Valley Athletic Club

News and notes on the PGA Tour's top 20

1. Luke Donald , England: With four rounds in the 60s, Donald was in the hunt most of the way in the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational before finishing in a tie for second, four shots behind winner Adam Scott . It was Donald's ninth finish in the top 10 on the PGA Tour this season, and he will be among the favorites to finally break through this week in the PGA Championship . … Donald might be the No. 1 player in the World Golf Rankings , but he not only does not have a major championship, he does not have a stellar record in the Grand Slam Events. He comes into the PGA with only one finish in the top 10 in seven appearances in the final major of the year. Luke was tied for the lead after posting three rounds of 68 or better in the 2006 PGA at Medinah but closed with a 2-over-par 74 and tied for third, six strokes behind champion Tiger Woods . That equaled his best finish in the majors, achieved in the 2005 Masters, and he also tied for fourth at Augusta earlier this year. … Donald made only three bogeys in the Bridgestone last week, including one on Sunday when he missed a four-foot putt for par on the 14th hole as he was trying to chase down Scott. He was solid in all phases of the game, hitting 37 of 56 fairways, 56 of 72 greens in regulation to lead the field, and averaging 28.8 putts per round. That's the type of performance that wins major championships, and if he could repeat that in Atlanta, he might be holding the Wanamaker Trophy .

2. Phil Mickelson , United States: After starting with a solid 3-under-par 67 last week in the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, Mickelson had absolutely nothing over the last three days, when he could not even match par while plummeting to a tie for 48th. Of course, he has the talent to turn it on at any time and will be one of the favorites this week in the PGA Championship. … Lefty seemed to get his major mojo back when he tied for fourth in the Open Championship at Royal St. George's, where he posted his best finish in the tournament — a tie for second — after finishing out of the top 10 in the previous four Grand Slam events. He will be looking for his second victory in the PGA Championship, having won by a single stroke over Thomas Bjorn and Steve Elkington in 2005 at Baltusrol. The three-time Masters champions also finished second, one stroke behind David Toms , when the tournament was last played at Atlanta Athletic Club in 2001. … Mickelson carded four birdies on the first day last week at Firestone, but he had only five more over the last 54 holes. It appeared he was headed for a strong finish when he made two birdies in his first seven holes and was bogey-free through the front nine in the final round. However, he did not have another birdie in him and played the back in 4-over 39, including an ugly double-bogey 6 on the last hole that left him with a 72. As often is the case when Lefty is not right, the driver was a problem — he hit only 27 of 56 fairways.

South Bay Tennis Teams Helps Capture 2008 Gar Glenney Cup ...

San Jose, CA (PRWEB) September 4, 2008

Almaden Valley Athletic Club, the Bay Area’s premier, award winning family facility that offers total health, fitness and wellness programs for all ages, announced today the AVAC Boys 12 & Under tennis team has helped win the 26th annual Gar Glenney Cup for the second year in a row on behalf of USTA Northern California.

The Gar Glenney Cup is designed as an opportunity for the best USTA Northern California teams to go against the best USTA Southern California teams for a combined shot at the state championship. Each participating NorCal team must win the Northern California Section Championships at the state level in order to qualify. During their 2007 and 2008 seasons and under the coaching of AVAC tennis director Manny Fernandez, the AVAC Boys 12 & Under team has come in undefeated in league, sectionals and state competitions.

“Tennis is a great passion for many of us here at AVAC and we’re so proud to be able to bring together junior tennis players from all over South Bay in a win against USTA Southern California’s junior tennis teams,” said Joseph Shank, co-founder and owner of AVAC. “The fact that these boys have been undefeated for two consecutive years and are only 12 is amazing!”

The AVAC team has gone undefeated for 132 individual matches, a record in the program’s history. The team includes Edward Ang, David Ball, Adrian Chamdani, Vikram Chari, Kial Kaiser, Cameron Klinger, JT Nishimura, Cody Rakela and Logan Staggs – all ranked USTA Junior players. Fernandez had the team practice once a week, all summer long in order to get them ready for the tournament. Brett Sargeant, AVAC tennis pro, also lent his expertise as co-coach to the team.

“It’s the incredible chemistry of the team as a whole that keeps them in the winner’s circle,” said Fernandez. “Each demonstrates a maturity and professionalism that is refreshing to see in a young player. They are 100 percent committed to each other. In fact, when one finishes a match, he immediately proceeds to a court where his teammate is playing, to cheer him on.”

According to Fernandez, the boys will continue to practice at AVAC during the coming months in order to defend USTA Northern California’s title win over USTA Southern California in 2009.

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