Ocean Edge Adidas Smash News Articles
The following articles, mostly from the Cape Cod Times, do a pretty good job
of describing the event.
My own articles and photos are under construction and will appear in due time.
By ROB DUCA, Cape Cod Times, July 14, 2002
By ROB DUCA
STAFF WRITER
BREWSTER - Tim Gullikson loved Cape Cod.
Whether he was relaxing on the soft grass outside his condo at the Ocean Edge Golf & Tennis Resort, happily talking tennis, or feeding serves to pupils Mary Joe Fernandez and Aaron Krickstein under a glistening sun, or competing in the Grand Champions tournaments of the late 1980s, there always seemed to be a smile on his face.
"Ocean Edge was a special place for Tim to spend time with his family," remembers Scott Stettner, a close friend and president of Corcoran Jennison Hospitality at Ocean Edge.
And the feeling toward Tim at Ocean Edge was mutual, which is the reason fans will have the opportunity on Tuesday and Wednesday to watch tennis legends on display in the Adidas Tennis Smash.
The exhibition event features superstars Rod Laver and Stefan Edberg, along with Stan Smith and current touring pros Jan-Michael Gambill, Jenny Hopkins and the doubles team of twin brothers Bob and Mike Bryan. Tom Gullikson, Tim's twin brother, also will play.
But it's much more than that. It's about Tim Gullikson and the foundation he inspired while battling a brain tumor that would take his life in 1996 at age 44.
"Tim fell into that category of people who don't have a bad bone in their body," Stettner said. "The foundation represents what kind of guy he was. When he was sick, he wanted to form the foundation to help other people's families and friends dealing with such an illness. His concern was always for others."
Gullikson earned a career-high ranking of 18 on the ATP circuit in 1978 and won 16 doubles titles, including 10 with his brother. He earned fame following his playing days as a coach.
In addition to mentoring Fernandez and Krickstein, he also coached Pete Sampras and Martina Navratilova.
The second annual Smash - which is actually a two-day festival of golf and tennis pro-ams, junior clinics and a gala dinner culminating in the exhibition matches - raised $25,000 last summer for the Tim & Tom Gullikson Foundation.
In the past six years, the foundation has become a major fund-raising source for support, wellness and college scholarship programs throughout the country. Officials are optimistic they'll double that amount this year.
"We've got three former No. 1 players, covering the 1960s (Laver), the 1970s (Smith) and the '80s (Edberg)," Stettner said. "That's pretty unique."
In Laver, the great "Rocket" from Australia, fans will see the man many consider the finest player ever to wield a racket. Laver is the only player to win the Grand Slam twice, capturing Wimbledon, the U.S. Open, the French Open and the Australian Open in 1962 and 1969.
Edberg, the world's No. 1 player from 1990-92, is making his first appearance on Cape Cod. The Swedish superstar captured Wimbledon (1988, '90), the U.S. Open (1991-92) and the Australian Open (1985, '87) and was one of the most popular players ever on the ATP circuit.
"It's an incredible honor to participate in such a wonderful event," he said. "I'm looking forward to returning to the United States to help raise money for such an important cause."
Smith reached the No. 1 ranking in 1971, the year he won Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.
By ROB DUCA, Cape Cod Times, July 17, 2002
'Placid assassin' was early glimpse at the new face of men's tennis
BREWSTER - Bud Schultz could be forgiven for what he was thinking. It was the early 1980s, and Schultz, now the tennis pro at Longwood Cricket Club in Brookline, was a 22-year-old rookie hoping to make a splash on the ATP tour. But in consecutive qualifying tournaments, he was beaten by teenagers.
"I was hammered by a 15- and 16-year-old," he recalls. "I was thinking that maybe I hadn't made the best (career) choice. Good thing it was in Germany, because I drank a lot of beer afterward."
Schultz doesn't feel so bad anymore. The two kids went on to enjoy fairly successful tennis careers. The first was Boris Becker, and the second was Stefan Edberg. Both eventually became No. 1 in the world.
"Actually, I think I was 17," Edberg says, "but I remember playing Bud."
Tennis fans around the world still remember Edberg, 36, who was on Cape Cod yesterday for the first time to participate in the two-day Adidas Tennis Smash at the Ocean Edge Resort and Golf Club. Exhibition matches will be held today featuring Edberg, Australian legend Rod Laver and American Jan-Michael Gambill.
Edberg was never a marquee kind of guy, but he was a marquee player. The lanky, handsome Swede stepped away from the tour 5 1/2 years ago at the relatively tender age of 30. He was no longer the best player in the world, but he remained a competitive force.
"I probably could have played for a few more years, but I wanted to finish my career still playing good tennis, rather than start sliding down the slope," he says.
'You can only do it for so long'
Talk to him and you'll believe there are absolutely no regrets. He's still in shape, playing twice a week, but ask if he misses the all-consuming pressure and grind of the tour and what you'll get is a smile, a few seconds of thought and, finally, "I don't miss a whole lot. I had my time. Maybe being around the locker room and the competition. But being at the top of the game is demanding.
"You need to stay in shape, stay focused. Everything surrounds your tennis. Your life is built around tennis. You can only do it for so long.
"I quite enjoy my life now," he adds, an even larger smile flashing across his face. "I think I stopped at the right time."
After living in London for years to escape his country's hefty tax rate, he has moved his family back to Sweden, preferring to raise his two children in his homeland. "Life is more important than money," he says simply.
During his heyday in the late '80s and early '90s, he twice captured Wimbledon, the U.S. Open and the Australian Open and earned that No. 1 ranking between 1990 and '92.
He also earned a reputation as the consummate professional. He was ever polite, ever classy, never controversial. Along with Pete Sampras, he was all that was right with the game - and, a few cynics suggest, partly what was wrong.
Placid assassin
Tennis was never bigger than in the late 1970s and early '80s, when John McEnroe and Jimmy Connors ruled the sport, ripping winners and linesmen with equal ferocity. They were colorful and controversial, and fans loved to follow their antics - some with disdain, some with grudging respect, and some with unabashed admiration.
But times have changed. This month's Wimbledon men's final attained lower television ratings than NASCAR and soccer. While the women's game is surging, thanks to the Williams sisters and Jennifer Capriati, the men's game is wallowing in a pool of faceless stars that no one seems inclined to watch.
Australia's Lleyton Hewitt won Wimbledon. Could you pick him out of a lineup?
In his prime, Edberg faced similar swipes at his lack of personality. Like his countryman, Bjorn Borg, he was a placid assassin.
"That's probably typical Swedish, keeping a poker face," Edberg concedes. "But within yourself, things are boiling."
You never would have known it. The only color in his game was from his blond locks and, for tennis purists, in his devastating serve-and-volley game.
"He's very quiet, one of the nicest men you'd ever want to meet," Schultz says. "But he always had a big game. It wasn't any different when he was 16. Just a great, great player."
"Borg was the guy for my generation," Edberg says. "He set an example of how to behave on the court. I didn't play the way he did, but he definitely was someone I looked up to."
Which reminds people of the current problem: Whom can tennis fans look up to these days? Hewitt? Andy Roddick? An aging Sampras? An inconsistent Andre Agassi?
Graphite rackets wielded by bigger, stronger, mostly anonymous players have turned the men's game into a series of aces and lightening-quick volleys. Strategy is gone, rivalries are missing, and fans have turned away in droves.
"What people want," Edberg figures, "is to see good guy vs. bad guy. Maybe there aren't enough bad guys around."
Edberg was always one of the good guys, with a bad (as in scary) game. Just ask Bud Schultz.
Rob Duca is a Times staff writer. He can be reached at 508-862-1177 or rduca@capecodonline.com
Exhibition at Ocean Edge supports Gullikson Foundation.
By JOE WATSON, Cape Cod Times, July 18, 2002
Exhibition at Ocean Edge supports Gullikson Foundation.
By JOE WATSON
CONTRIBUTING WRITER
BREWSTER - Tom Baker called it "another bonus day."
He sat in the shade in a sand-covered corner of Ocean Edge Resort in Brewster yesterday, his face lathered in sunblock at the Adidas Tennis Smash.
Baker watched in awe as 63-year-old Rod Laver glided across a tennis court for a backhand lob, the first time Baker had seen Laver play since an exhibition match in Westchester, N.Y., more than a dozen years ago.
Stefan Edberg was making a run at another Grand Slam title the last time Baker witnessed one of the Swede's signature volleys at the U.S. Open in the early '90s. He couldn't remember the last time he had seen Stan Smith serve up a smashing ace.
But there was Baker yesterday afternoon, seeing them all take part in the event's second showing on Cape Cod, benefiting the Tim and Tom Gullikson Foundation.
"Did you see that? That was simply a tremendous volley," said Baker, a 64-year-old recently retired high school tennis coach, as Edberg began a methodical rally in the 10th game of his match with Jan-Michael Gambill.
Baker was thankful to be here, but even more thankful to be alive after being diagnosed with colon cancer in February of 2001. Eighteen months later, the Long Island native knows just how important the exhibition is to Tom Gullikson, whose brother Tim succumbed to cancerous brain tumors in 1996.
"I feel for all cancer patients and their survivors and family members," said Baker. "This is something that I'm sure Tom is appreciative of."
Yesterday's exhibition drew a full house of 600 spectators to Ocean Edge to witness three eight-game matches featuring Laver, Smith, Edberg, Gambill, Jenny Hopkins and the Bryan brothers, Bob and Mike.
In the first match, doubles partners Laver and Smith paired up against Hopkins and Tom Gullikson.
The match, won by Laver and Smith, 8-4, was highlighted by Laver's surprising mobility, four years since a stroke and a loss of feeling throughout his right leg.
"How great was it to see Rod come up with those shots?" said Smith, a U.S. Open and Wimbledon champion in 1971 and 1972, respectively.
The match also saw constant ribbing from emcee Brett Haber of CBS, who sat in the scorer's chair heckling his good friend Gullikson throughout most of the match.
The second match, between Edberg and Gambill, marked Edberg's first appearance in the U.S. in more than five years. After falling behind 6-3, Edberg began a furious rally, filled with familiar soft volleys just over the net and out of the reach of Gambill, that brought Edberg back to within 6-5.
"Those shots were just ridiculous," said Gambill, who eventually won the match 8-5. "You can't play exhibition-style against that guy. He isn't going to let up, so how can you?"
The final match paired Edberg and Gambill in a doubles finale against the Bryan brothers, who captured four ATP doubles titles in 2001, and won 8-5.
"You've got to keep up with those young guys," said Edberg. "It was good to play again in front of a crowd."
Baker, who says his colon cancer is in remission after going through 24-hour chemotherapy for six weeks in 2001, was in bliss.
"I'm a fan of all the players here. To see Edberg's volley going to the net, the perfect
execution... it's just so powerful," said Baker.
Tournament officials said the event raised more than $25,000 for the foundation.
PRNewswire
Jaguar Sponsors the 2nd Annual Adidas Tennis Smash To Benefit the Tim & Tom Gullikson Foundation
BREWSTER, Mass., July 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Jaguar North America will sponsor the 2nd Annual Adidas Tennis Smash at the Ocean Edge Resort and Golf Club in Cape Cod July 16 & 17. Tennis stars Jan-Michael Gambill, Stefan Edberg, Rod Laver, Meghann Shaughnessy, Tom Gullikson and other touring pros will raise money for the Tim and Tom Gullikson Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to funding care and support programs for brain tumor patients and their families.
"We are proud to sponsor such an important event," comments Simon Sproule, vice president of Communications and Marketing Services for Aston Martin Jaguar Land Rover North America. "The Ocean Edge Resort and Golf Club is the perfect backdrop to display our vehicles for this very worthy cause."
Jaguar will showcase its full model line on the grounds of Ocean Edge, including the new 2003 S-TYPE R. In addition, Jaguar will display an XK8 convertible with a one-of-a-kind interior designed by Burberry.
