Monday Net Post

(Hi everyone - Ed McGrogan here with a quick Monday Net Post before I head back down to lovely Forest Hills, NY. I was upstate this weekend, visiting two other lovely towns - Whitesboro and Geneseo - before traveling to a much more boisterous western town, Orchard Park. Many of you know that the Buffalo Bills play in Orchard Park, which is just south of the city proper. Unfortunately, that's also where the Bills heading at the moment. After winning their first four games of the season, the Bills have lost three of their last four games, virtually negating all the momentum and good cheer that had captured Western New York (as well as the McFadden's & Calico Jack's bars on 42nd & 2nd in NYC; aka, "Little Buffalo"). Despite the 5-3 mark on the season, the Bills haven't defeated a team that currently has a record of .500 or better. Western New York's finest is still tied for first place in the AFC East (along with the Jets and Patriots), but that may not last much longer, either. Trent Edwards and Co. travel to Foxboro, MA this Sunday to play the Patriots, long a thorn in the Bills side. If the Bills drop that contest, even the once-maligned Miami Dolphins, currently 4-4, could pass them in the standings. First to worst? Say it ain't so, Buffalo.)

Last Week's Tournaments

BNP Paribas Masters (ATP - Indoor Carpet - Paris, France)

• Singles Final: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga def. David Nalbandian 6-3, 4-6, 6-4.
  - Singles Semifinal: David Nalbandian def. Nikolay Davydenko 6-1, 5-7, 6-4.
  - Singles Semifinal: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga def. James Blake 6-4, 6-3.
• Singles Draw

• Doubles Final: Jonas Bjorkman/Kevin Ullyett def. Jeff Coetzee/Wesley Moodie 6-2, 6-2.
  - Doubles Semifinal: Jeff Coetzee/Wesley Moodie def. Mariusz Fyrstenberg/Marcin Matkowski 6-4, 6-3.
  - Doubles Semifinal: Jonas Bjorkman/Kevin Ullyett def. Arnaud Clement/Michael Llodra 6-3, 6-2.
• Doubles Draw

Bell Challenge (WTA - Indoor Hard - Quebec City, Canada)

• Singles Final: Nadia Petrova def. Bethanie Mattek 4-6, 6-4, 6-1.
  - Singles Semifinal: Nadia Petrova def. Angela Haynes 6-1, 6-3.
  - Singles Semifinal: Bethanie Mattek def. Aleksandra Wozniak 7-6, 6-3.

• Doubles Final: Anna-Lena Groenefeld/Vania King def. Jill Craybas/Tamarine Tanasugarn 7-6, 6-4.
  - Doubles Semifinal: Jill Craybas/Tamarine Tanasugarn def. Marie-Eve Pelletier/Chanelle Scheepers 7-6, 6-1.
  - Doubles Semifinal: Anna-Lena Groenefeld/Vania King def. Racquel Kops-Jones/Abigail Spears 6-7, 6-3, 10-5.

• Singles & Doubles Draw

McGrogan's Heroes

ATP - Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

Tsonga's year was a tale of three seasons: Australian Open finalist; injury-plagued summer; winner of two fall tournaments, including a Masters Series shield. Those are two impressive bookends there. And his season's not yet over, as Tsonga qualified for the Tennis Masters Cup with the victory. Would anyone be surprised if he won it? Regardless, his 2009 season is one of the big stories to follow next year.

Honorable Mention: Jonas Bjorkman. The veteran Swede defied his age (36) once again, winning the Paris Masters doubles along with partner Kevin Ullyett. The pair also qualified for the Tennis Masters Cup as the fourth-ranked ATP doubles team.

WTA - Nadia Petrova

Petrova justified her top seeding in Quebec City by winning the tournament with only one set lost. Her only challenge in the Bell Challenge came in the final against Bethanie Mattek, when she came back to win after losing the opening set. Otherwise, Petrova won each set by a 6-4 score or better. She's been one of Russia'a best women players in the second half of 2008.

Honorable Mention: Bethanie Mattek. Mattek had her best season as a professional in 2008; she's currently ranked No. 38 in singles play. In no other year did she finish the season ranked above the Top 100. In Quebec City, she advanced to the final after defeating Canadian hopeful Aleksandra Wosniak in straight sets.

This Week's Tournament

• TV Schedule

Sony Ericsson Championships (WTA - Outdoor Hard - Doha, Qatar)

• Singles Draw(No doubles draw.)
• Website

**Beyond the Bracket

(Pete Bodo tells a tale about New York City living and moving. Coincidentally, I'll be doing the same thing myself in the next few weeks. Except for the part about moving out of a condo near Central Park.)

Mornin', everyone. How 'bout that Jo Wilfried Tsonga!

I'll be back a little later with a few thoughts on the Tennis Masters Cup or a related issue, but at the moment I want to make sure all of you hardcore tennis - or TennisWorld - junkies have a place to chat about this and that. I had a pretty busy weekend, dedicated to getting our New York City apartment ready for the market.

We live in a condo in a classic pre-war building that I like to think of as elegant without being opulent, but with cowboy Luke growing like ragweed, it's time for us to move - probably further uptown, and (alas) away from Central Park, while still remaining in the same school district. So these next few weeks are going to be pretty hectic for us. Unfortunately, putting our place on the market before we've found new digs is a daunting task, because it means getting the apartment as squared away as possible (for a succession of open house dates) while still living there.

Or, as my wife, Lisa, put it - Don't tell me you're going to leave those antlers up on the wall!

Moving is one of the all-time worst experiences, isn't it? And we're not even at the actual moving stage yet. . . I did make an executive decision a few years ago never to move myself/ourselves again. But like I said, we're a long way from having the moving truck pull up at the door at this point, and the real estate market suggests that we'd better not take anything for granted.

-- Pete