AUSTRALIAN OPEN!

One of the highlights of the Iowa January is the onset of the Australian Open. As it is in the Southern Hemisphere their Summer is concurrent with our Winter. Thus, we get Grand Slam tennis on our late night TV, and early morning TV should the night session in Melbourne spill over into the late night. I will readily admit to many a time setting an alarm to get up in the middle of the night to watch a specific match.

Perhaps the very best thing about the Australian Open is that it signals the imminent arrival of the Coe College Tennis season. Indeed, this year is no exception as the Kohawk Men's Team will get underway on Monday, January 24th, just as the Australian Open enters its exciting second week.

Many questions abound. Will we be treated to another "classic" Nadal/Federer final, or will Djokovic, Murray, or Soderling give us a different look? Will Caroline Wozniaki break through, Clijsters or Henin win again, or maybe Zvonareva gets her emotions under control enough to capture her 1st Slam? Could Samantha Stosur be the 1st Australian woman to win since 1968?

Back home in Iowa there are many questions also. Will the two seniors have anything left in the tank? How about the "Mad Russian", does he finally have his emotions under control? What about the ten new players on the roster, can they contribute right away?

We should have all the answers, or at least a pretty good idea, in the next 16 days!

Stay tuned!