An iconic, century-old piece of sports silverware is now in the hands of a pair of Southern Interior tennis players.
West Martin-Patterson of Salmon Arm and Vernon’s Joe McFadden went undefeated in the qualifying and round-robin A pool to take home the Birks Cup men’s doubles trophy at the Penticton Tennis Club (PTC) over the last weekend of September.
A total of 16 teams in four divisions took part in the two-day event. Each duo played in two qualifying matches to determine which of the four pools they would play the remaining three matches.
The tournament was first held in 1920 in Salmon Arm before moving to its new home in Penticton nearly a half-century ago.
Competitors in this year’s event ranged in age from nine to 77.
“The importance of the tournament is the history behind it and the fact that its 104 years of existence likely makes it one of the longest-running tournaments in B.C.,” said PTC’s Kersten Grant. “The tournament is so successful every year because of its lengthy history, the location of the PTC on the waterfront, and the time of year that it’s held.
"We need to continue celebrating both the tournament and the wonderful sport of tennis.”
Second place in the 'A' pool went to Penticton’s Bob Grant and Enzo DeLaurentiis.
'B' pool winners were Kelowna’s Spencer McIntosh (formerly of Summerland) and Ben Thompson. Penticton’s Oscar Woodman and RJ McInnis were runners up.
'C' Pool champions were PTC members Johan De Kock and Tim Bowen-Roberts who finished ahead of fellow club members Tomasz and Julius Bartkowicz.
'D' pool winners Warren Belcher and Steve Hallis finished just ahead of Chris Stokes and Ed Broderick, all of Penticton.
