Samantha Stosur Joins Bank of the West Classic Player Field
STANFORD, CA (www.BankOfTheWestClassic.com) – The 2010 Bank of the West Classic received a commitment today from French Open finalist Samantha Stosur adding to what is already a strong player field.
Stosur, currently ranked No. 7 in the world, joins three-time Grand Slam champion Maria Sharapova, world No. 5 Elena Dementieva, Chinese star Zheng Jie, and defending champion Marion Bartoli as 2010 tournament entries.
Stosur reached the semifinals of last year’s Bank of the West Classic, falling to eventual winner Marion Bartoli. This year’s Bank of the West Classic will mark Stosur’s fifth appearance at the tournament in the past six years.
During last week’s French Open, Stosur defeated former World No. 1’s Justine Henin, Serena Williams and Jelena Jankovic en route to the final. Stosur, a former world No. 1 in doubles, cracked the top 10 in the singles rankings for the first time last month.
Tickets for the 2010 Bank of the West Classic are on sale now and can be purchased by calling the box office at 866-WTA-TIXS (866-982-8497) or by logging on to www.BankoftheWestClassic.com.
The event will be held July 26-August 1 at the Taube Family Tennis Stadium on the campus of Stanford University
Single-session tickets for the tournament's opening round start at just $26.
Full-week packages start at just $575 and include tickets to all 13 sessions, a pass to the exclusive Plaza Club and an invitation to the Meet the Players Party. Those who purchase a pair of seats will also receive a weeklong VIP parking pass and a Bank of the West Classic Tournament program.
The Bank of the West Classic is also offering several weekend packages starting at $240.
The Bank of the West Classic, a Sony Ericsson WTA Tour premier event, is now in its 40th year and features a 30-player singles draw as well as a 16-team doubles draw. The event is owned and operated by IMG and serves as the opening women's event of the Olympus US Open Series.
The list of past champions of the event reads like a Who's Who of women's tennis including Lindsay Davenport, Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Andrea Jaeger, Monica Seles, Martina Hingis, Venus Williams and Kim Clijsters.
The Bank of the West Classic offers several different seat options with prices to fit everyone’s budget so reserve your seats today. Qualifying will be held July 24-25 and is free to the public.
Log on to www.BankoftheWestClassic.com for more information.
ABOUT THE BANK OF THE WEST CLASSIC: The Bank of the West Classic is the longest-running women-only professional tennis tournament in the world and is the first stop of the Olympus US Open Series. A Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Premier event, the Bank of the West Classic features a 30-player singles draw and a 16-team doubles draw with total prize money of $700,000. Held on Stanford University’s campus at the Taube Family Tennis Stadium since 1997, former champions include: Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Andrea Jaeger, Monica Seles, Martina Hingis, Lindsay Davenport and Venus Williams. The Bank of the West Classic is owned and operated by IMG.
ABOUT BANK OF THE WEST: Based in San Francisco, $60 billion-asset Bank of the West (www.bankofthewest.com) offers a full range of business, corporate, personal, trust and international banking services. For the third year in a row, Bank of the West has been ranked “highest in customer satisfaction in retail banking” in California by J.D. Power and Associates. The Bank operates more than 700 branch locations and commercial banking offices in 19 Western and Midwestern states. Bank of the West's holding company, BancWest Corporation, is a subsidiary of BNP Paribas, among the six strongest banks in the world, according to Standard & Poor's.
