So this is how its gonna work people. So far, the response to joining the tennis pool game is HUGE with 30 of us so far. (If you’re still looking to join, scroll down a bit and check my other posts on how the game works, and post in the comments for your invite into the club). I’m really hoping everyone will be as pumped about this as I am, its a super fun (and smart) game and really only takes like 5-10 minutes, once a week to update.

I’ve always enjoyed doing my “The Week Ahead” posts, especially in weeks like where this where we have FIVE tournaments coming up (not including Hopman Cup) so everyone knows what’s happening, who is where, and quick links to sites and draws. I’m gonna keep doing these, but I’m also going to tie them into the tennis pool results as well (and also give a bit of a slant in the actual posts on who to look at for your team, like a mini “Buy, Sell” segment). And of course, I’ll posts the rankings going into next week. So no excuses for not updating your team! I’ll give you the links to the tourney sites, draws, the top 4 seeds, and all that crap. And then if you want to discuss who you have on your team, what you should be doing etc. in the comments, go nuts (I likely will). So here we go!

Joint: Brisbane (International & 250)

Official Site: Here
Draws: Men & Women
Top Seeds: Men: Dick, The Sex, Gael, Big Berd
Women: Kim, Nads, Ana, Dani

Pretty solid fields for both. Justine is also here, and both her and Kim are really smart buys at a bargain price. Ana isn’t a bad idea either, since her rank is so low. Also, Kleybs has a pretty solid draw and is a good idea as well.
As for the dudes, if you’re looking to spend money, Dick has a pretty simple draw to the final, though there are still questions about his knee. Berd isn’t a bad idea, and neither is Jeremy, with solid draws. Baggy has a decently tough draw, but he’s been training over the off season, and if you’re looking to take a risk with a cheaper last pick, he’s not a bad idea at all.

Men – Chennai (250)

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here
Top Seeds: Sod, Marin, Stan, Tipsy

At solid prices (and with most of the top 10 being inactive, and Rafa and Fed being suicidal picks) Sod and Marin are pretty well no-brains, in my opinion, as they come at solid prices and have pretty solid draws. Tipsy is not a bad idea at all, and Rajeev Ram may be worth taking a look at, with his pretty simple draw and good price.

Men – Doha (250)

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here
Top Seeds: Fed, Rafa, Koala, The Youz

Somehow I feel like we were just here… anyway, Rafa and Fed are both kind of suicidal picks, as either of them will take up about half your payroll, and considering there’s so many other tournaments going on, its really not necessary. Also, for this reason, it might not be good to invest in too many guys here, as well as having Koala in the top half and deadly, its going to be tough for lower ranked guys to make it beyond something like the quarters. Ivo will likely win you two matches, and The Youz isn’t a bad idea either, for the price.

Women – Auckland (International)

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here
Top Seeds: Flavs, Nails, Wicky, Franny

While Brisbane features more top names, as well as two big “bang for your buck” Belgians, the Auckland draw should not be forgotten, as you can likely pick up some players who could carry you far. Flavs and Nails both have relatively simple draws, and Gypsy, Wicky, and Franny could easily win your two, three or more matches.

Happy picking everyone! Don’t forget you can change your team again (drop 3 and add 3 for both men and women) next week and then again before AO, which means eight total players you have now, you’ll still have heading into Melbourne.