BOULDER, Colo. ? University of Colorado men’s tennis assistant coach, Dave Hodge, was recently selected as the recipient of the 2003 Jim Landin Award, awarded to the male player of the year in Colorado as announced by Colorado Tennis Association.
Landin, a former Buff from 1955-58, amassed more Open titles in Colorado then any other man in the state’s history.<?xml:namespace prefix="o" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"?>
The award will be presented at the Colorado Tennis Hall of Fame Gala and Annual Awards Celebration in Denver on Friday evening, February 20, at the Hyatt Regency Tech Center.
“It was certainly great to meet the tennis public in Colorado last summer, and I am honored to receive this award,” said Hodge. “Hopefully this is the start of a wonderful career with the University and the state of Colorado.”
Hodge, who is in his second year as an assistant men’s tennis coach with the Buffaloes, had a successful year on the professional circuit, including a championship title at the Colorado State Open. He also placed second in singles play at the Denver City Open, and won the mixed doubles bracket of the tournament.
Hodge, who represented his home country of Australia as a junior before leaving to attend Baylor University in 1997, was a four-year all-conference selection, while winning conference titles as both a singles and doubles player with the Bears. During his tenure at Baylor, Hodge earned a No. 2 national ranking as a doubles player and was a perennial Top-50 singles player. He was named Baylor’s Most Inspirational and Most Improved during his career, which culminated in a Big 12 Team Championship in 2000 and being selected for the All-American team that same year.
Following his collegiate career, Hodge competed professionally on the ITF and ATP circuits worldwide. He played in the 2002 Australian Open, and earned doubles titles in a number of international tournaments, including a 21-match winning streak.
The Colorado men’s tennis team commences its 2004 spring slate with a pair of matches on Sunday, Feb. 1 in Boulder. The Buffs will take on CU-Colorado Springs at 9:30 a.m. before challenging CSU-Pueblo at 2:00 p.m.
