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Edinburgh Reporter
5 days ago
- Sport
- Edinburgh Reporter
Thirteen match points saved – a record?
Scott Duncan and James MacKinlay head into the annual inter-county tennis championships with the East of Scotland men's team next week on the back of a remarkable never-say-die success to lift the Nottingham Challenger doubles title. The Edinburgh pair fought back from 2-9 (first to 10) adrift against Charles Broom and Mark Whitehouse to win the decider 20-18 with THIRTEEN match points saved. 'I don't know if the number of match points saved was a record but it was certainly the subject of an Italian tennis podcast' recalled Scott, adding: 'It was complete madness.' The final victory was the third of Scott's career in the second tier Challenger ranks and a first for James. Scott added: 'At 2-8in the decjding tie-break I said to James 'imagine if we could pull this one off' not really thinking it could happen. 'But gradually we chipped away until we got right back into the match and it was our turn to feel nervous. 'Eventually I read our opponents serve at 19-18 – by this time I had an idea about where serves were going – and clocked a backhand to force a volleying error. 'It was an unbelievable feeling.' Since returning from four months out with a back injury – his world ranking slipped from 167 to 268 – Scott has made a habit of winning key tie-breaks as he makes up for lost time. 'Tie breaks didn't always go for me last year so maybe things are evening out now' he said while preparing to play a quarter final with James at the ATP Challenger in Pozoblanco, Spain, which unfortunately the Capital pair lost in three sets. As for the LTA's annual summer county cup at Eastbourne next week the East men have finished Division One runners up in each of the past two seasons. Retaining a place in the top tier this year would be a realistic challenge with US based pro's Jake Fearnley and Matt Rankin unavailable as is long serving captain Alan Macdonald fresh from an extensive stretch coaching Jamie Murray on the pro tour. Euan McIntosh takes over the captaincy from Macdonald with the rest of the squad comprising anglo debutant Reece Watters, Lance Nisbet, Jamie Hunter and Sam Macneill. Thistle's Hunter makes a return to county week after several years absence. Among the group one opponents will be North of Scotland prompting suggestions that former world No 1 doubles player Jamie Murray could turn out. 'Jamie faced us when we were in division two or three a few years ago so it could happen' says Scott, relishing that possible challenge. James, left, and Scott are pictured after their Nottingham triumph Like this: Like Related
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Tennis Hall of Fame rejects billionaire Bill Ackman's $10 million gift after widely criticized tournament entry
The International Tennis Hall of Fame has rejected a $10 million gift from hedge-fund billionaire Bill Ackman after his widely criticized entry in its ATP Challenger event, according to Front Office Sports. The 59-year-old Ackman, a longtime tennis fan, competed in the Hall of Fame Open in Rhode Island last week as a doubles team with former top-10 player Jack Sock, losing to Omar Jasika and Bernard Tomic 6-1, 7-5. The Challenger Tour is the tier below the ATP Tour, but still an actual professional tournament. Ackman received a wild-card entry after a history of philanthropy with the Hall of Fame and played like, well, a 59-year-old tennis enthusiast with no professional experience thrown into a group of professionals. Jasika and Tomic were openly going easy on him, but it didn't prevent him and Sock from losing in straight sets. The decision to add a billionaire to the tournament it hosts led to a wave of criticism toward the Hall of Fame in the tennis community, most notably from former world No. 1 Andy Roddick, the last American man to win a Grand Slam singles title. Speaking on his "Quick Served" podcast, Roddick called the match "a total miss," "pathetic," "hard to watch," and "the biggest joke I've watched in professional tennis." He actually said he didn't blame Ackman for his decision to play, placing the onus on the Hall, and praised the billionaire's effort, but said he believed the decisions behind the match would warrant a review. "There was exactly one person on that court trying as hard as they could," Roddick said. "... If you want to argue with me, go back and watch that video. You can't tell me there was more than one person trying as hard as they could every point, or any point. It was a disaster. "This was beneath the Hall of Fame, in my opinion." You can judge the respective effort levels in the video of the match below: Three days after the match, Ackman posted a lengthy tweet in which he defended the Hall of Fame, criticized his own play and pledged to set up a $10 million endowment he would manage, giving the Hall 10% of the principal each year. He also called the match an overall success, describing it as "one of the greatest public relations achievements in tennis history" for the Hall, partially due to his failure on the court, and challenged Roddick to a doubles match. He said the criticism the Hall received was "entirely" on him, but also tried to explain why he played so badly. "What has not been disclosed is that I played a doubles tournament 10 days prior at the HOF, and I played great. The field was comprised of former pros and top college players from around the world, but 55 plus in age. Richey Reneberg and I lost in the semis to the ultimate winners of the tournament in the tie breaker ... Where things went wrong is that I hadn't been beta tested in a professional tournament and my nerves got to me. "Jack also chose the ad side and I have been playing the ad side for the last year. I was also serving into the 1:30pm sun with a shot clock (a new experience for me), and to make matters worse the other side held back making the whole thing look like a farce." Everyone has a different definition of success, but it appears the Hall has been less happy than Ackman about how this has played out. While it declined comment to FOS, it reportedly said in a letter to its members and board that it would reject the donation to avoid "any perception of impropriety." It added, 'In hindsight, we would not make this decision again,' referring to Ackman's entry.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Tennis Hall of Fame rejects billionaire Bill Ackman's $10 million gift after widely criticized tournament entry
The International Tennis Hall of Fame has rejected a $10 million gift from hedge-fund billionaire Bill Ackman after his widely criticized entry in its ATP Challenger event, according to Front Office Sports. The 59-year-old Ackman, a longtime tennis fan, competed in the Hall of Fame Open in Rhode Island last week as a doubles team with former top-10 player Jack Sock, losing to Omar Jasika and Bernard Tomic 6-1, 7-5. The Challenger Tour is the tier below the ATP Tour, but still an actual professional tournament. Ackman received a wild-card entry after a history of philanthropy with the Hall of Fame and played like, well, a 59-year-old tennis enthusiast with no professional experience thrown into a group of professionals. Jasika and Tomic were openly going easy on him, but it didn't prevent him and Sock from losing in straight sets. The decision to add a billionaire to the tournament it hosts led to a wave of criticism toward the Hall of Fame in the tennis community, most notably from former world No. 1 Andy Roddick, the last American man to win a Grand Slam singles title. Speaking on his "Quick Served" podcast, Roddick called the match "a total miss," "pathetic," "hard to watch," and "the biggest joke I've watched in professional tennis." He actually said he didn't blame Ackman for his decision to play, placing the onus on the Hall, and praised the billionaire's effort, but said he believed the decisions behind the match would warrant a review. "There was exactly one person on that court trying as hard as they could," Roddick said. "... If you want to argue with me, go back and watch that video. You can't tell me there was more than one person trying as hard as they could every point, or any point. It was a disaster. "This was beneath the Hall of Fame, in my opinion." You can judge the respective effort levels in the video of the match below: Three days after the match, Ackman posted a lengthy tweet in which he defended the Hall of Fame, criticized his own play and pledged to set up a $10 million endowment he would manage, giving the Hall 10% of the principal each year. He also called the match an overall success, describing it as "one of the greatest public relations achievements in tennis history" for the Hall, partially due to his failure on the court, and challenged Roddick to a doubles match. He said the criticism the Hall received was "entirely" on him, but also tried to explain why he played so badly. "What has not been disclosed is that I played a doubles tournament 10 days prior at the HOF, and I played great. The field was comprised of former pros and top college players from around the world, but 55 plus in age. Richey Reneberg and I lost in the semis to the ultimate winners of the tournament in the tie breaker ... Where things went wrong is that I hadn't been beta tested in a professional tournament and my nerves got to me. "Jack also chose the ad side and I have been playing the ad side for the last year. I was also serving into the 1:30pm sun with a shot clock (a new experience for me), and to make matters worse the other side held back making the whole thing look like a farce." Everyone has a different definition of success, but it appears the Hall has been less happy than Ackman about how this has played out. While it declined comment to FOS, it reportedly said in a letter to its members and board that it would reject the donation to avoid "any perception of impropriety," then added: 'In hindsight, we would not make this decision again,' it added, referring to Ackman's wild-card entry.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Tennis Hall of Fame rejects billionaire Bill Ackman's $10 million gift after widely criticized tournament entry
The International Tennis Hall of Fame has rejected a $10 million gift from hedge fund billionaire Bill Ackman after his widely criticized entry in its ATP Challenger event, according to Front Office Sports. The 59-year-old Ackman, a longtime tennis fan, competed in the Hall of Fame Open in Rhode Island last week as a doubles team with former top 10 player Jack Sock, losing to Omar Jasika and Bernard Tomic 6-1, 7-5. The Challenger Tour is the tier below the ATP Tour, but still an actual professional tournament. Ackman received a wild-card entry after a history of philanthropy with the Hall of Fame and played like, well, a 59-year-old tennis enthusiast with no professional experience thrown into a group of professionals. Jasika and Tomic were openly going easy on him, and it didn't prevent him and Sock from losing in straight sets. The decision to add a billionaire to the tournament it hosts led to a wave of criticism toward the Hall of Fame in the tennis community, most notably from former world No. 1 Andy Roddick, the last American man to win a Grand Slam singles title. Speaking on his "Quick Served" podcast, Roddick called the match "a total miss," "pathetic," "hard to watch," and "the biggest joke I've watched in professional tennis." He actually said he didn't blame Ackman for his decision to play, placing the onus on the Hall, and praised the billionaire's effort, but said he believed the decisions behind the match would warrant a review. More: "There was exactly one person on that court trying as hard as they could ... If you want to argue with me, go back and watch that video. You can't tell me there was more than one person trying as hard as they could every point, or any point. It was a disaster. "This was beneath the Hall of Fame, in my opinion." You can judge the respective effort levels in the video of the match below: Three days after the match, Ackman posted a lengthy tweet in which he defended the Hall of Fame, criticized his own play and pledged to set up a $10 million endowment he would manage, giving the Hall 10% of the principal each year. He also called the match an overall success, describing it as "one of the greatest public relations achievements in tennis history" for the Hall, partially due to his failure on the court, and challenged Roddick to a doubles match. He said the criticism the Hall received was "entirely" on him, but also tried to explain why he played so badly. "What has not been disclosed is that I played a doubles tournament 10 days prior at the HOF, and I played great. The field was comprised of former pros and top college players from around the world, but 55 plus in age. Richey Reneberg and I lost in the semis to the ultimate winners of the tournament in the tie breaker ... Where things went wrong is that I hadn't been beta tested in a professional tournament and my nerves got to me. "Jack also chose the ad side and I have been playing the ad side for the last year. I was also serving into the 1:30pm sun with a shot clock (a new experience for me), and to make matters worse the other side held back making the whole thing look like a farce." Everyone has a different definition of success, but it appears the Hall has been less happy than Ackman about how this has played out. While it declined comment to FOS, it reportedly said in a letter to its members and board that it would reject the donation to avoid "any perception of impropriety," then added: 'In hindsight, we would not make this decision again,' it added, referring to Ackman's wildcard entry.
Yahoo
11-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Trumpy Billionaire, 59, Flamed for Pro-Tennis Debut Disaster
Tennis fans are serving up savage critiques after billionaire Bill Ackman stole someone's spot at a tennis tournament and lost miserably. The 59-year-old MAGA financier caused quite a racket Wednesday after he and his doubles partner, retired pro player Jack Sock, failed to win a single set at the Hall of Fame Open, a famed summer tournament in Newport, Rhode Island. After an hour and seven minutes, the pair lost the match 6-1, 7-5. Ackman was forced to step off the court, dripping with sweat. 'I could give a speech to 2,000 people, no problem,' he said. 'But to get in front of 150 people and play tennis is a little different.' Ackman is a major donor to the International Tennis Hall of Fame, which puts on the tournament. But tournament officials claimed that Ackman played as part of a 'wild card' entry granted to Sock, who was eligible for it as he won the 2021 doubles title at the Hall of Fame. Nevertheless, onlookers questioned how Ackman got a spot to play in the first place. Or, as USA Today columnist Dan Wolken wrote, 'Whether it's Wimbledon or the lowest-rung tournament in tennis' minor leagues, there aren't any shortcuts to getting in. Unless, of course, you're billionaire hedge fund guy Bill Ackman.' 'Another mega-billionaire living out his own private dream,' tennis fan Lydia Chambers told The New York Times. 'I hope he's making a huge donation.' Journalist Glenn Greenwald posted on X, 'BillAckman used his vast wealth to worm his way into a professional, ATP-sanctioned tennis tournament at the Hall of Fame at the age of 59. His level was so abysmal that it forced the professional players on the court to pat the ball to him, enraging the tennis world.' 'Bill Ackman (59 y/o billionaire hedge fund manager) somehow bribed his way into a professional tennis tournament today. It went about as well as you could expect,' one X user scoffed. Another said, 'I guess when you're worth $9.5 Billion, tour players will treat you like a 'Make-A-Wish' child in your ATP Challenger match. Bill Ackman is an absolute joke.' A third added, 'Bill Ackman should not have been given a wild card for a professional tennis tournament, when he doesn't play on that level. If Ackman wanted to be mocked for competing in a circus event in which he'd be overmatched, he could have called Jake Paul.' Ackman's excuse for his horrible defeat? Stage fright. 'I can speak in front of an audience of a thousand people or in a TV studio on a broad range of topics without any preparation and without a twinge of fear, but yesterday I had my first real experience with stage fright,' he wrote on X. He even claimed that his body involuntarily froze and his 'difficulty breathing ' was 'not a fitness issue.' 'I regularly play with mid-20-year-old D1 college players and recently retired pros on a familiar court with no audience with none of the same symptoms,' he insisted. Ackman's awkward excuse came amid a flurry of other posts he made expressing his love for Elon Musk and slamming Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani as a 'communist.' His failure also came less than a week after he announced on X that he was playing 'the best tennis of my life.'
