Grand Slam tennis champion to share knowledge with Invercargill tennis players

Waihopai Tennis Club are busy preparing for a special visitor and it’s not the man in red.

This weekend, the world’s most southern tennis club will host one of the big north American stars set to play at this years ASB Classic, Bethanie Mattek-Sands.

 Mattek-Sands, an Olympic Gold medallist and winner of eight Grand Slam titles, is a guest of Sanford Ltd and will be visiting the home of their premium salmon brand – Big Glory Bay. 

Bethanie and husband Justin will spend time in the rugged beauty of Stewart Island visiting the pristine waters of Big Glory Bay, savouring some of the world’s purest salmon and doing a spot of Blue Cod fishing before visiting Waihopai Tennis Club and having a hit out with some of Waihopai’s up and coming talent.

And she can’t wait.

“When you’re this far from home and you have the chance to tick the most southern tennis club in the world off your list, it’s a no brainer,” says Mattek-Sands.

 “No matter where I go, how far I travel, the chance to get on the court with people who love the game as much as I do is always welcome. I can’t wait to meet the rising stars of Waihopai and test their backhands”.

 2019 marks the second year of sponsorship of the ASB Classic for Sanford and Big Glory Bay. When the opportunity arose to host the outdoor enthusiast, Mattek-Sands, Sanford jumped at the chance to show her their piece of paradise in Big Glory Bay.

 “As a business, we continue to investigate opportunities to sell our incredible products to international markets and one of the key markets we will focus on in 2019 is the USA. We plan to launch into both LA and San Francisco, targeting the premium restaurants in these areas. Who better to help us tell our story than Bethanie and her husband Justin by seeing and experiencing Big Glory Bay and its wonderful King Salmon for themselves,” says Andre Gargiulo, Chief Customer Officer from Sanford Ltd.

 Mattek-Sands will be at Waihopai Tennis Club this Saturday 22nd December from 11.30am, running through some drills with junior members and a Q&A session.