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Sandgren, Hanfmann, and Shaffer Win Futures Singles Titles while JP Smith Wins a Challenger in Dubs

by | Jul 24, 2016 | Blog

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Tennys Sandgren (Tennessee ’11) won his 11th career pro singles title with a straight set win over Facundo Mena in the finals of the $25K USA F24 Futures in Godfrey, Illinois. The match started just after 10 a.m. central with temperatures already approaching 90 degrees and the heat index just short of 100.

Sandgren dominated the opening set winning 29 of 41 points in route to taking a 6-0 set in 31 minutes. More than 5 of those minutes came when Sandgren took a medical timeout, after going up 3-0, due to a blister ripping open on his right hand during the opening game of the match. The opening game tied for the longest game of the match with Sandgren holding in a five-deuce ten-minute service game. Mena had one break point at 30/40 but he couldn’t convert and he was unable to convert much of anything the rest of the set. Mena gave away too many points with an unforced error count that was in the double digits.

Sandgren held quickly to start the second set and he had a break point on Mena’s serve but Mena fought it off to hold for 1-1. Mena’s best look on Sandgren’s serve game when Sandgren served at 3-3. Sandgren went up 40-15 but Mena won three straight points to get a break point opportunity. Mena got a look at a second serve but hit his backhand return long. Mena would get a second break point opportunity but once again his backhand let him down as he pulled one wide to bring up a fifth deuce. Sandgren would take the next two points to hold for 4-3 and then two games later he would break Mena at love to close it out 6-0, 6-4.

Below is match point, Sandgren’s post-match speech, and then a brief interview that I did with Sandgren. I also have all the footage I shot in one nine-minute video if you want to check that out.

Yannick Hanfmann (USC ’15) won his third pro singles title this year and fifth overall after defeating Julian Lenz (Baylor ’16) in the finals of the $25K Germany F8 Futures in Kassel. Lenz broke Hanfmann at love to go up 4-2 in the first set but Hanfmann broke back from 30/40 and then held from 40/30 to even it at 4-4. Lenz held for 5-4 and then went up 15/40 but Hanfmann fought off both set points to hold for 5-5 in a three-deuce game. The opening set went to a tiebreak and after falling behind 4-1 Hanfmann won six of the next seven points to take it 7-5. Hanfmann dominated the second set and at one point won 18 consecutive points in route to taking the match 7-6(5), 6-1.

Kennedy Shaffer (Georgia Rising Jr) came through qualies and won a total of eight matches in eight days to win her first career pro circuit singles title at the ITF $10K in Evansville, Indiana. Shaffer broke Emina Bektas (Michigan ’15) to go up 4-2 in the third set and then broke again to seal the 6-4, 1-6, 6-2 win in 1 hour and 48 minutes.

JP Smith (Tennessee ’11) won his 23rd pro doubles title and fourth with fellow Aussie Matt Reid as they won the $50K Levene Gouldin & Thompson Tennis Challenger in Binghamton, New York. Smith and Reid broke Liam Broady and Guilherme Clezar to go up 4-3 in the opening set and they eventually took the set 6-4. Smith and Reid broke to start the second set and then they broke again to go up 5-2 and then served it out for a 6-4, 6-2 win.

Michael Venus (LSU ’09) was attempting to win his fifth ATP doubles title this year but he and Mate Pavic fell to Julio Peralta and Horacio Zeballos in the finals of the Swiss Open in Gstaad. There were no breaks of serve in the first set but Peralta and Zeballos cruised in the tiebreak and took it 7-2. Peralta and Zeballos went up a break to start the second set and then added another later in the set in route to a 7-6(2), 6-2 win.

Nicolas Barrientos (West Florida ’08) and Ruben Gonzales (Illinois ’08) made it to the doubles final at the $50K Gomcheon, Korea, Challenger but they had to give a walkover to Cheng-Peng Hsieh and Tsung-Hua Yang due to Barrientos having stomach issues.

Benjamin Lock (Florida State ’16) was attempting to win his third career pro singles title at the $10K Egypt F16 Futures in Sharm El Sheikh but he came up short losing 6-2, 6-4 to the top seed #458 Adam El Mihdawy.