Spokane, WA, WPH Press, 10/29/23
The Spokane Club played host to the 56th Annual Lilac Tournament, featuring a strong Men’s Open singles field comprised of current, past and aspiring Race 4 Eight pros at one of the country’s most storied venues. Many of the top stars in the Men’s Open singles would be making the 1400-mile trip to the Race 4 Eight Tucson Memorial next weekend.
Men’s Open Singles
Race 4 Eight #20 and current Oregon State champion Kyle “King” English highlighted the Lilac field that also included Race 4 Eight #33 John Chapman, former top twelve pro Chris Tico, former Race 4 Eight pro Pete Svennungsen and top Pacific Northwest star Rob Bell.
Rene Lopez blitzed Chris Tico in two games in the upper bracket semifinal to advance to Sunday’s final.
Kyle English and John Chapman played a two-plus hour marathon in the bottom bracket semifinal.
English took a razor close first game, surviving game points to take a one-game lead.
“I was playing pretty well,” stated Chapman. “I had two serves at 20 in the first game and couldn’t get it done.”
Chapman quickly erased the disappointment of the first game to take control in the second to force a third. “In the second game you could tell he was getting a little tired and worn out and I was in control most of the game,” stated Chapman.
Chapman took a 4-1 lead in the tiebreaker but a twenty-plus shot rally at 4-1 spelled doom for Chapman. “My legs completely gave out (after that rally,” stated Chapman. “I felt awesome till that point. Calves quads and hamstrings all started to cramp at once. It was a crazy feeling. It was a fun atmosphere, lots of people watching.”
English scored the final ten points of the tiebreaker to advance to the final.
“Chapman is playing well and I was tired,” stated English.
Battling fatigue and soreness, English overcame NorCal’s Rene Lopez in two games in the final. “The only reason I won is because of the weight loss (English lost twenty pounds from May until October),” stated English. “I played well though. Much much less hand errors.”
With the Lilac title, English has firmly cemented his status as best in the Pacific Northwest.
“Kyle played well,” stated Chapman. “He’s quick and gets to a lot of balls and has a good hop serve that was working.”
English teamed with Washington’s Fred Schoener to slam the doubles.
Semifinals
Lopez def Tico 21-12, 21-11
English def Chapman 21-20, 12-21, 11-4
Final: English def Lopez 21-15, 21-16
Men’s Doubles Final: English/Schoener def Svennungsen/Chapman 21-14, 21-19
Follow all of the brackets from the 56th Annual Lilac Tournament HERE
David Fink
WPH Senior Writer