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48 °F Forecast | Road Cams Thursday, January 27, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Opportunities Moving to Southern Oregon? MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend May 1, 2004 Jonathan Stark, right, takes a breather with playing partner Will Forsyth and former coach Frank Inn during their exhibition doubles match. Together again Life-long friends Jonathan Stark and Will Forsyth return to Medford as doubles partners to kick off Tennis Fest By FRANK SILOW Mail Tribune Jonathan Stark and Will Forsyth became friends in kindergarten riding their bicycles together to the newly opened Southern Oregon Tennis Club. The two life-long friends returned to Medford as doubles partners for the first time in a high-level competitive setting. The exhibition match Friday at the Rogue Valley Swim and Tennis Club against the University of Oregon doubles team of Arron Spencer and Sven Swinnen kicked off the United States Tennis Association Pacific Northwest Section Tennis Fest/Medford. Stark and Forsyth will participate in instructional clinics for the tennis celebration today at both Medford tennis clubs. Forsyth takes part in a session from 8:45-11 a.m. at the S.O. Tennis Club, while Stark will be available at a 2:30-4 p.m. clinic at the R.V. Swim and Tennis Club. Stark demonstrated flashes of brilliance that brought him a No. 1 doubles ranking on the ATP tour, but Spencer and Swinnen held on for a 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 12-10 third-set tiebreaker win. Advertisement "I came in expecting a lot," said Spencer, a 2002 graduate from Sheldon High in Eugene. "Growing up in Oregon, I’ve known his name (Stark) since I was a kid. His serve is unbelievable. You can’t read the thing. You can tell he’s been at the top level. He doesn’t miss shots that a lot of people miss." Stark, Medford’s greatest tennis player, and Forsyth, not far behind, learned the game for most of their youth from S.O. Tennis Club head pro Frank Inn. They both graduated from South Medford High in 1989. Stark won the state Class 4A singles title as a freshman and junior, the only years he played high school tennis. Forsyth lost in the state finals in three sets his senior year. Inn remembers Forsyth’s championship match well: "(Forsyth) was in awful pain with cramps in the third set. He kept playing on. It showed his courage." Inn says Stark was precocious at a young age. "(Stark) had tremendous athletic ability," says Inn. "He was a good sized 11-year-old kid and could do things at a powerful level." Stark went on to play at Stanford for two years before a 12-year stint on the ATP tour. Forsyth played collegiately at Notre Dame for four years, then gave the professional tennis satellite tour a go for a couple of years. But the two always remained in touch. Forsyth was in Paris for Stark’s greatest professional victory — the French Open doubles title with Byron Black in 1994. "When I was in college, Jon was really a good resource for me about professional tennis," says Forsyth. "He was always helpful." In Friday’s exhibition match, the only break in the first two sets came on Forsyth’s serve in the third game of the first set. In the third set 10-point tiebreaker, Stark was serving on match point, then suffered two straight breaks to fall behind 9-10. Forsyth and Stark got one break back by winning a point on Swinnen’s serves, but Forsyth double faulted for the match. "You always want to play better and pick up where you left off," said Forsyth. "There was a lot of big serving. Sven has a heater too." It was the first time University of Oregon tennis coach Chris Russell got to see Stark close up. "It’s not only his speed, but his action on his second serve," said Russell. "He hits a clean ball and has terrific hands and anticipation." Russell was also impressed with the Stark-Forsyth combination. "With their know-how and positioning they can make up for things," said Russell. "They can do things on the court that are unique." But in the end it probably came down to the amount of tennis Spencer and Swinnen have played together this season. "Those guys have played so much that they were seeing the ball so much better," said Inn, who was on the sidelines coaching his two prize pupils. "That was the difference." Win or lose, Stark seemed to relish the moment. "We took it to the limit," said Stark. "It was fun seeing a lot of people I haven’t seen in a long time. And I can still hit a few good ones from time to time." There’s no doubt about that. Reach reporter Frank Silow at 776-4480, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers