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As expected, the open men’s event has the most entries, with over 50 players competing for the $1000 prize awaiting the winner.

Apart from the prize money, the open events also have national points up for grabs, with the winner of both the men’s and women’s open singles receiving 90 national points for their efforts.

The tournament has received entries from some of the best players in Australia, including a past winner, Sam Fletcher, and an Australian top 100 ranked player in Michael Tymkiw from Wagga Wagga. He is only 20 years old, and some of his best results include playing a futures qualifying tournament in Thailand.

Twenty-year-old Troy Smith, who was ranked third in Australia in his age group as a junior, is also playing and will be a big threat in the open draw.

Another youngster, Aaron Clissold, will be a good chance in open singles and will celebrate his 19th birthday on Monday, coinciding with finals day.

Batemans Bay Tennis Club coach Rob Frawley has previously coached both Tymkiw and Smith, and says he is excited about watching two of the best juniors in Australia.

“One of the most exciting things about this tournament for me is watching these young, talented juniors,” he said.

“I think these boys represent the future of Australian tennis and it’s a good opportunity for the general public to come have a look at what the future of Australian tennis has to offer.”

Frawley will be partnered with Tymkiw in the open men’s doubles, and they will be firm favourites to win. Smith will be partnering Malua Bay’s Nelson Parker, and will also be tough to beat. Parker is also competing in the open singles and will be filled with confidence after making the quarter finals last year.

Other Eurobodalla hopes in the open division include Christian Parker, Drew Parker, Nick Smith, Robert Baddeley, Bradley Baranowski and Richard Sellick.

One different aspect of this tournament is the re-emergence of serve volleying in the modern game. Both Troy Smith and Canberra player Damien Ward are established serve volleyers, which is an unusual tactic in the modern game.

“Serve-volleying has been gradually pushed out of tennis, with Pat Rafter being the last player to use serve-volleying successfully,” Frawley said.

“I think its going to make this tournament more exciting, and will make for some great tennis for spectators.”

In the open women’s singles, the number one seed will be Lucia Gonzalez, who was ranked 49 in Australia in June last year, and will be tough to beat. The only Batemans Bay hope is Tara Paxton, who at the age of 16, is one of the best juniors in the Eurobodalla.

Like previous years, the tournament will have a licensed bar, a barbecue supplying breakfast and lunch, and a canteen running all day.

Play starts at 8am each day, and runs across the Saturday, Sunday and Monday, with finals being held on the Monday.

The tournament is open to any member of the general public who wants to watch some top quality tennis.