ITF women’s tennis circuit up

The Philippine Tennis Association (Philta) launched yesterday the two-leg Union Cement Corporation-International Tennis Federation RP women’s tennis circuit at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center.

A total cash pot of $20,000, $10,000 for each leg, and ITF points will be at stake in this two-week event with the first leg set Oct. 29 to Nov. 4 and the final leg scheduled Nov. 5 to 11.

Players from 17 countries have confirmed their participation in the opening leg which offers $1,600 to the singles winner and $650 to the doubles champion.

The Koreans are the players to watch with the likes of Chae Kyung-Yee, the first leg’s top seed who is ranked No. 345 in the world, Kim Jin-Hee (420), Hong Da-Jong (689) and Oh Eun-Mi (739) expected to give the rest a run for their money.

Also in the main draw are entries from India, Japan, Chinese Taipei, Malaysia, Thailand, Austria, Paraguay, United States, Brazil, Czech Republic, Great Britain, Germany, Romania, Slovakia and Spain.

Host Philippines will be represented by four wild card entries headed by current RP No. 1 Czarina Mae Arevalo. The other three have yet to be determined by the organizing Philta.

"This is just one of our ways of helping RP sports particularly tennis in discovering talented young players," said Union Cement CEO Oscar Hilado who was accompanied by senior executive vice president Francisco Viray and senior vice president Francis Felizardo in yesterday’s launching at the Traders Hotel.

Philta president Salvador "Buddy" Andrada and executive vice president Manuel Misa said that leg champion of the singles and doubles event will get 5 ITF points each. – Joey Villar