Category: Challenge Ladder

Hello out there!

Welcome to August!

Some lovely tennis weather this weekend and for the upcoming week: keep making playdates!

As the Montreal and Toronto tournaments near their conclusion with #1 Coco Gauff being taken down last night by Victoria Mboko, there has also been a shakeup on top of our very own challenge ladder…on July 21st Alan Tang defeated Roman Krasikov in a third set 7-5 blockbuster: thousands of lucky fans were present to watch this epic match.

Congratulations Alan. I wonder how long you will stay….

Roman then had the AUDACITY to defeat yours truly this past week, 3 and 3. It was not pretty tennis but ya know what, he got the job done and I am furious. Revenge will be sought.

A special shout out to Kevin Lalli. This guy has played in SEVEN super tie-breakers this summer. SEVEN! This speaks to his competitiveness and…fitness! I applaud that. Nice work, Kevin! You are right there.

On the points ladder, Clarke Gasper continues to dominate with a whopping 45 points. The race for second however, is TIGHT, with Kevin ‘Super-Tie’ Lalli at 25, Neal Riley and Neang Chea tied at 24 and Caleb Adams right under them with 23. Remember that first and second place finishers on the Points ladder will both receive unfathomable prizes at the end of the challenge season!

Keep on keeping on and remember to always double check my recording of scores and points and placement etc because…I make mistakes.

See ya!

Doug

Heloooooo!

Forgive me: I am way overdue for an update on some things happening on the 2025 Challenge Ladder.

But here goes, my first report: we have 35 players this summer, which is awesome. Please remind any friends who you think might be interested that they CAN still join, there is always room on the ladder for more rungs!

Special shout out (and vague concern?) for Neang Chea and especially Clarke Gasper. Back on June 22, Neang played not once but twice in one day (!) Clarke also played twice in one day on June 11 and then, what’s worse, on June 19, which if memory serves was a terribly hot day, he played THREE times! I do not understand either of you but….well done!

I encourage you all to NOT get into a tie break with Daniel Benitez-Posada: he has won Two deciding tie breaks #clutch

Update on the 2 Ladders: Challenge Ladder and Points Ladder

Congrats to Roman Krasikov who on July 4, defeated Jason Wu (7-6, 6-3) to take over the top spot on the Challenge ladder. But I ask you…is that position secure? Do I sense a wiggly rung? Take care up there, Roman. Folks are thirsty.

Congrats also to Clarke Gasper, Caleb Adams and Neang Chea. Clarke is in first place on the Points Ladder with a whopping 34 points, Caleb is in second with 20 and Neang is just behind with 19. Remember, there are end of the season prizes for #1 AND #2 on the Points Ladder. This means they have all been playing a lot of tennis, which is the whole idea: well done to you 3!

Just a friendly reminder that only the Winner of the match needs to email me the result and please remember to include the info on Who challenged Who as different points are allotted for those things.

Stay hydrated out there. The heat is real.

Wimbledon quarterfinals are almost here…who will take it this year? Who will rise up? Those same questions are being asked right here at the Challenge Ladder. Who has the answers?

-Doug

The countdown has begun.

This Sunday the 29th of September is the last official day for the 2024 Summer Challenge Ladder and STILL there are questions that need to be answered….such as….

Will anyone shake Mr Tang? Mr. Houlden and Mr. Krasikov continue to loom directly underneath him on the second and third rungs respectively but there is only one spot at the top and he has been holding it for pretty much the whole summer…will anyone challenge him this week? Come on, People!

Over on the points ladder, Mr Wang continues to lead with 40 points, Mr. Goldman has the second rung at 34 points and Mr Wu is right there with 33 points. Remember on this ladder, it is the top TWO who will both receive prizes of inestimable worth…(Trust.)

The other prize for who has made the biggest jump from start of summer to end of summer I shall keep a mystery.

All will be revealed by the end of next week. On that note, if you do play this week/weekend, please try and get me your results by Tuesday October 1st so I can announce final results by Friday and the massive celebrations can begin!

Yours always,

Dougie of the Longlegs

Greetings!

The US Open begins today, even as the Summer Challenge Ladder arrives at the homestretch

We have just about one month to go, and I am writing with a few updates:

On the Ladder itself, the top 3 players continue to have the last names of:

Tang

Houlden

Krasikov

There is only ONE prize in this category and that’s for the player who ends up #1: will it be one of these 3 or will there be an attempt to dethrone as the season reaches its’ conclusion?

On the points ladder, the top 3 names are:

Wang

Goldman

Wu

Remember here that the top TWO point-accumulators will receive prizes.

Some August tight matches of note include:

Grosdidier over McDonough:  6-4, 7-6 (6)

Wang over Jackson in a rare official 3 set match: 7-5, 2-6, 6-2

Goldman over Chak:  6-3, 4-6, 10-8

Remember the official last day of competition is September 29.

Happy almost September! Play on!

-Doug

 

Greetings Challenge Ladder Athletes of the World!

An update.

August is here and while some things change, some things stay the same on the ladder.

Up top, it is still Tang, Houlden and Krasikov holding the #1, #2 and #3 positions. But will Krasikov’s extended vacay render him rusty upon return? Time will tell.

Wu and Grosdidier have been making major strides up the ladder…can they make it all the way to the top?

On the Points Ladder, it is a tie for the top 2, with Coombs and Wu and Jackson is looming just one point below. Remember, the top 2 on the points ladder will receive Extravagant prizes!

Some very close scores of late: Jackson over Lalli, Coombs over Wu and Grosdidier over McDonough being especially close.

The ladder goes until the end of September so it is not too late to make your run! I know its hot (!) but hydrate and play early or late if you can.

Let me know if you have any questions or if I have failed you in some way.

I worked on my second serve today after double faulting an entire game away on Tuesday night. What are you doing for YOUR second serve?

-Doug

 

Greetings Ladder Participants!

I have been remiss in my sassy updates.

Deal with it.

It’s hot out there. Please hydrate.

As the Wimbledon tournament progresses with some new names, we have some new names on the local front as well: shout out to Ian Wang who is BOUNDING up the ladder in recent weeks, taking over the Points ladder with 19 total points (yours truly holds on to second place in a tie with Steve Goldman); Ian is also ascending up the Competition Ladder…how far can he go? All the way to the top? Only time will tell.

On the Competition Ladder, Alan Tang sits up there at the #1 rung, with newbie James Holden one rung of revenge below…Roman Krasikov can be heard in 3rd place, ready to POUNCE! I look forward to seeing how the top of the ladder might continue to shake in the next few weeks.

Please make sure you check that I’ve updated scores/points/placements correctly, as I am prone to error in these summer months.

Be safe out there in the heat. Play early or play late! And if you come across any outdoor courts you find especially beautiful and possibly uncrowded, please let me know and I can include that in the next post!

Beware of summer camps during the week now. #kids

Thanks all. Keep challenging, Keep moving. Don’t forget to floss.

-Doug

Hello0oooo!

This is it folks, the last week of the 2023 Tennis4All singles Challenge Ladder. Sunday the 24th is the final day to officially compete and werk your way up!

Will anyone unseat the Losey?

Will Alan Gnani, my main foil and nemesis (yes, he beat me AGAIN after I won the first set. i’m NOT BITTER!!!)….will he catch one of the top 2 spots on the points ladder to win a prize? If I am one of the top 2 on the points ladder, what will I give myself?

And who, just who. will win a prize for making the largest leap from summer’s beginning to summer’s end?

So many questions to be answered. Frankly, it’s exhausting to even ponder. I’ll be back here mid-week next week with the answers…..

Until then, play tennis IN THE RAIN! (actually thru Saturday it looks allright)

-Doug of the legs which are long

Hello Tennis Ladder Combatants!

The end of the tennis ladder season is nigh. September 24th is the last day of official competition.

Things were a little quiet this Labor Day weekend but there was one battle on Monday that must be reported, as Jason Wu defeated Tom Walsh in a super close 7-5, 7-6 battle in the Heat!

Previous to that loss, Tom Walsh had a clutch 10-8 third set tie break win over Roman Krasikov. Roman then defeated yours truly the next day. I’m not happy about it.

Conroy Jackson also pulled thru recently with a third set 10-7 tie break win over Aron Chuc.

With only a few weeks to go, a few questions remain….will anyone take down the Mr. Losey? Will Sarah seek revenge for the top spot or will Alan Tang make a late season challenge? You could cut the tension with a knife!

Over on the points ladder, despite my recent LOSING streak, I am somehow atop the standings with Conroy and Alan Gnani right below. Remember that the top 2 on the points ladder receive prizes. Awkward.

There will also be a prize for whoever has made the biggest jump from where they were at the start of the standings to the end of the league but I’ll leave that a mystery for now.

Hopefully the heat will break soon and we can all get out there and play these last few weeks. Along with my friend, and the first person I defeated at the start of the summer, Carlos Alcaraz.

Until next time….

Longlegs

Greetings robust August challengers!

I have a very important update.

There is a new leader on top of the Summer Ladder and his name… is Ryan Losey! On the first day of August he challenged and defeated Sarah Evenson, who had been at #1 all summer. Congrats on your long reign, Sarah, and congrats Ryan, to you and your team, on being #1. I hope you enjoy the view…while it lasts…. : )

Remember, we play through September 24 so there is still lots of time for DRAMA!

Top 3 now reads: #1 Ryan Losey #2 Sarah Evenson #3 Alan Tang

Will Sarah seek revenge?

Will Alan reach up in an attempt to take the top spot?

Will Carlos Alcaraz re-join the ladder?

Anything could happen.

Over on the points ladder, Conroy Jackson remains in the top spot with yours truly gaining traction in the #2 position. Pengcheng Wu is right beneath me and my position feels tenuous at best. Nice job Pengcheng.  I can feel your fingers right at my sneakers!

Enjoy the tennis. Enjoy the US Open Series. Play on

-Doug of the longlegs

 

Greetings fellow Ladder Climbers!

July is winding down and things on the Challeng Ladder are continuing to heat up.

The weather looks spectacular this weeks so get out there and play tennis!

Sarah Evenson continues to maintain her spot at #1 though she’s only been tested ONCE this season! Who will take her on next? Maybe soon it will be me? I see you Sarah.

Jason Wu, Ryan Losey, Mark McDonough and Ming Che round out our top 5. Others are lurking directly below though….look out top 5! We are coming after YOU!

Over on the points ladder, well done to Conroy Jackson who is the leader by more than 10 points with 37: the Conroy Caravan!

Tied for second are myself and Pengcheng Wu with 26 points each. Bill Lamberson and Alan Gnani are ties for 3rd with 20 points apiece. Great work getting out there everyone!

Please let any friends who may be interested know that believe it or not they can STILL join the ladder! We go thru most of September!

Please remember to let me know too if you have any vacation time where you need to be ‘frozen’ for a spell. I will have one of those coming up myself the week after this.

The US Open series begins soon: be ready be inspired, be the ladder!

-Doug