WTT Orange County Breakers

Breakers Begin Quest for Advanta World TeamTennis Pro League Championship

Published on June 30, 2009 under World TeamTennis (WTT)
Orange County Breakers News Release


NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., June 30, 2009 - For seven nights in July, Breakers Stadium at Newport Beach Country Club will be the life of the Southern California tennis scene. The Breakers begin their quest for the 2009 Advanta World TeamTennis Pro League championship Thursday, July 2 in their season-opening match against the Washington Kastles at Breakers Stadium at Newport Beach Country Club.

The Breakers last won the King Trophy, symbolic of the WTT championship, in 2004 and believe it is poised to contend for the title again. The team returns both of its men's players from last year - reigning WTT Male MVP Ramon Delgado and Newport Beach resident Kaes Van't Hof. Together, the duo won eight of their last nine men's doubles sets in 2008. The Breakers added two experienced Fed Cup players on the women's side in Julie Ditty, the USTA Pro Circuit's winningest player of all time, and Marie-Eve Pelletier.

Should the Breakers need an added boost in clinching a WTT playoff spot down the stretch, former World No. 1 and three-time Grand Slam singles champion Maria Sharapova will play her only WTT match for the Breakers in their July 22 finale against the Kansas City Explorers at Breakers Stadium.

"Maria Sharapova brings a game, reputation and image unique to herself and tennis, and I believe the Breakers can accomplish greatness in WTT this year. I really like the makeup of our team," Breakers executive director Jeff Purser said. "Our men's players remain intact from last year, which should provide for better on-court chemistry in doubles. We already have the league's best singles player with Ramon. That was emphatically proven last year. I am very intrigued to see how our women stack up this year because our ladies are the most accomplished female duo that we have had in my time with the Breakers."

Limited tickets and team information can be obtained at www.NewportBeachBreakers.com or by calling the ticket sales office at 714-352-6301. All home matches are expected to sell out.

"The feverish pace of our preseason ticket sales demonstrates a steep increase in demand to see the Breakers," Purser said. "It shows how far the Newport Beach and Southern California tennis communities have grown to embrace our team. Fans looking to witness the top-class entertainment and first-rate standard of tennis on display at Breakers Stadium are advised not to wait until the day of the match to buy tickets."

Washington is led by two-time WTT champion Rennae Stubbs, the 2008 WTT Female MVP and WTT Finals MVP and a six-time Grand Slam doubles champion. 2009 French Open men's doubles champion Leander Paes, Scott Oudsema, and Olga Puchkova, in her first full WTT season, fill out the Kastles' roster.

The Breakers are in their third year of operation under the auspices of Hoag Hospital Foundation, which has been granted the rights to manage the Breakers through 2009 by WTT with profits from the team's season operations benefiting Hoag Hospital. Breakers Stadium (capacity 2,000) is located at Newport Beach Country Club along Pacific Coast Highway, with views overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

Breakers supporters can also congregate online and expand the team's fanbase through the team's official fan pages on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/pages/Newport-Beach-CA/Newport-Beach-Breakers/73887254402?ref=ts), MySpace (www.myspace.com/newportbeachbreakers) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/nbbreakers). Register to become a fan or follower of the Breakers at each fan page and use them to meet and chat with new friends and tennis fans and stay up to date on all team and player information related to the Breakers.

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World TeamTennis Stories from June 30, 2009


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