Van Der Meer Tennis Center, located in Hilton Head Island, SC, will host the 15th annual Kaelin/Diadora USTA Pro Circuit women’s event June 4th-10th. The tournament will be played outdoors on hard surface and will consist of 32 singles players and 16 doubles teams. Competing in this year’s tournament is Lindsay Lee-Waters, a 29-year-old Dunwoody, Ga. resident. Lee-Waters has been playing tennis at the pro level for more than ten years and has been ranked as high as No. 33 in the world (April 96’). She has 21 titles (10 singles, 11 doubles) making her fourth in all-time ranks.
The Kaelin/Diadora USTA Women’s $10,000 is the third of eight USTA Pro Circuit women’s events at the $10,000 level for the 2007 season. Last year’s singles champion, Julie Ditty, will not be competing in Hilton Head this week.
With 94 tournaments throughout the country and prize money ranging from $10,000 to $100,000, the USTA Pro Circuit is the pathway to the US Open and tour-level competition for aspiring tennis players and a frequent battleground for established professionals. Last year, more than 1,000 men and women from 74 countries competed on the USTA Pro Circuit for approximately $3.2 million in prize money and valuable ATP and WTA Tour ranking points. Maria Sharapova, Andy Roddick, James Blake, Justine Henin, Nicole Vaidisova, Andy Murray and David Nalbandian are among today’s top stars that began their careers on the USTA Pro Circuit. The USTA Pro Circuit is world-class tennis administered on the local level and played on local tennis courts as part of the fabric of communities nationwide -- an opportunity for current and new fans to experience the excitement and intensity of the professional game in their neighborhood.