Over the past few years, Steve Beers and Tim McAvoy envisioned bringing back the Philly Open to their home club at Waynesborough. It made a lot of sense to have the region’s largest NRT in the Philadelphia area. Philadelphia is central to the region and has the capacity to host large scale tournaments for both the men and women.
Up to this point, the women in Region III did not have an NRT and we are proud to host their first in many years. The tournament, being held February 14th and 15th, is a great opportunity to draw in the nation’s best talent for both men and women. To provide a little incentive, there will be $10,000 in prize money split evenly between the men and the women, beginning with quarter finalists.
On top of their desire to bring a great NRT to Philly, Steve and Tim share a special bond in that they are both Hodgkin’s Lymphoma survivors and friends from the same club. One of their main goals through hosting the tournament is to raise money for the Leukemia Lymphoma Society as the charity is very special to both of them. The goal is to raise at least $10,000 for LLS, the largest voluntary health organization dedicated to funding blood cancer research.
Waynesborough Country Club, the former site of the Philly Open and the 2010 APTA National’s, will once again host the event this year which promises to be a great venue for players and spectators alike. Plans are in place for a spectacular Saturday evening event for players, spectators and sponsors. For those that cannot make the event, the APTA will feature both live scoring and live action via an on-line webcast.
Steve and Tim pulled together a team of seasoned tournament directors to have an awesome tournament experience for all those that sign up to play. It’s going to be the last National Ranking Tournament of the year and based on the word that is spreading, many of the top teams will be in attendance.
Lehigh Tournament director Chip Morrow agreed to give up his NRT date this year in order for the Philly Open to get off the ground. Steve and Tim hope to build on the tremendous 2014 turnout at the Lehigh Open and expand it to a full 64-draw with 8 byes for the Men and also a 32-draw with 4 byes for the Women.
“It’s going to be like a mini-nationals, in terms of quality of play and the quarter-finals running during the Saturday night party, not to mention a great favor, etc. Men and women will be playing at the same clubs throughout the tournament which will provide a different feel than most tournaments. And for those that can hang around till Sunday, “The Bloody Mary Bar” will be serving bright and early with breakfast during the women’s final and men’s semi-finals.”
The entire tournament committee is very excited and cannot wait for the February weekend to arrive. The tournament is looking for sponsors or donations that will be directed to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
Entry forms are not available yet but if you are interested in participating, sponsoring, or volunteering, please click HERE to contact the tournament director.
You can also follow the tournament on Facebook at Philly Open.
