I was chatting with Brian Wilson in the courtside bar after his semifinal win yesterday when I realized that if he wins on Sunday he will have claimed four CRC championships. I suggested that we might have to name the trophy after him if he kept on winning and Brian suggested that perhaps a permanent locker – like Wimbledon provides its champions – would be more appropriate.

I thought he was right.

Fifteen minutes later we had the incentive confirmed: If Brian Wilson can win today’s final with partner Chris Haggard he’ll claim his fourth CRC Invitational championship and a permanent CRC legacy: an honorary locker emblazoned with a plaque commemorating his remarkable achievement.

Now the toughest decision remains: should the locker be commemorated in the men’s or women’s locker room?

Vote on the CRC Invitational Facebook page and stay tuned.

One of the most striking observations from the first few days of tennis here is the razor thin difference between the top seeds and the rest of the field.

Every player in the draw has the strokes. There isn’t a single player who doesn’t possess a howitzer forehand, a nuclear serve and pinpoint volleys. What appears to make the difference is which players can count on their strokes when the pressure is greatest.

It’s a mental difference, not a physical one.

This difference was made demonstrably clear while watching the #4 seeds Rylan Rizza and his partner Darrin Cohen battle their way into the semifinals.

I their first match, Rizza and Cohen met two young players from Ohio State who took them to three sets. The college team played fearlessly and appeared to be headed for a third set tiebreaker when the fine line became apparent.

One double fault. A couple of volleys that were guided instead of struck. Footwork that suddenly appeared sodden instead of nimble. And a break of serve that decided the match.

The quarterfinal and semifinal matches were nearly identical. Outstanding play by both teams, with the outcome decided by the smallest of margins. A backhand volley that found the lines early suddenly drifts long, a service return that formerly dove at the server’s feet now clips the tape instead and suddenly it’s over.

For the first time in tournament history, the top 4 seeds advanced to the semifinals. This is the first tournament without early upsets, despite some three set thrillers that pushed the top seeds to the brink.

And now that the number 1 seed has advanced to the finals we wait to see if the #2 seed joins them and we get to determine if Jim’s seeding was remarkably prescient or just lucky.

The headlines around the country have been obsessed this past week with record temperatures and drought conditions. Cleveland has been a sweltering pool of misery, with temps in the 90′s and lawns drying to a crispy brown.

So we were pretty confident that this might be the year that we actually play a clay court tournament instead of a mostly-clay or partly-clay event.

Maybe next year.

Just after the start of play on the outdoor clay courts on Friday afternoon, Armageddon appeared in the western skies and advanced malevolently towards our courts. The lightning arrived first, immediately suspending play, and the downpour followed closely behind, drowning the courts and moving play inside to the hard courts.

From a fan perspective, the move indoors is disappointing. The character of clay court tennis is distinctly different from the game played on hard courts. Indoors the game is more reliant on raw power. Although it’s amazing to watch the speed, reflexes and brute force applied to their shots, I came to watch the clay court artistry.

We recruit players specifically for their clay court skills and expertise, and I feel badly for those teams that would challenge for the title if all play were conducted on the clay, but cannot compete with the pure overpowering play from the assorted young guns.

With luck, the rain will hit Cincinnati the rest of the weekend and leave us alone.

The new tradition on Opening Night of the CRC Invitational involves free hot dogs and $1 beer. As traditions go, this is a pretty good one. We typically serve hundreds of hot dogs and drain several kegs of beer as members and guests swarm the viewing deck eager to see the CRC Invitational get underway.

Opening night showcases some of our local talent matched up against some of the top collegiate players and touring pros. Every team that takes the court is talented and capable of hitting balls that appear to threaten the sound barrier. Every player appears to have the reflexes of a cheetah and the speed of a gazelle.

But what separates the talented from the sublime is an element of artistry that is rarely seen in players accustomed solely to hard court play.

I was reminded of the beauty and thoughtfulness of brilliantly played clay court tennis as I watched our center court match tonight. Ido Abougzir, who has been a fixture at the CRC invitational for many years, put on a clay court clinic and displayed a repertoire of shots that delighted the crowd.

When needed, Ido could blast a groundstroke with the same fury that defines most young players, but what amazed the crowd was his ability to mingle delicate angles, beautifully disguised lobs and precisely placed volleys. He displayed a mastery of clay court tennis that eludes most hard court players and is just one of the reasons that I look forward to the CRC Invitational every year: I get to see clay court tennis the way it can be played.