Doubling up on the fun
The Men's Night Doubles
By Pat Gee
Tournament has become the premiere
tennis event in Kailua
Special to the Star-BulletinONLY a handful of contenders are capable of winning it, but dozens who aren't even pretenders to the throne sign up year after year just to be a part of the camaraderie. Hawaii's top professional and amateur tennis players have turned the annual Kailua Racquet Club's Men's Night Doubles Tournament into a premiere event, the unofficial Big Show for high quality competition and unabashed fun for players and spectators over the past 27 years.
Showtime starts July 27 with qualifying rounds for the 42 teams.
The eight seeded teams, usually consisting of tennis pros or nationally ranked college players, don't even begin to work up a sweat til Aug. 3.
Bruce Nagel, tournament director, says most of the qualifiers "enter for the specialness of it all" and have their own set of goals, even if it's to win one match or even one game.
"Last year, one team's goal was to win one game, and they did just that," said Nagel. "They lost, 6-0, 6-1, and when they won their only game at 4-1 in the second, they celebrated. They would have been happy to shake hands right there and walk off the court."
Nagel says "most tennis players are hams" who love playing in front of the large, enthusiastic crowds that gather even during the qualifying rounds. Several thousand attend the event every year, with hundreds overflowing the stands for the final.
Dave "Ozzie" Wilkinson made it as far as the third round of the qualifiers once in the 15 years he has entered the event. The 41-year-old artist from Kailua admits he will never win any prize money, which is $6,000 this year, although he'd like to win the Peter Isaak sportsman trophy, since he was good friends with the former head pro before he died.
Known for his raucous on-court behavior, Wilkinson says "the only way I can play" is after having a few beers. "It loosens the body up," he said. The players get free cold beer. "That's why I enter every year," Wilkinson said.
Mark Walker, a 46-year-old general contractor from Kailua, has often partnered with Wilkinson in the 20 times he has entered what he calls the "Big Event." He used to dream of winning it some day, but his goal this year is "just to win one round."
"Everything after that would be gravy," he said.
Walker once reached the main draw 12-15 years ago, but he knows it's unrealistic now with all the talented college kids in the draw.
Now it's just plain "good fun" to compete against other players of his caliber and then watch some great matches after he has lost, Walker says.
Dennis Hida, a 33-year-old computer programmer from Kaneohe, has gotten close but never quite made it into the main draw in the 10 years he has entered.
"I don't see not winning the tournament as a problem," Hida said.
The main reason he and his friends enter is to be a part of "one of if not the best tournaments in Hawaii."
Hida and Dan Oshima, a 38-year-old banker from Kaneohe, say having a supportive crowd that cheers the players on makes it more exciting than most tournaments and watching their friends play in highly competitive matches is a fun thing to do after work.
"There's never been a year I thought I would win the tournament," said Oshima.
Every year his main goal is just to win one round. He started playing when he was just a beginner in the C League, but he has marked his progress every year in the tournament, becoming an A player in the 10 years he has entered.
Somehow, it's all the more sweet when an underdog becomes one of the top dogs.
Such is the case with Andrew Csordas, who got beat up by the big guys when he and Chris Leong, another wet-behind-the-ears kid from Kailua, entered the tournament several years ago. Granted, Csordas and Leong have youth on their side.
Csordas is 21, plays No. 1 one singles at the University of California at Davis and was an All-American pick this year. He and Leong, who also is a top singles player at a mainland university, made it to the semis of the Night Doubles last year after breaking into the main draw a few years ago.
Csordas says he won't be entering the tournament this year because of employment obligations but is making it his major goal to win it next year.
He grew up learning the game at the Kailua Racquet Club and has always "really loved this tournament" because the crowds were always so encouraging when he was a novice and had no business stepping onto the court against the more experienced players, Csordas says.
According to Nagel, the perennial so-called "losers" really are "the ones who make this tournament what it is. Without them, it wouldn't be as exciting" and the crowd support not as warm, he says.
"This is a close-knit community," Nagel said.
"Most of the people know everyone else or have played against each other," he added. "There's a lot of camaraderie and a lot of them enter for the specialness of it all."
The facts
What 27th annual Kailua Racquet Club Men's Night Doubles Tournament
