Rose City Classic
The Rose City Classic is an annual tradition at Welland TC, played this year during the week of June 10-16. We don’t know exactly how many times this has happened, but it’s likely in the vicinity of 50-55 years. The legendary Dutchy Doerr became head professional in 1969. Over the following 25 years, he excelled in every detail of the club-pro playbook, and built the Rose City Open into a major event on the Ontario tennis calendar.
Things are a bit lower-profile these days, but it’s still the highlight of the June schedule. Longevity is important at Welland TC, and club pro Dave Boland has been running the tournament matches for over 25 years as well. The draws are a great mix of players who have been in the tournament for decades, alongside some of the many players who have relocated to Niagara in recent years and young adults who came up through the ranks of the club’s junior program. Club president Linda Anderson stresses that Rose City is a regional tournament, and was happy to welcome players from the Hamilton and Halton areas of SouthWest Region this year.
Although the tournament finale is on the weekend, the not-to-be-missed sessions are the weeknight evenings. The patio overlooking the red clay courts hums with happy conversation for many hours each night, old friendships being celebrated and new ones formed. This is truly the sport of tennis at its best.
The winners of the Rose City Classic are recognized on the Doug Smith Memorial Trophy.
The history of the Welland TC was captured by Pam Olley in a wonderful 2018 article in ONTENNIS Magazine. It’s well worth following the link and having a read.
Hal Evans produced a video of the matches on YouTube. You can watch it here :