Over the weekend for CardinalSportsReport.com, I covered the Stanford men's basketball game against No. 10 Oregon at the SAP Center in San Jose, California. It was a two-game showcase called the San Jose Tip-Off that also featured Cal against No. 23 San Diego State.
Walking around the SAP Center brought back memories of the SAP Open, which I went to many times growing up. I got to see players like Andy Roddick, Andre Agassi, Mark Philippoussis, Lleyton Hewitt, and Milos Raonic among others. It was a fun tournament that had a rich history dating all the way back to 1889, making it the second oldest ongoing tennis tournament in the United States. It had been played in various locations across the Bay Area, settling in San Jose in 1994 until its final season in 2013.
In addition to the names I listed above, other legends of the game such as Stan Smith, Arthur Ashe, John McEnroe, Brad Gilbert, Stefan Edberg, Michael Chang, and Pete Sampras also competed in the event. It had a rich history and had a really solid venue at SAP Center.
Part of what led to the demise of the tournament was its status as an ATP 250 event. Being the lowest level of tournaments on the main ATP Tour made it hard for it to attract good players every year. And then that in turn led to attendance issues. That being said, the final season of the tournament featured a final between world No. 13 Milos Raonic and world No. 22 Tommy Haas with Raonic winning 6-4, 6-3. No. 16 John Isner was also playing, so it was still attracting top 20 talent.
The best match I saw was a match involving Guillermo Cañas and some higher seeded guy. It might have been Philippoussis, but I'm not positive. But it was absolutely a thrilling night of tennis. I remember Cañas lost but played with tremendous heart. I think the fact that he was wearing his hat backwards inspired me to do the same in many of my high school tennis matches and tournaments that I played in.
Other memories include Philippoussis and Roddick hammering massive serves that reached 140 mph type speeds, Andre Agassi playing late into the night, and spending time with my family in the process. While most people associate SAP Center with watching the San Jose Sharks play, for me it's the SAP Open. It was a fun, competitive tournament that was the only major ticket in town for men's professional tennis. Given it's such a hub for tennis, it only makes sense for the Bay Area to have an ATP tour event. I hope the SAP Open returns and if it does, I'll be sure to buy a ticket and watch some amazing tennis!
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