SAVANNAH, April 9, 2019 (Press Release)
The USTA announced that Paolo Lorenzi of Rome, Italy will headline the competitors for the 2019 St. Joseph’s/Candler (SJ/C) Savannah Challenger, a USTA Pro Circuit & ATP Challenger 80 event, hosted at The Landings Club, April 29-May 5.
The tournament is the seventh USTA Pro Circuit men’s Challenger event of the 2019 season. It is the last of three consecutive Challenger tournaments held on clay courts to help develop players on the surface leading up to the 2019 French Open. There are eight USTA Pro Circuit men’s events (ITF World Tennis Tour events and Challengers combined) currently scheduled to take place in the USTA Southern Section in 2019.
Currently No. 108, Lorenzi is the highest-ranked of the 40 men who received direct acceptance into the 48-player main draw. Four players will compete in the qualifying tournament April 29, for two other berths. The local tournament organizers and the USTA will also award wild card entries to complete the field.
The clay court specialist has reached four ATP Tour singles finals, raising the trophy in 2016 at the Generali Open Kitzbühel. Lorenzi reached a career-high ranking of No. 33 in the world in May 2017. The 37-year-old has also claimed one ATP Tour doubles title and reached the quarter-finals of Roland Garros in 2017.
Lorenzi is third in all-time singles titles on the ATP Challenger Tour and has claimed at least one title per year since 2014. He holds 26 ATP Challenger Tour titles overall (21 in singles, five in doubles).
Joining Lorenzi in the main draw is 2018 finalist Christian Harrison and four-time Challenger singles titlist Noah Rubin. Next Gen ATP Finals contenders Corentin Moutet, Ulises Blanch, and Stefan Kozlov are also expected to compete.
New for 2019, all Landings Club members will receive free grounds admission April 29-May 3 and non-member grounds admission is $10.
Stadium admission to the SJ/C Savannah Challenger is $15 daily April 29-May 3 and $20 daily May 4-5. Children 12 and under receive $5 admission while children six and under are free. Weekly tickets are available for $100 and all tickets are available daily during the tournament at the Franklin Creek Tennis Center front entrance (910 Franklin Creek Road, Savannah, GA 31411).
The official player acceptance list is subject to change and can be viewed here.
