NEWS & NOTES: - March 9, 2008 -   Making Up for Lost Timeless Matchups By George Vecsey One of my editors thinks I am a rube, a mark, living proof that a sucker is born every minute. She thinks Monday's Roger Federer-Pete Sampras match is, at best, showbiz. The editor may be right, but I find myself intrigued by the matchup between Sampras, the greatest player of his generation, which ended, oh so long ago, back in 2002, and Federer, the greatest player of his generation, which may go on awhile longer, or not. There are fantastic matchups that sports fans never got to see — Koufax versus the Babe, Secretariat versus Man o’ War — and some matchups between athletes at opposite ends of the calendar that we wish we had not witnessed. But here is a chance to see Old Man Pete, all of 36, against a relative kid like Federer, going on 27 in August, and, as we learned the other day, currently wobbly from a case of mononucleosis that has contributed to two losses to star 20-year-olds this year. If this exhibition were merely a forum for tennis personalities, old Pete and young Roger would never have been able to fill Madison Square Garden at outrageous prices. (The match is also on the tube.) This is not some WWE extravaganza like McEnroe and Connors aiming left-handed evil eyes at each other for old time’s sakes. Never long on charisma, Pete is like an endangered species of bear lumbering down from the mountains for a quick splash in the river. Sssh, kiddies, don’t make a sound. Just watch bashful Pete, shaggy head hanging low, chin on chest, shambling onto the court and firing hard serves and — what the heck is that guy doing? — actually racing to the net to flick a volley. Click here  for the entire article... - March 7, 2008 - Federer Hits Sampras in Sellout for NY Garden Missing Champions March 7 (Bloomberg) -- Seven years and 29 Grand Slams have passed since tennis was played in Madison Square Garden where it once was as much a part of New York City as fresh bagels and midtown sidewalks clogged with tourists staring at skyscrapers. Roger Federer, the world's No. 1 player with 12 victories in the sport's top tournaments, faces Pete Sampras, a Hall of Fame retiree with a record 14 Grand Slam titles, in an exhibition before 19,000 fans at the Manhattan arena March 10. The match brightens a winter for New York sports fans who are watching the Garden's main inhabitants fall short of expectations. Basketball's Knicks are last in their division with an 18-43 record, and hockey's Rangers are sixth in their conference after starting the season with a league-high $51.8 million player payroll. New York needs this match, says the event's promoter. ``Tennis was thriving when it was at Madison Square Garden,'' said Jerry Solomon, who is producing the event with former world No. 1 player Ivan Lendl``We think that it's been a big loss for the sport not to be at the Garden.'' Click here  for the entire article... - March 7, 2008 -   Landmark Theatres to Offer Exclusive Theatrical Presentation of NetJets Showdown Featuring Tennis Legends Federer and Sampras  Landmark Theatres, a recognized leader in the industry for providing consistently diverse entertainment product in a sophisticated atmosphere, will offer an exclusive theatrical, HD simulcast of the much anticipated NetJets tennis match between the world’s top ranked male tennis player, Roger Federer, and the most decorated Grand Slam player ever, Pete Sampras this Monday, March 10. Landmark will broadcast the event live from Madison Square Garden in select theatres in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas and Indianapolis.   The NetJets Showdown will mark the first time Federer and Sampras, arguably the two best tennis players of all-time, will face one another in the United States.  While actively playing on the men’s professional tour, their paths crossed only once. The rare encounter took place during the fourth round at Wimbledon in 2001 and it was the young Swiss who captured the victory over the veteran Sampras.   The NetJets Showdown will mark the return of men’s tennis to Madison Square Garden since the 1996 Nike Cup and the first time tennis has been played at the historic venue since 2000. Similarly, this event will mark the first time that Landmark Theatres has ever simulcast a tennis match in multiple movie theatres. Tickets to the event at Madison Square Garden sold out over a week ago.   “When we saw the demand for this event, we knew we had to be a part of it,” Landmark Theatres CEO Ted Mundorff said. “This is a rare, one-time experience for the tennis world and we want to offer an equally unique way for patrons to enjoy it.”   Landmark Theatres will broadcast this milestone event in HD on the big screen via The Tennis Channel.  Audiences will be able to enjoy Landmark’s upscale amenities, gourmet concessions, and signature brand of customer service while watching the match in a lively theatrical setting with the best sound and projection technology available.   The NetJets Showdown is a StarGames production in association with eight-time Grand Slam Champion Ivan Lendl and Madison Square Garden. The match will air live nationally beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET.   Tickets are $20.00 and available for purchase at http://tickets.landmarktheatres.com.   - March 5, 2008 - SAMPRAS ENJOYS SHAKING OFF RUST The former world No. 1 uses the Martin match as a Federer warmup By Jeff Elliott, The Times-Union Pete Sampras' on-again, off-again competitive juices will flow Thursday when the former No. 1-ranked player duels Ponte Vedra Beach resident Todd Martin in the first professional tennis match staged at Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena. During his 15-year career, Sampras won a record 14 Grand Slam men's singles titles. He finished atop the ATP rankings for six consecutive years (1993-1998), a record for the Open era. He also won singles at Wimbledon seven times and five times at the U.S. Open before retiring in 2003. But a little less than two years ago, Sampras got the urge to play some exhibition matches. Last year, he played in a few events on the Outback Champions Series, a group of tournaments for former ATP players. The match with Martin is a prelude to Monday's Madison Square Garden showdown with Roger Federer, who trails Sampras in Grand Slam titles with 12. - March 2, 2008 - The Rumble TOO LATE FOR TIX TO FEDERER-SAMPRAS The March 10 NetJets Showdown between Roger Federer and Pete Sampras at the Garden has sold out, probably because New York fans are thirsty to see champions for a change. Not only can't you buy a seat, sponsorship packages are gone, too. "The response to this event has been spectacular from every angle," said Jerry Solomon, president of StarGames, promoting the tennis exhibition. "We had to cut off sponsorship sales, which I have never had to do in almost 30 years in the business." ... Click here  for the entire article. - March 2, 2008 -  The Details THEY CANNOT BE SERIOUS! By Ralph Gardner Jr. Don’t tell tennis fans that the March 10 “NetJets Showdown” between Roger Federerand Pete Sampras is just a friendly exhibition. Nineteen thousand tickets have been sold. The excitement stems from the belief that Sampras may really make it a match. Retired five years, he is a still-robust 36, roughly the same age Andre Agassi was when he pushed Federer to four sets in a U.S. Open final. And then there’s that serve. As Federer, 26, has said of Sampras: “You can wake him up at 2 in the morning and he’ll hit a monster serve.” Rare, if not unprecedented, is the opportunity to watch champions from different eras — perhaps the two greatest of all time — take a whack at each other. A few thoughts on Sampras’s attempt at the nearly impossible. Click here to read the entire article! - February 20, 2008 - TENNIS CHANNEL TO COVER HISTORIC SAMPRAS-FEDERER MATCH AT NEW YORK CITY’S FAMED MADISON SQUARE GARDEN MARCH 10 Tennis Channel will televise the upcoming exhibition match between all-time Grand Slam champion, Pete Sampras, and current threat to his crown, Roger Federer. The NetJets Showdown produced in association with The Marquis Jet Card and Men’s Vogue is set for Monday, March 10, 2008 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The NetJets Showdown, dubbed “A Battle for Tennis History,” will mark the first time since 2000 that tennis has been played at the venue often referred to as “the world’s most famous arena.” Tennis Channel’s live coverage of the highly-anticipated competition takes place 7:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. ET. John McEnroe will be in the analyst’s seat for Tennis Channel’s coverage of the event, with play-by-play from veteran sports commentator Ted Robinson. Recently retired player Justin Gimelstob rounds out the network’s on-air team, reporting courtside during the historic clash. In addition to the match participants Gimelstob will talk with the many New York-area celebrities expected to be in Madison Square Garden that evening. For the entire press release click here ...     - February 20, 2008 - HE'S GOT GAME, BUT SAMPRAS CONTENT WITH NEW LIFE Joel Drucker It's hard to think it's a time warp when the subject at hand is merely 36 years old and announced his retirement in 2003. But in many ways, that was the case Monday night in San Jose, Calif., when Pete Sampras took the court at the SAP Open for an exhibition versus Tommy Haas. In front of 8,812 fans who naturally greeted him with a standing ovation, Sampras tidily won 6-4, 6-2 in just under an hour, showcasing his array of signature shots -- the crackling forehand, the leaping overhead, forceful and deft volleys and, of course, likely emphatic until he draws his last breath, the classic but distinctive service motion that's likely the best in tennis history. Even though Sampras says he barely hit a ball for three years after retiring from the pro tour, stroke mechanics never leave world-class players. For the entire article click here ...   - February 19, 2008 -  SAMPRAS DOWNS HAAS IN STRAIGHT SETS IN SAP OPEN EXHIBITION SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Pete Sampras hit back-to-back aces to close out the second game of the second set and draw a plea from Tommy Haas. "Show some mercy, Pete" Haas yelled across the court. Sampras began to hand his racket over to a ball boy before taking it back. Just as he did so often during his brilliant career, Sampras closed out the match with ease, beating Haas 6-4, 6-2 in an exhibition at the SAP Open on Monday night. "When I get in that arena, I still want to play great," Sampras said. For the entire article Click here ... - February 6, 2008 - SAP OPEN MEDIA CONFERENCE - PETE SAMPRAS    - Pete talks about the NetJets Showdown, the Asian Exhibitions with Roger, and today's tennis... Q. You're going to be playing in the Garden against Roger. There's such a tremendous sports history and pretty good tennis history there, the Masters. What are your thoughts about playing in the Garden, the sports mecca of our country? PETE SAMPRAS: Yeah, I'm excited. I remember as a kid watching the Masters in New York. It was an historic event. The people loved it. I remember staying at Lendl's house when I was 16 years old. Saw him play that week. Lost to Becker in a five-set loss. That was a thrill for me. The crowd was into it. Such an historic building.  I'm looking forward to it. I know the ticket sales are going great. It's exciting. It's exciting for me at this stage of my life to go out and play in front of a packed house in New York. A lot of great matches. I just missed the Masters by a year. They moved it to Frankfurt in '90. So to be back there, I played there one time in the Nike Cup somewhere in the mid '90s. I'm looking forward to playing it. I was even telling Roger when he was here, he plays in the States four times a year, this gives the American fans a chance to see both of us, him a little bit more, the lighter side, a fun side, but also a competitive side. For the entire press conference click here ...   - January 31, 2008 -  ROGER FEDERER ON WFAN'S MIKE AND THE MAD DOG Roger Federer was on New York's top sports talk radio show, Mike and the Mad Dog, to talk about the NetJets Showdown, and being apart of tennis history. Click here  to link to WFAN's interview page and listen to what Roger had to say.   - January 31, 2008 - SAMPRAS TO FACE SAFIN IN EXHIBITION DURING SAP OPEN SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Pete Sampras will face former world No. 1 player Marat Safin in an exhibition during the SAP Open on Feb. 18. Safin was granted a wild-card entry into the tournament Thursday. He will start his week by playing the exhibition against Sampras in a rematch of the 2000 U.S. Open final won by Safin in straight sets. Safin has won four of his seven career matches against Sampras. Click here  for the full article...   - January 31, 2008 - FEDERER FOCUSING ON OTHER SLAMS AFTER AUSSIE OPEN LOSS Roger Federer is hardly dismayed by his Australian Open showing. Indeed, he scoffs at those who talk about his loss there as if it came in an early round rather than the semifinals. Sure, when asked Thursday about what happened in Melbourne, the No. 1-ranked Federer made a passing reference to "small regrets," such as wishing he'd managed to successfully serve out the first set of his defeat to eventual tournament champion Novak Djokovic. Federer, though, is really focusing on the future -- particularly on his next chances to add to a career total of 12 Grand Slam singles championships, two shy of Pete Sampras' record. "It's important to look forward. The bigger picture for me is now looking forward to a very, very tough schedule ahead, with the French Open, Wimbledon, Olympics, U.S. Open. That's going to be an interesting time," Federer said in a conference call to promote his March 10 exhibition match against Sampras at Madison Square Garden. "That's what I'm saving myself for now. Going to get back on the practice court and get ready for that." Click here  for the full article...   - January 24, 2008 -  LAUREUS AWARD: NOMINEE Roger Federer has been nominated for the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year award.  He is already the first athlete to have won the most prestigious trophy in the world of sports three times and has done so in consecutive years.  Other contenders this year are golfer Tiger Woods (USA), sprinter Tyson Gay (USA), soccer player Kaká (BRA), swimmer Michael Phelps (USA) and race car driver Kimi Räikkönen (FIN). The nominees were chosen by international sports journalists, the winner will be selected by members of the Laureus Sports Academy and announced in St. Petersburg, Russia, on February 8th. - January 17, 2008 -  SAMPRAS MAKING A FIRST COAST VISIT    - Sampras will play local Todd Martin in a March 6 exhibition. By FRANCINE KING, The Times-Union Tennis great Pete Sampras has added Jacksonville to the list of stops on what has become a worldwide exhibition tour. Sampras is scheduled to play Ponte Vedra Beach resident Todd Martin in a Serving Up Aces exhibition match on Thursday, March 6, at Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena. "It's exciting for me," the 37-year-old Martin said Wednesday in a telephone interview. "It's not often I get to work close to home. It'll be especially nice to be a part of a big tennis event in Jacksonville. Wherever Pete goes, it's a pretty big event." For the entire article click here ...   - January 13, 2008 -  ROGER FEDERER INTERVIEW FROM THE AUSTRALIAN OPEN Q. Do you think the Australian Open can maintain its status as one of the four majors? There's been some talk, like the Spaniards wanting to buy the Open, making it one of the majors in Spain. Do you think Australia can hold  on to the status forever? ROGER FEDERER: Well, 'forever'? I don't know. 'Forever,' that's a long way. I don't see a change in the near future, talking about the next 20 years. For me, it an obvious choice. It's been here for a long time now. Maybe the Australian Open went through some times when not all the players traveled here, you know, like Agassi, Connors, all these guys. They didn't come here. Back then it was also more difficult to travel so far, you know, because of the planes weren't up to the standard yet and it was just too far for one tournament. Now with the airlines being so good, you know, I think this will be no problem any more. It will be okay for the years to come. I don't see why it should change. You know, it's a great Grand Slam, great facilities, one of the best in the world. So I think they deserve it. They've been able to maintain great crowds and a great event for us players. Click here for the full interview.   - January 9, 2008 -   NETJETS SHOWDOWN OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE New York, NY- January 9, 2008 — The world’s top ranked male tennis player, Roger Federer, will take on the most decorated Grand Slam player ever, Pete Sampras in the NetJets Showdown presented in association with The Marquis Jet Card and Men’s Vogue magazine at Madison Square Garden on Monday, March 10.    "I have always wanted to play a match in Madison Square Garden,” said Federer.  “To have a chance to take on Pete once again at the NetJets Showdown is very exciting." "I am extremely excited to compete against Roger in the United States,” said Sampras. “And to have it take place in New York at The Garden will make it an extra special night." The NetJets Showdown is a StarGames production in association with eight-time Grand Slam Champion Ivan Lendl and Madison Square Garden. This match will mark the first time since 2000 that tennis will be played at the World’s Most Famous Arena.  Click here  for the full press release.   - January 9, 2008 -   PETE SAMPRAS ON WFAN'S MIKE AND THE MAD DOG Pete Sampras was on New York's top sports talk radio show, Mike and the Mad Dog, to talk about the NetJets Showdown, Roger Federer and Madison Square Garden.  Click here  to link to WFAN's interview page and look for Pete's interview on January 9.    - January 3, 2008 -  FEDERER VOTED AIPS TOP SPORTSMAN OF THE YEAR Roger has been voted the world’s Top Sporting Champion of the Year by the International Sports Press Association (AIPS). It is the third year in a row at the top of the poll for our World No 1. AIPS members from 94 nations voted in this year’s poll placing Roger overwhelmingly in the number one place beating Brazilian footballer Kakà (Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite) who plays for Italian Serie A team A.C. Milan  and won this year’s  Ballon d’Or and FIFA World Player of the Year awards.   - November 24, 2007 -   SAMPRAS STUNS FEDERER IN MACAU IN FINAL EXHIBITION Pete Sampras turned the tables on Roger Federer in the third and final match of their Asian exhibition series in Macau on Saturday, stunning the ATP World No. 1 7-6(8), 6-4. Click here  for the full article.   - November 22, 2007 -   FEDERER MADE TO WORK IN SECOND EXHIBITION ATP World No. 1 Roger Federer beat Pete Sampras for the second time in three days 7-6(6), 7-6(5) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on Thursday. The match was part of Malaysia’s 50th anniversary celebrations of independence from Great Britain. Click here  for the full article.   - November 20, 2007 -   FEDERER WINS FIRST OF THREE EXHIBITIONS AGAINST SAMPRAS ATP World No. 1 Roger Federer won the first of three exhibition matches over American Pete Sampras 6-4, 6-3 in Seoul, South Korea, on Tuesday. Click here  for the full article.