Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Counting Down to the Cok.....make that Gallery Furniture Open.
Still too early for me to make predictions about the Houston Major Zone, but since talk will likely stay focused on this tournament for the foreseeable future I thought I would go ahead and start a new discussion stream since the last one was into the 130's. I also want to officially apologize to all the players who will be coming from out of town and forced to play at the far from impressive facilities at Lee Leclear, Memorial Park, and Homer Ford. It is sad that you can go to Waco and play at the kick-ass Waco Regional Tennis Center or go to San Antonio last month and play at the "hoity-toity" country clubs Fair Oaks, Dominion, and Sunterra. Come to Houston and you get homeless people, cracked and horribly sloped courts, torn nets, and crappy lights. No wonder we only get 1 Major Zone while San Antonio gets 3. With that I will bid you all Sarosh and here's hoping that all your Sarosh's may be Sarosh. Come to think of it, I am suprised that Jimmy Kimmel has not done a "I'm f&cking Sarosh" video yet. That would definitely top the Matt Damon and Ben Affleck videos for #1 on youtube. (You know I couldn't go a whole post without keeping the whole Sarosh thing stirred up and by the way, Lord of Strings, where have you disappeared to?)
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111 comments:
Journey Man,
Hate to break the bad news to you but consider the facts:
Fact No.1 - The Great "S" won't be seeded and most likely play seeded players in the early rounds
Fact No. 2 - If he plays a couple of seeded players early then I don't think he will get to or pass Rd. of 16s
Fact No. 3 - He is not as fit as some of the elite 4.5 players out there
My pick for Men's 4.5 Singles is Alfanso Rodriguez.
journeyman--you truly are a pathetic individual. its not too late to actually make a difference in the world instead of maintaining a worthless conversation about an overrated 4.5player in the hopes of getting a few more people annoyed enough to keep posting on your precious blog. think about it.
I will crush and destroy Rodriguez.
Yeah JM, go hug a tree or vote for Obama. Damn it man, get serious!
Hey Guys,
Be nice to Journey Man. If you don't like his blog then don't read it or contribute to it.
Just so its understood. My comments about Sarosh are meant only as a running joke. I do not know the guy or anything about his game. Only what I have read about him from your posts, his league results, and the fact that he won the Coke at 3.5 and 4.0. Last year, I was fully aware of how good Odion Dibua was and so I had no problem stating with confidence that he would destroy every one of you. When I said that I meant it. My Sarosh comments are a lot more lite-hearted in nature. The point of a blog is to have conversation. Why would I waste even 5 minutes of my day on this thing if I did not want people to keep posting comments. Now I need to get on with my pathetic day of making no difference in the world.
Go Mavs! I feel sorry for you Houston people.
Geez JM....we love ya.
Ok, lets discuss. Who are the known cheaters out there?
OK. I hear you. No more basketball talk. I was playing some tennis tonight and I looked across the court and this other guy had some shirt on and it said GO MAVS! Is that better?
ok I dont know this Rodriguez guy but he aint gonna win it. Dont know he will win another major. The San Antonio Major he won it because the draw was a joke.
I was playing tennis last night and the guy across the net was wearing a GO HOME CRYING TO YOUR MOTHER MAVS t-shirt. Happen to catch that game last night Mr. Big Mavs fan?
Now, stay off the blog unless you want to talk about Houston tennis or at least insult Houston tennis players.
"Anonymous said...
Ok, lets discuss. Who are the known cheaters out there?"
From what i know for a fact: Sarosh Ahmed, Robby Wolf, David Heiland.
If you have to cheat to win, then you need to play other sports like basketball.
Sarosh will win the 4.5 singles and Kern the 4.5 doubles in what ever tournament they enter.
...if you ain't cheatin', you ain't tryin'
Kern didn't win the Abilene MZ doubles so looks like you were wrong before you even made that statement. I don't think they even won a set off their opponents in the finals. That's not a knock against Kern. He will do just fine in 4.5s but he is hardly a lock to win doubles at every MZ he enters.
Jacob Casas is at the top of any list of cheaters here in Texas. "Whatever"
I don't see The Great "S", beating Miguel Morales.
Morales is someone that you have to out play. He really has no weaknesses. His high balls will give Sarosh problems. I pick Morales over Sarosh; 7-6, 6-4 if they meet in the early rounds. Morales over Sarosh 6-3, 6-3, if they meet in the later rounds.
Are we talking about the same Miguel Morales that has lost to Kallus? If he can't beat a middle of the pack 4.5 (no offense D, you are what you are) why do you think he can take down someone being touted as highly as Sarosh.
a Game from one person can beat a game from another person, even if that person is not as good. with that statement: Morales is consistent hitting moon balls from both sides, which Sarosh's forehand and backhand is catered to someone hitting the ball low. Morale's conditioning is far superior then Sarosh's. I don't see Morales having problems with Sarosh's drop shots, cuz he's pretty good coming to the net. this is why this match would be interesting to watch.
I would love to be wrong, but I am pretty sure that Miguel would be me if we were to play today. Last time I saw him he was hitting the ball great. I cannot say the same for myself. Plus, I think the Morales brothers have pretty much figured me out since Daniel Morales has beat me both times we have played, though he does have a completely different game from his brother.
I meant to say he would beat me not that he would be me. I would not wish that on anyone.
So Kallus, who would you pick between Miguel and Sarosh?
If I'm not wrong, you have played both these guys.....
Seriously? Miguel taking Sarosh? I have seen them both play and that sounds iffy.
kallus have some balls and stop demeaning yourself. i wanna throw up everytime you say you suck and that everyone will beat you. you're a very nice guy but common boy--keep yer head up
Miguel Morales DOES have at least one weakness: thirteen year old girls.
I am surprised no one on this blog talks about the Open Levels as much as they talk about the 4.5 level. I play Open year round and I am also from Houston as well. Just wondering why OPen is always left out of discussion on here?
blow me,all you haters out there that said i would lose first and first at the mercedes.and whats up with the lack of 5.0s in the coke?its probably because my boy amit beat the living shit out of all you boys at kingwood.
thats true, this blog is entitled "houston tourney tennis scene" but journeyman chooses to focus on one or two individuals who probably would not want to be focused on.
Please feel free to talk all you want about Open. I would actually enjoy it. I can commit on open myself because I don't really know anything about who's who within Open. Plus unfortunately most of the Open players are not as active over the full course of the year with the exception of Adrian Valdez and he is not exactly part of the Houston Tennis Scene. I could give a rat's ass about Sarosh or any other single player in particular but he is one of the few people who seems to get a rise out of people and stirs up conversation. Have you see the Dallas or Austin blogs? The bloggers post something almost every day but it is so boring that it leads to absolutely no comments being posted. The Houston blog is getting 100+ comments per posting now. I would love to see conversation to a wider variety of players and levels but it is up to you guys to actually make it happen as I can only talk about what I know.
journeyman, heres an idea. put up a poll. on anything. you can start with this one:
Should we continue talking about 4.0-4.5 tennis only or spread it out?
a) yes, we should continue talking about 4.0-4.5 tennis because everyone who checks this blog is 4.5
b) yes, we should continue talking about 4.0-4.5 tennis because its the best division with the coolest players
c) no, we should explore different divisions even if we dont know much about them
d) no, we should explore different divisions because many people who I know are in these divisions
e) i really dont give a damn about this blog but i cant help coming by and reading this.
"your" boy Amit? What the hell does that mean?
Can anyone recommend any decent hotels/restaurants near the Houston tourney? Thanks...
steak and ale...yummmmy
Amit is playing very well and definitely my favorite to take the 5.0 singles.
Really the only local players that play Open are Pete and Will Taylor and Arya. Whatever happened to Elliot Lopez?
Sleeper is coming out to win the 5.0's be ready for a surprise.
Anyone knows why John Trautmann bails out (injury) when he thinks he is going to lose the match?
Case in point, Hooters Open in San Antonio. What's up with that?
Its always funny to hear about "sleepers." Sleepers dont exist in ntrp tennis because if they are any good, they will have good results that are obvious somewhere somehow. Someone without results who is a really good player would have to be from siberia who trained all his life to be a sleeper at the coke in houston texas.
The Great "S" SUCKS and he will prove it at this tournament.
I think Elliot went home for a while after the Lost Forest debacle.
what happened with the Elliot stuff? just nosey
the Great "S" will probably forfeit during the match, if he knows he's going to lose.
In summary from the way I understand it:
He bought Lost Forest on an owner-financed mortgage and was not able to generate sufficient positive cash flow to cover his operating expenses and cover the mortgage note.
After about 15 months he walked away from it.
I don't blame him. Lost Forest has issues before that.
so whos gonna win 4.5?
so whos gonna win 4.5?
so whos gonna win 4.5?
Just looked at the competitors list in the men's 4.5. the favorites would definitely be M. Morales, Schmucker, and Trautmann. As for Men's 5.0, it would be Reader and Garg.
odion dibua will win 5.0s
odion is a great person and i hope him the best, but the men's 5.0 is loaded with talent. don't think he will win more then 2 matches.
Where is all this Miguel Morales love coming from? His brother has better results than he does. Is it an effort to bring in a new mix of names to talk about? At least that would make some degree of sense cause it can't be based on a legitimate belief that he could actually win the coke.
Amit Garg, Thomas Reader, and Odion Dibua all have a shot at winning 5.0 at the Coke. Will be a good draw.
Should be a great tournament in all the 4.0-5.0 divisions!
What about tim green?
Tim unfortunately will quietly go out in the Quaters.
Just had a chance to look at current entrants list. I do not think it is complete because there will likely be a lot of mailed in entries that will be added since the total entrant list is only 850 or so instead of the usual 1200+. But based on that first look, I like Alfonso Rodriguez in 4.5 and either Odion Dibua or Amit Garg in 5.0. No offense to Green or Reader. Green has not been active enough so his game may still be too rusty to take the Coke (he didn't win Kingwood which had a pretty decent draw) and for Reader it will come down to conditioning and his ability to lay off the beer, etc. on Saturday night. I think the next poll question will be centered around the likelihood of Trautment retiring and what round/ set it will occur in.
What about this poll question:
Which is more likely to happen,
1) Greg Schmucker does not show up for a match (I assume he will make the 1st round since it is in Houston) or...
2) Trautman retires at the end of the first set in either the round of 16 or the quarters.
journeyman you know very little about tennis--it is obvious from your predictions and rationale.
The 4.5 semi-final line up would have Alfonso, Trautman, Sarosh and one of the Morales borthers.
The 5.0 semi-final line up would have Dibua, Garg, Reader and Gound.
dibua is a great guy, but i agree in this field he is an underdog
i agree that morales is not a legitimate threat for the 4.5 title. if trautman is playing well, he is a contender. sarosh, if he plays well, is also a contender.
the Great "S" will lose in the round of 8. he better hope he doesn't play any tough players in the early rounds.
i wouldnt underestimate green. i think he would take dibua although they have had great matches.
any thoughts on 4.0?
Alejandro Sanchez and Leonardo Solis are both much stronger players than Miguel Morales, why are they not mentioned in this mix? Again, what has Miguel achieved to warrant semifinals at the Coke talk? Also, journeyman, I don't know why this particular guy keeps trying to attack you. I thank you for doing this blog and actually think that you seem to have an idea what you are talking about.
Thoughts on 4.0. Hmmmm....Foad won't win, that much I know.
i agree journeyman. keep it up!
Chew....Spit.....I am the hobbit.
Foad may not win the 4.0 title but I am think he will actually win a match this time around.
foad has about as good a chance at winning the tournament in 4.0 as he does in the open division. but nice guy.
Just curious about the Lost Forest comment....
What issues did LF have before Elliot got there?
Lost Forest is actually a very decent club. It is just the victim of a shitty location, which is not its fault. I was a member there in the late 80s and the area was nothing like the ghetto it is today. Gun fire and getting your car broken into will do a lot to run off potential members. That said it is still one of my favorite places to play tournaments at.
the area around LF has deteriorated. apartments with crackheads all around. not a good attraction for tennis members and players. so the problem is not LF itself, but more of it's location.
If LF wants to generate money, they should put hoops at the end of each court. instead of selling gatorade, they should sell schiltz malt liquor.
don't blame me, i'm just a business man
on the opposite side of town, if Lee Le Clear wants to generate more revenue, they should have a taco stand and put up some soccer goal posts.
hey, i'm not a racist...
i'm just a business man
Please go ahead and get your racist comment about Homer Ford out of the way as well so we can move on.
Thanks for reminding me. I wouldn't try to sell anything at Homer Ford. First of all, the crack heads around there don't have money and you would either get robbed, or stabbed.
Not racist, just business sense.
who will the seeds be in each division?
The Great "S" will definitely prevail in the 5.0 Draw. Anyone Figure it out yet?? Cake Walk Baby..
I Think Sarosh will be able to take out Alfonso Rodriguez if he can get his serve over 25mph you guys in 4.5 Better watch out.
5.0 seeds Gound,Green, Morton, if they go by point standings. 4.5 Should be Trautmann or (Tankman) and J.D (Smiles) I mean Miles. Sarosh can't possibly get seeded unless we are using HoustonTourneyTennis Standards. I'd seed Journeyman #1 If I knew who he was!!!!!
#1 Seed in Open should be Bryan Wooten former ATM player now playing Satellites and Futures. Most likely Adrian Valdez will be #1 though. Colin Hoover is another stud who dominated all Last year.
IMO Wooten takes Singles and Doubles in Gallery Furniture Open.
alejandro sanchez and alfonso rodriguez are definitely amongst the top 5 in 4.5's
brian smith is a legitimate threat to say the least in the 5.0 division. hes a former heavy duty dI college player. should kick ass huh
I predict Schmucker and Trautman will play in the final for 4.5. Not too impressed with the players that signed up for 4.5. I know Schmucker is 2-0 against Daniel Morales and is 1-1 against Migual Morales. Of course Trautmann is 2-0 against Schmucker so who knows.
Sarosh will win the 4.5 draw without dropping a set. Kallus will go 0-2, Schmucker will get upset early by some former 4.0 player.
Kallus, you growing some balls finally? Good to hear. Stay confident and you could do well. I have seen you beat some guys that a lot of people would say you have no chance against. You just need to stop beating yourself before you even go on the court. Do us proud and at least not go down to another graduate of the 2007 class of 4.0.
Can't belive that Sarosh seeded 16th, there are better ranked players ahead of this retard. Hope he gets what he deserves in houston.
Does anyone know why the tournament did not follow current Texas USTA standings to determine seedings? I noticed Sarosh Ahmed was seeded 16th, whereas a number of other higher ranked players entered were not seeded, i.e. Brandon Halm, Ben Hawkings, etc... In fact, the aforementioned players are ranked higher than 3-5 of the currently seeded players. Seems rather arbitrary to me to seed players based on word of mouth or personal opinion rather than the actual rankings.
As far as predictions go, I seriously doubt Trautmann will the tournament for 2 reasons; 1 - Alfonso Rodriguez; and 2 - If he really is defaulting from all these tournaments because of injuries (unlikely) then I doubt he holds up for 6 rounds.
I think Alfonso has to be the favorite, however one name I am not hearing a lot about is Chris Leach. I believe he was a top five 4.5 a few years ago and finished around 10 last year in 5.0. He'll be unseeded and could make a good run.
Who will win 4.5 doubles?
The reason Great "S" is seeded No. 16 is because of his last year's performance in Men 4.0 Singles.
Let us not forget he went all the way to Nationals without losing a match in Men 4.0 Singles.
At least that much is certain that he will make the Rd. of 16 now that he is seeded No. 16.
My No. 1 seed in all divisions is Journey Man.
Just because someone is seeded 16 doesnt mean they will get to the round of 16 you incredible moron.
Just because someone is seeded 16 doesnt mean they will get to the round of 16 you incredible moron.
Kallus keep drinking those margaritas and soon you can take on all Open players. Also glad to see you have grown some balls and put in your two cents at last. Good luck pal.
I hope to be good for a round or two....provided I dont have to play the great "S" right off the bat.
The Great "S" stands for Shit-for-brains, right?
Don't worry Chris. You will have a good old hard banging from baseline with him just like one of your memorable matches in Tyler vs. Herb Morton bunch years ago!
what a conspiracy. the GREAT "S" is only seeded 16? WTF? He should be seeded "1"
Hey pal, lets keep this to tennis, OK. Afterall we are talking about who's who in tennis not our differences.
agreed. any picks for semifinals in 4.5?
Men's 4.5 semi's
1. trautman
2. sanchez
3. rodriquez
4. m. morales
I like John Trautmann, Greg Schmucker, Alfanso Rodriguez, and Chris Leach if he body hold up to Houston heat & humidity.
how about 4.0 and 5.0?
I like Thomas Reader, Odian, Green,
and Amit Garq for Men's 5.0 and I don't know much about 4.0s.
5.0 just got even more crowded with talent with the presence of Chris Hunckler and Rich Ryu in the draw. Benoit and Judson could do some damage in the 4.5 doubles. They would be my pick to go deep and possibly win from the non-seeded 4.5 teams. Poor Kallus, no Moser means no seed.
Trautman and rodriquez in one semi the other Sanchez and Schmucker. People forget Schmucker has a very good moonball game when he wants to use it.
Thanks for reminding us Greg.
Journeyman, can you start a new posting with some predictions to start some fresh discussion? this thread is getting tired
Dude.....Halm beat Bui at Lost Forest. Has anybody here ever played Halm ? I saw him take Odion to three sets at last years Coke....he can make some shots that will blow your mind. Not always consistent though.....
Trautmann was Lleyton Hewitt's roommate at Newk's Ranch when they were in their teens. He has an edge in background.
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