Tricia Brooke Bowley

Our dear friend Tricia Brooke Bowley lost her courageous fight against Cystic Fibrosis on Friday, July 4th, 2008 at the Gilchrist Hospice Center in Towson, Maryland. She was 37 years old. All prayers go out to her, her family, and her husband Jeff Carlson.

May peace be with you all.

The Perfect Storm

I just recently spoke to an old colleague of mine in London. It seems that the buzz has not died down yet over the Wimbledon final between Federer and Nadal. Now the consensus around London is that the final is the greatest match ever played. Artistry, power, speed, and drama allow nothing to really compare. Borg and McEnroe’s tiebreaker final that ended up 8-6 in the fifth set for Borg in 1980 is now taking second stage on the sports classic channels – and rightfully so.

For me, the match was the perfect storm. Nadal had lost the last two finals at the Big W to Federer and Federer was going to surpass Hall of Fame legend Bjorn Borg’s five straight Wimbledon titles with his 6th straight; plus, Federer needed to redeem himself from his poor play in the French Open final a month before. The stage was set and it did not disappoint. Nadal had to have this title or he was on the verge of becoming another Grand Slam clay court specialist like Gustavo Kuerten, the three time winner on the slow, red clay at Roland Garros.

The gladiators met on the most famous tennis court in the entire world – Center Court, Wimbledon. The weather, as it had been doing all tournament long, played havoc on the match.

Federer, now 6-13 lifetime against Nadal, seemed to be thinking too much about his losing record. So many chances lost; just letting a few of them slip away. His belief in defeating Nadal quivered.

I personally believe Federer would have won the fifth set if it had not rained. Nadal missed out in two Championship Points in the 4th set tiebreaker, which was eventually won by Federer, and had begun to let the strain of winning Wimbledon show. Mentally, Nadal was beginning to lose it. Who could blame him after that very good forehand approach shot was ripped up the line by a Federer backhand?

But Mother Nature intervened, which gave Nadal a chance to collect himself and earn the fifth set in what captivated a surreal drama at 9:16 pm London time for his 1st title at the All England Club.

This week, accusations, which are unsubstantiated, have been swirling around that Nadal is taking some kind of performance enhancing drugs. These remarks are ridiculous. The only drug Nadal is taking is the drug of winning and success. Let’s get ready for the U.S. Open at the end of August. This will be a tough Grand Slam to follow.

Until Next Time,
Steve “Lightning” Krulevitz