadow Mountain. And it happened again….the dentists were the victors! We played 28 matches. 6 were Davis Cup matches (best players), each worth 2 points, and 22 team tennis matches worth 1 point. I believe the final total was: USDTA – 22, AMTA – 14. The last match ended at 6pm! The dentists then hosted hors d’oeuvres and awards.

On Tuesday, our President, Phong Nguyen, hosted a home-cooked Vietnamese dinner at his friend’s lovely home in Rancho Mirage. We were treated to many new foods and customs. Phong taught us to fill rice paper with vegetables with choice of meat (beef, chicken, or shrimp), and then dip it into sauces. Delicious! Hors d’oeuvres were spring rolls and dumplings with choice of sauces. And then for dessert, Phong served sweet nuts that looked like furry animals! Again - delicious. Paul, the house owner, was a spectacular bartender. And, of course, the evening ended with karaoke…lots of singing and some dancing!

The awards banquet on Thursday night was a special occasion with the retirement of Betty & Lon Olsen as Executive Director and CME Director. The future of AMTA looks bright with Cara and Joe Keenan taking over January, 2012! They are YOUNG and ENERGETIC! Phong Nguyen presented Betty and Lon with lovely recognition awards for 10 years of service. And he also presented Betty with diamond and pearl earrings, which she is still wearing, along with beautiful long-stemmed red roses. Thanks to all!

Take a look at the slideshow from the event. To see the list of speakers and topics presented click here.

Monday morning CME group.

TOURNAMENT RESULTS

Morning Madness Women’s Singles Championships Winner – Bonnie Sidoff, MD Runner-up – Relinda Beesemyer, RN Consolation Winner – Susan Change Consolation Runner-up – Linda Lemay, MD Dynamic Duo Women’s Doubles A Championships Winners – Saundra Ardrey / Monika Dalkin Runners-up – Denise LeDoux, PA / Danuta Radzio Consolation Winners – Carol Burris / Cori Kirkpatrick Consolation Runners-up – Relinda Beesemyer, RN / Grace Szczerbowski, MD Dynamic Duo Women’s Doubles B Round Robin 1st Place - Cindy Tatsumi / N. Ribaya 2nd Place - Pedie Jolly / Jan Waszak Super Stroker Men’s Singles Winner – Hugh Burris Runner-up – Bruce Dalkin Consolation Winner – Hamilton Sah Consolation Runner-up – Hamid Hussein Swift Swinger Men’s Singles Winner – William Ardrey Runner-up – Soren Nielson Consolation Winner – Calvin Nash Consolation Runner-up – Joe Keenan

Putaway Pro Men’s Doubles A Championships Winners – Hugh Burris / John Kirkpatrick Runners-up – Phong Nguyen / Craig Broome Consolation Winners – Ron Coe / James Krueger Consolation Runners-up – Soren Nielson / Vladimir Spicka “Build to Last” Men’s Doubles B Championships Winners – Stephen Waszak / Phil Jolly Runners-up – Jack Jacobson / Hamilton Sah Consolation Winners – Tat Tatsumi / K.K. Hsu Consolation Runners-up – Jan Voda / Frank Sladkovic Die Hard Mixed Doubles A Championships Winners – Bruce and Monika Dalkin Runners-up – Phong Nguyen / Bonnie Sidoff Consolation Winners – Hamid Hussein / Danuta Radzio Consolation Runners-up – James Krueger / Denise LeDoux Die Hard Mixed Doubles B Championships Winners – Green Hsueh / K.K. Hsu Runners-up – Hamilton Sah / Grace Szczerbowski Consolation Winners – Jan and Melinda voda Consolation Runners-up – Stephen and Jan Waszak Tough Team Mixed Doubles Round Robin 1st Place - Lon and Betty Olsen 2nd Place - Ribaya / Ribaya