Pro tennis returns to Hanover with Downy Classic

The Tryall Sports Club in Hanover comes alive this weekend with the inaugural staging of the Downy Tennis Classic.

The men's open contest will showcase some of the top local talents, including Dwayne Pagon, Duaine Miller, David Goldsmith and Matthew Rodriguez, who will battle for the $100,000 first prize.

Tournament organiser, Simon Casserly, pointed out that professional tennis has been absent in the parish for some time and believes the Downy Classics could lead to other top-class tennis events.

"I did a tournament 11 years ago and it has been a while since MoBay Tennis has done any tournaments there. There has been an absence of professional tennis for a while largely due to COVID and we are happy that we can add another tennis event to the calendar," Casserly commented.

He said hosts Tryall were very enthused about the proposition and he anticipates a great evening of high-quality tennis.

"When we approach them if they could host the tournament, they agreed right away. So we knew it was going to work because it is a lovely place to play tennis," Casserly said.

"I am looking for top-class action in all of the events. Definitely, the men's open is looking very hot, but even the amateur events look as if they are going to be keenly contested, so I think it is going to be a great weekend and, hopefully, this is the first of many tournaments there.

"The Tryall club is the perfect venue for a tennis tournament. It is an excellent tennis facility. The courts are in immaculate condition and players will relish the conditions," he insisted.

The event which takes place from Friday-Sunday will have five categories which are men's open, men's amateur classes 2 and 3, ladies' amateur and mixed doubles.

Title sponsor Downy Fabric Softener has put up $240,000 in prize money, with the runner-up taking home $50,000, semifinalists $30,000 and quarterfinalists $15,000.

For amateur events, the top performers will receive special gift packages from Island Routes, Royalton Resort and Pier One.

More than thirty players are expected to vie for the various prizes on offer. Play starts at 4 p.m. each day.