Volvo Car Open 2017 – Day 3

Day 3 of the Volvo Car Open started with me hanging out with Jennifer Brady at Charleston Day School. The kids LOVED her!

Then it was on to the MUSC Children’s Hospital where Darija Jurak and Misaki Doi took time out of their busy practice schedules to go and play with some kids that really needed some cheering up!

I then zipped over to the Daniel Island Club to photograph the All Access Media Hour, where 8 of the top seeds gather to be interviewed by various media outlets. Madison Keys, Johanna Konta Venus Williams, Samantha Stosur, Elena Vesnina, KiKi Bertens, and Daria Gavrilova were among the stars I got to photograph. Even last year’s Champion, Sloan Stephens, made in appearance, in spite of not being able to play this year due to injury.

Finally, I headed to the Family Circle Tennis Center to photograph several matches, including former Champions Andrea Petkovic and Jelena Jankovic, plus local home-town hero Shelby Rogers, before the rain drove us all indoors.

It’s all in a day’s work when you’re the official photographer at this world-class professional women’s tennis tournament!!!

Volvo Car Open 2017 – Iconic Photo Shoot

Day two of the Volvo Car Open had me photographing what’s known as the Iconic Photo Shoot. This is where we photograph two of the top players at an iconic Charleston location. Previous locations have included the beach on Isle of Palms, and the flight deck of The USS Yorktown!

This year the selected location was The Cistern on the College of Charleston campus. The team from WTA even set up a net across The Cistern so the players could play a few points during the photo shoot. Before the players arrived, the C of C tennis team arrived for a couple cool photos!

Eventually, Elena Vesnina and Daria Gavrilova arrived for the shoot. We all had a BLAST and came away with some really cool images with which to promote this year’s Volvo Car Open!!! 🙂

Volvo Car Open 2017 – Qualies

A big sight of relief! After another year of anticipation and preparation, day 1 of the 2017 Volvo Car Open is under the belt.

The first Saturday is always full of fun. It’s not only the first day of qualifying for the un-seeded players, but it’s also Family Day. There are tons of activities for the kids, tennis clinics, autograph sessions, and of course world-class tennis matches!

To add to the excitement, this year the PowerShares series was moved from the second Saturday to the first Saturday of the tournament. Featuring legends of the game like John MacEnroe, Andy Roddick, James Blake, and Mark Philippousis, the evening was not only a showcase of the men’s talent, but also entertaining with the humerous banter between them!

Stay tuned for tons more action to come as I cover this annual WTA tournament, my 16th as their official photographer!!!

Volvo Car Open – Champions Photo

With Sloane’s big breakthrough this week at the Volvo Car Open, a NEW Champion is crowned!!!

After winning one match in five previous Charleston tries, Sloane Stephens, the 23-year-old American, found her fire this year. She made her first-ever final here, saving a match in the quarterfinals and playing standout tennis before Angelique Kerber was forced to retire. In the championship bout, she stopped a red-hot Elena Vesnina, earning her fourth WTA singles title, third in 2016 and first-ever on clay.

To top it all off, besides winning the trophy, plus a $128,100 check, she gets a NEW CAR!!! With Volvo Car USA as the new title sponsor, it had one more surprise up its sleeve by presenting Stephens with a brand-new limited edition Volvo. “Oh my goodness!” a shocked Sloane said on court. “You guys, I Just won a car.”

As the official photographers, after our champion had a chance to freshen up and catch her breath, Alice, Arielle, and I whisked her away for a private photo shoot with her new hardware. We had fun using our cameras as “stand-in” trophies to test the light. It was a chilly, overcast afternoon. But Sloan was a real trooper. And her hardware was waaay prettier than ours. We all had a BLAST!

CONGRATULATIONS to our new champion, Sloan Stephens!!!

Volvo Car Open – Day 7

Well, it was an eventful week! After eight 12-hour days in a row, of constant hustling, shooting, editing, and transmitting images for the tournament, we finally have a NEW Volvo Car Open Champion!!!

Congratulations to the French duo of Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic for taking home the doubles trophy.

And congratulations to American Sloan Stephens for weathering several years of early-round losses before finally going the distance and taking home the 2016 crown…AND a brand new limited-edition Volvo Car!!! 🙂

Volvo Car Open – VIP Welcome Reception at The Cedar Room

As the Official Photographer of the Volvo Car Open, my job isn’t just to cover on-court action! Here are a few scenes from this year’s amazing VIP Welcome Reception.

This was the first year it was held at the Cedar Room. I must say, this venue at the beautifully restored old Cigar Factory is absolutely incredible! Many thanks to Graham, Lauren, and all the talented folks that made this year’s event such a huge success!

Of course the usual VIP’s from Meredith came out in full force. This year also saw all the incredible folks from Volvo, as well as other great sponsors like Lisette, in attendance. Tennis celebrities like Pam Shriver, Cliff Drysdale, Rennae Stubbs, and Lisa Raymond were there. Even the one and only Martha Stewart made an appearance!

There are many behind-the-scenes parties and events that I have the pleasure of photographing…but the VIP Welcome Reception is always one of my favorites!

Angelique Kerber

Congratulations to 2015 Family Circle Cup Champion, and now 2016 Australian Open Champion, Angelique Kerber!!!

Less than a year after winning in Charleston, Kerber stunned Serena Williams down under in a 6-4 3-6 6-4 thriller. This is her first grand slam title! The big-hitting lefty’s accomplishment deprived the American of a 22nd major title, which would have tied Kerber’s fellow German, Steffi Graf, for the lead in the Open Era.

Kerber sunk to her knees when Williams sent a forehand volley sailing long on match point. Emotions soon manifested themselves in tears as the gravity of what the 7th seed had accomplished finally sunk in. Later, the legendary Steffi Graf, one of my personal favorites of all time, called Kerber to congratulate her.

Hopefully we’ll see Angelique Kerber back this year at the newly renamed Volvo Car Open!!! 🙂

Best Tennis Town in America

“As announced live at the US Open in New York, Charleston has WON the 2010 Best Tennis Town in America contest, ahead of second-place finisher Atlanta, GA and third-place finisher Richmond, VA.   Along with the incredible the honor (and bragging rights), the lowcountry area will receive a $100,000 award to be used for tennis programming and facility enhancements.”

As an active player in the Charleston tennis community, and the official photographer of the Family Circle Cup professional WTA Tour tennis tournament, I’m excited to share this video with everyone.  Look for me in the blue shirt (hint: I’m the one with all the camera gear!) at the 2:46 minute mark while photographing a player appearance during the Family Circle Cup several years ago!!!  🙂