Hey guys, sorry for the long delay between updates. I’ve been so busy the past couple of weeks since the Samurai have been by my side in both Indianapolis and now back home in Los Angeles. They must have brought some tremendous luck with them. In Indy we got to hang out in the player’s lounge a lot, each of us became pros at both golden tee and trivia. The
Sam & Dan with young Samurai fans in Indy.
Samurai that made the trip were Dan “the Intern” Farrugia, Wes Burrows, Ethan Lacoe, Ellis Bertschi and Sean Henson. They had a t-shirt gun and were in high demand with the fans all week. I thrived off of their enthusiasm and made it all the way to my second consecutive final before falling to Robby Ginepri. Robby played well and I left disappointed after coming so close two tournaments in a row. However, I was hopeful for a breakthrough in Los Angeles.
After resettling back in the comfort of Southern California, I was ready to set out and accomplish what has been one of my goals since turning pro, winning the LA Open. My family and friends came out in the hundreds, and the Samurai were in rare form. I took care of business against Denis Istomin and Ryan Sweeting early before a matchup with the talented and highly ranked Israeli Dudi Sela. I played some of my best tennis and the Samurai out dueled the Hebrew Hammer to get me into the semi’s for a matchup with top ranked Tommy Haas. I played probably the best tennis I’ve played all summer under the lights and in front of the electric atmosphere that was an LA Open Semifinal night match. I was feeling all of my shots and got over some endurance issues I had in earlier rounds to take care of Tommy. There were some harsh words for the Samurai following the match, but I defend them, claiming that they remain respectful while injecting some excitement into the game of tennis. If there were more fans that kept it respectful while still rooting raucously then the sport would be better off. In the finals I met Carsten Ball, a big swinging lefty playing some great tennis for Australia. I was determined to not fall flat in a third straight final and, although Carsten played terrific and took the second set, I found success in my hometown 
tournament and won the LA Open! I want to thank all my friends and family as I head out to Washington DC to continue what has been an unbelievable summer thus far! I’ll keep you updated as I travel from DC to Montreal, Cincinatti and New Haven. So long!
Sam
Congratulations, Sam, on your LA Open win! Keep up the good work in the upcoming tournaments, and best of luck to you at the US Open. Love your website, too :).
Just want to say Congrads Buddy! Although it was a great to see Tommy Hass it person on Saturday I was rooting for you all the way. Got kinda caught up in the Samurai’s enthusiasm. It was great that those guys were so respectful of Haas, and clapping when he hit a good shot and not applauding when Tommy double fault.
Wishing you much luck. Looking forward to you becoming America’s number one and getting that first Major under your belt.
You must get tired of hearing this one but “you the man Sam!”.
A fan, Frank
Hi Sam, I am a huge fan of tennis and I love the pro game as well. Congratulations on the L.A. title. You seem like a really nice person and I think you are great for American tennis. Best of luck in Montreal.:)