USTA National 40 Men’s, Women’s Hard Court Championships Coming to La Jolla

Editor's Note: The USTA released the following announcement.

Two-time defending men’s singles champion Oren Motevassel and women’s defending singles champion Dina McBride highlight strong player fields at the 41st annual United States Tennis Association (USTA) National 40 Men’s and Women’s Hard Court Championships set for Dec. 2-8, at the La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club.

The top-seeded Motevassel, of San Jose, played on the men’s professional tennis tour for 15 years and was ranked as high at 161 in the world before retiring in 2001. A native of Tel Aviv, Israel, Motevassel defeated Martin Barba of Carlsbad, Calif. in last year’s singles final and Jeff Tarango, of Manhattan Beach, in the 2011 singles championship.

Women’s defending champion Dina McBride, of Valencia, defeated Ros Nideffer of San Diego in last year’s singles final. McBride, a former college standout at the University of San Diego in the mid-1990s, is seeded second behind top-seeded Sophie Woorons-Johnson of Anderson, S.C.

“We are looking forward to an exciting week of tennis,” said Tournament Director Bill Kellogg. “With last year’s singles champions returning to defend their titles and an exceptional field of worthy challengers, the matches next week at the La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club are going to be very entertaining.”   

Matches will begin at 10 a.m. on Monday, Dec. 2 and at 8 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 3 through Friday, Dec. 6. The weekend’s schedule on Saturday, Dec. 7 and Sunday, Dec. 8 will begin at 9 a.m. The women’s singles final will be played on Saturday, while the men’s singles final will take place on Sunday.

The tournament, which includes former touring professionals and the nation’s strongest players in the 40 and over age group, will also feature men’s and women’s doubles and mixed doubles events for players 40 and over.

Also on the agenda of the seven-day event is the USTA National Father and Son and Grandfather and Grandson Hard Court Doubles Championships beginning Friday, Dec. 6, with matches concluding on Sunday, Dec. 8. 

The Father and Son championship has been held continuously at the La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club since 1959, and attracts the top father and son tennis teams in the nation.  The Grandfather/Grandson event is a relatively new competitive division that started at the La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club just a few years ago.

La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club welcomes tennis spectators to view the tournament with free admission. On-site parking is available for a nominal fee. For a list of seeded players and tournament draws, please go to: tennislink.usta.com/Tournaments/TournamentHome/Tournament.aspx?T=125262.