Columnist Ron Kantowski: Don’t turn channel for Andre

Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2005 | 7:13 a.m.

Tennis time

WHAT: The Tennis Channel Open, an ATP tour men's event.

WHEN: The week of Feb. 27; exact schedule to be determined.

WHERE: The newly christened Darling Memorial Memorial Tennis Center on Washington Avenue between Durango and Buffalo drives. The 40-acre complex features 23 courts, including a center court with seating for 2,200 spectators that can be expanded to accommodate 3,500.

FIELD: To be determined. Last year's Tennis Channel Open in Scottsdale, Ariz., included James Blake, Vince Spadea, Mark Philippoussis and Arnaud Clement.

TICKETS: To be determined. Tickets will go on sale in mid-November.

ON THE WEB: www.thetennischannel.com.

In that we're a country club town and tennis is a country club sport, that the men's pro tennis tour is returning to Las Vegas next spring is probably a good idea.

It would be a lot better idea if Andre Agassi were playing.

Agassi, the tennis and philanthropic giant, will be patrolling the base line and pounding ground strokes in faraway Dubai, United Arab Emirates, when he should be helping to ring in the Tennis Channel Open's move from Scottsdale, Ariz., next February.

It's possible there may be frost on center court during those early morning matches. But the weather won't be as big a factor in the tournament's eventual success (or failure) as Agassi being wined and dined by sheiks in the United Arab Emirates.

There are only 2,200 seats at center court at the just-opened Darling Memorial Tennis Center on Washington Avenue between Buffalo and Durango drives. So even a dubious live sports town such as ours should have little trouble putting enough backsides in them to make the event appear to be a success.

But if Agassi were to play, it would be like Roscoe Tanner's serve. Absolutely huge.

In fact, I'd be willing to wager that more than 2,200 spectators would buy a ticket to watch Agassi and wife Steffi Graf play "Pong" at P.T.'s pub.

It's too bad Agassi or Roger Federer or any other of the men's stars who won't be playing here (such as most of them) couldn't fake a groin injury and pull out of their previous commitments, such as the Duty Free Open in Dubai or a clay court event in Acapulco, Mexico.

But when the Duty Free Open includes a hefty duty free appearance fee, I guess that's not an option.

"This is the first year, and we'd like to have all the great players, but that's not realistic, Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman said during a Tuesday teleconference that confirmed the return of the ATP tour to Las Vegas after a 20-year hiatus."What we hope is that we are so darn successful that the (tennis) community is going to embrace it and it (the tournament) is going to get better and better. When we started Las Vegas Speedway, everybody made fun of it and said it wouldn't work. Now we've got 140,000 people out there for a race."

I would point out that's because Las Vegas Motor Speedway has a NASCAR race featuring all of the sport's stars. Conversely, a guy from Down Under named Wayne Arthurs (currently ranked way down under at No. 74 in the ATP computer) won last year's Tennis Channel Open before it went belly-up in the Arizona desert.

And here you thought Wes Short Jr., the winner of last weekend's Michelin Championship at Las Vegas PGA Tour stop, was obscure.

Like most pro sports featuring less than household-name talent, Las Vegas' ability to support pro tennis has been checkered at best. Sometimes, not even marquee talent has impressed the indifferent locals.

In 2000, a Fed Cup (the women's equivalent of the Davis Cup) match between the United States and Spain at Mandalay Bay was a double fault at the box office, despite featuring Billie Jean King as the American captain and aces such as Monica Seles, Lindsay Davenport, Jennifer Capriati and Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario, who played for Spain.

"I'm not naming names, but there are 10 players that are committed to playing, and they are all great players," said Tennis Channel founder Steve Bellamy, whose speciality network will partner with the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority and Las Vegas Events in marketing the tournament and its companion events.

"It's no secret there is an event in Acapulco and an event in Dubai the same weekend as ours. But the sport has 40-50 stars and you don't need all of them to have a great event."

I would counter by saying all this event really needs to be great is one star. The one who was born here, raised here and still resides here.

But he's not coming.