Georgia freshman Cole Gromley earns Atlanta WC, joining Isner and Tiafoe
When the ATP event in Indianapolis lost the license in 2009, it switched to Atlanta, Georgia and stayed there ever since, with nine editions held so far. Home players were the dominant force right from the start, occupying 13 out of 18 places in the final and lifting seven out of eight titles, with one name standing out as the most prominent figure of the BB&T Atlanta Open. Even before the start of the ATP event, John Isner had been the favorite tennis player in Atlanta, competing for the Georgia Bulldogs between 2003-2006 and winning more than 280 matches in singles and doubles!
The Atlanta-Isner connection became even tighter when the ATP Tour came to this city, with Isner advancing into eight finals and winning five of the last six trophies, losing to Nick Kyrgios in the title match in 2016. John is only the fifth American player who has managed to win the same ATP tournament at least five times after Jimmy Connors, John McEnroe, Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras and he will chase another crown in July, signing to play in Atlanta together with Frances Tiafoe, Taylor Fritz and Reilly Opelka.
A year ago, Emil Reinberg from the University of Georgia had the opportunity to experience ATP action in Atlanta, receiving a wild card and losing in the opening round to the Russian veteran Mikhail Youznhy. College tennis will have the representative in the main draw in two months as well, with Georgia Tech freshman Cole Gromley earning the invitation and preparing for an ATP debut on Tuesday, July 23 in the night session. Born in 1999, Gromley is a Norcross native and Johns Creek graduate, never playing junior events outside the USTA and still waiting to compete in the main draw on the professional level. In his first year with the Jackets, Cole won 12 singles matches from 21 matches, ten of those in dual matches.
“Eddie Gonzalez has been very passionate about giving our best local players a shot against the best players in the world on a big stage. This year Cole Gromley will get what Eddie calls the Rocky Balboa opportunity,” said Georgia Tech head coach Kenny Thorne. “It is an absolute honor to have a Georgia Tech current player in the draw. It should be a fun night and I look forward to being there.”
from Tennis World USA http://bit.ly/2M8lpsi
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