SMIL Mens Team

Senior Men's Interclub League is played between 7 Clubs with no standings recorded

Men's Team Win against Round Hill

The Rossmoor Men's Tennis team took on the Round Hill Country Club squad in a Senior Men's Interclub League (SMIL) match on February 5 at the Buckeye courts in Rossmoor. There was not a cloud in the sky, and the sun was shining very brightly. This condition made lobbing an even more effective tactic than usual!

The Rossmoor team prevailed 3-1. The results for each line were as follows: At line 1, Chris Slee and Bernie Wolf won a hard fought contest 7-5, 6-2. At line 2, Larry Barclay and Al Peters won their first set 6-3 and were ahead 5-4 in the second set when their opponents retired. At line 3, David Hickey and Barry Brian won 6-2, 7-5 by fully employing the "lob into the sun" strategy. At line 4, Chris Christopher and Nicky Abdolhosseini played a tough match but lost 4-6, 4-6.

Ken Steiner was the Rossmoor captain for this match and shared these insights into his team’s victory. The next match for the Rossmoor Men will be March 4 at home at 11am. The team welcomes all who would like to come out to watch some entertaining tennis.

Details: Written by Rowena Slee; Category: SMIL Mens Team; Published: 05 February 2020; Hits: 999

Men's Team Victorious over Moraga

The Men's Team secured a victory on Jan 22 over Moraga Country Club. The start of match play was delayed due to wet courts and many of the team members came out early to help dry off the courts so that they could be playable. The teams then enjoyed their lunch while waiting for Mother Nature's help with the sun to finish drying off the courts. By noon the play began under clearing skies and bright sunshine.

At line 1 Larry Barclay and Al Peters lost in a third set tiebreaker, 7-5, 1-6, and 4-10.

Sadly, line 2 with Ken Steiner and Dave Hickey could not be played as one of Moraga's players was injured in a fall early in the first set. Rossmoor's Nick Abdolhosseini stepped up to give the group a game.

Line 3 was Dave Kern and Stuart Coffey. This went to a third set tiebreaker also with Rossmoor winning, 4-6, 7-5, and 10-2. Finally at line 4 Barry Brian and Dave Besenfelder also went to a third set tiebreaker winning 6-7, 6-2 and 10-5. The team thanks acting captain Bernie Wolf and all the other team members who came out to help ready the courts and cheer the team on.

Details: Written by Rowena Slee; Category: SMIL Mens Team; Published: 24 January 2020; Hits: 961

Men's Tennis Triumphs in Oakland

by Jerry Quinlan

On Wednesday January 8, captain Jerry Quinlan took the Rossmoor Men’s Tennis Team to Oakland for a match against the Oakland Hills Tennis Club. Oddly enough, the Oakland Hills club is located in the hills of Oakland. The view from the tennis courts was breathtaking as we looked westward across the bay and the bridges towards San Francisco, but not as beautiful as the views we share everyday here at Rossmoor.

The match was scheduled to start at noon but due to wet courts the first game was postponed until 12:45 for the first game. Line 1 for Rossmoor was Larry Barclay and Steve Graham who lost to the Oakland Hills team 6-2 6-4. The score is not indicative of the great game played by the team from Rossmoor with Barclay's solid serving and Graham's play at the net.

Line two was more successful with David Besenfelder and David Kern coming out on top 6-4 6-4. The win made possible through Besenfelder's aggressive overhead slams and Kern being able to return any ball hit in his area.

Line 3 was a quick match for Bernie Wolf and Chris Slee, overcoming Oakland Hills men 6-2 6-1. This was the first match finished. Wolf and Slee are not only Rossmoor neighbors but do very well next to each other on the tennis court.

Line 4 had a solid performance from Al Peters and David Hickey. After a tough start losing the first 3 games to Oakland Hills, Al's left handed play and David's consistent ground strokes allowed them to come back and win the match 6-3 6-1.

Line 5 was the most difficult match of the day being won by Stuart Coffey and David Corliss. Oakland Hills won the first set 6-2 but the Rossmoor men won the second set in a close tie breaker 7-5. Having split the sets, a 10 point tie breaker was then played to determine the overall winner and the good guys again stood strong with an inspiring 10-6 win.

Overall it was a wonderful day in Oakland. We would like to thank the Oakland Hills Tennis Club for a fine day of tennis, good views from the tennis courts, great friendship, and especially a wonderful lunch overlooking the San Francisco bay.

Details: Written by Rowena Slee; Category: SMIL Mens Team; Published: 16 January 2020; Hits: 1084

RTC Men Run Into a Buzz Saw at Round Hill

The men’s team ran into a buzz saw at Round Hill CC on May 23. We lost 4-1. Here’s the scores:

Larry Barclay and Frank Haswell. L 6-1, 7-5.
David Hickey and Bernie Wolf. L 6-2, 6-2.
Jerry Robinson and Dave Kern. L 2-6, 6-2, 10-12.
Ron Wyman and Barry Brian. L 6-3, 7-5.
Chris Christopher and Murray Veroff. W 6-3, 6-4.

At Line 1, Larry and Frank came up against a former collegiate player and his team mate who were both very strong, as the final score denotes. They fought back in the second set and only a single point made the difference between winning and losing the second set.

Bernie and David, playing at Line 2, were overcome by a huge server by the name of Mike. Mike not only had a big serve, but he also had smooth finesse and touch, hitting many drop shots for outright winners. Power and finesse in the same player is very unusual.

Line 3 players Jerry and Dave had many chances to win but were overcome by a wily RH team. The final 10-point tiebreak third set was a nail biter with the lead changing hands many times.

Line 4 players Barry and Ron, having lost the first set, were up 5-2 in the second, but, alas, their opponents made a comeback and won the second set. What a revoltin’ development!

Chris and Murray played at Line 5 and were the only Rossmoor team to win. Hey, one out of five is better than none.

The team thanks Larry Barclay for handling the captain duties.

Details: Written by _RTC Webmaster; Category: SMIL Mens Team; Published: 23 May 2018; Hits: 2620

SMIL Captain's Procedures

Prepared by Dave Kern

Oct 2010, rev. Dec2011, Jan2015, Sep2017, Jan2018

NOTE: Prior to the first match of the season, Rossmoor SMIL Coordinator Dave Kern, via email, will provide all team members with League Rules, a SMIL Captains List, and League Schedule. This SOP supplements that information and provides volunteer Rossmoor captains with information to better handle their duties.

Details: Written by _RTC Webmaster; Category: SMIL Mens Team; Published: 01 February 2018; Hits: 9712

SMIL League Procedures and Rules

Age:

If a player turns 60 on any day during the calendar year, then the player may play on a Men’s Interclub League team during that calendar year. For example, a player turning 60 in Dec 2017 is eligible to play in the Fall/Winter league beginning on Sept 20, 2017. A player turning 60 in Dec 2018 is eligible to play in the Fall/Winter league beginning on Jan 1, 2018, but not before that.

Details: Written by _RTC Webmaster; Category: SMIL Mens Team; Published: 31 January 2018; Hits: 2310

SMIL Men's Senior 60+ Doubles League

In California's San Francisco "East Bay", there is a seven-team Senior Men's Interclub League (SMIL).

The eight member teams are:

Rossmoor Tennis Club
Walnut Creek I
Crow Canyon Country Club
Round Hill C.C.
Rossmoor
Walnut Creek II
Blackhawk C.C.
Oakland Hills
Moraga Country Club

There are eight teams in the league, including Rossmoor. There is a single league coordinator who makes schedules for all of the teams. The idea of this league is for everyone to get a chance to play against other clubs and to socialize afterward. This league was formed to make tennis an enjoyable game for all. For additional information, especially if you would like to be on the team, contact Dave Kern, the Rossmoor team captain. Here's how it works:

Age --- Players must be at least 60 years old by December 31st of the current year, a member of the RTC, and pay an annual fee for food and beverage when hosting.
Rating --- This league is not affiliated with USTA and a USTA rating is not required. Players are generally 3.0+ equivalent and the team reserves the right to limit players to those at an appropriate standard.
Matches --- are on Wednesdays and will not start earlier than 10:00 a.m. or later than 1:00 p.m*. Both captains must agree on the start time. Captains may make schedule adjustments, if needed. Rossmoor home matches are played at 11:00 a.m or 12:00 noon. Wins and losses are not centrally recorded.
Scheduling --- The season runs from mid September to early July. Matches will be on alternate Wednesdays with beginning times no earlier than 10:00 and no later than 1:00*. Both captains must agree on the start time. Home Captain must contact the Visiting Captain one week prior to the match to set an agreed start time.
Practices --- Practices are on Mondays and Fridays, with matches and practices on alternate Wednesdays.*
Court Reservations --- When playing at Rossmoor, other Rossmoor players should be advised that courts 2 through 8 may be reserved by this match play. The team will limit play to four courts if other courts are being fully utilized but this is rarely needed. Often notices close to the play dates will be posted in the kiosk or on court gates with specifics.
Matches at Each Meeting --- There will be a minimum of 3 doubles matches, all to be played at the same time. Each match is best two out of three sets, regular scoring. If the teams split sets, they will play a super tie-breaker. Teams are played in order of their strength so it's fun for everyone.
Rain makeups --- are encouraged to be played on open Wednesdays following the rain out. However, if both captains agree to a different day and time for the makeup match, (or for any other scheduled match), this will be acceptable.
Home team --- provides new balls, food, and beverage. It is suggested that players also bring their own water / sports drinks.
Rossmoor Team --- has a team captain who is the liaison with the league. At his discretion, he may recruit volunteers to act as captain for individual matches, and to coordinate practices.

*Start times for practice and matches may be moved to earlier times in extreme hot weather. Players will be notified in advance by group emails of these changes

Details: Written by RTC Tournaments; Category: SMIL Mens Team; Published: 19 September 2014; Hits: 31013