Fayetteville

resident Tom Cobb loves tennis. He has been playing the sport since the

age of 10 and got more and more serious about it as he went through school.

After attending West Georgia College and playing tennis there, Cobb began

working for Delta and started a family. He continued to play tennis but

did not reach the pinnacle of success until recently when he paired up

with former pro Peter Doohan and began to dominate USTA national doubles

tournaments.

If the name

"Peter Doohan" sounds familiar, that's because it probably is.

Doohan had a couple of big wins on the ATP tour under his belt in the

1980s, including a stunning upset over Boris Becker in 1987 at Wimbledon

that prevented Becker from a three-peat. Doohan was at one time ranked

among the top 50 singles players in the world and in the top 10 for doubles

players.

Cobb met Doohan

in a tournament in Rome, Ga., where Doohan handed Cobb a loss. Cobb made

a brief mention that if Doohan ever wanted to play doubles to give him

a call. The two men ran into each other some months later and Doohan said

he was going to play in a tournament in Savannah and might be interested

in playing doubles as well. Cobb quickly agreed and the two men entered

the tournament and lost in the finals. They began to play in more tournaments

together and started winning, including the Southern Championships, a

tournament in Callaway Gardens and a tournament in Tampa, Fla. so that

they could qualify for the national tournament in Providence, R.I., this

summer.

The tournament

in Rhode Island put Cobb and Doohan on grass. It was Cobb's first time

playing on grass but he got better as the tournament wore on. They ended

up winning the tournament's Masters Division, boosting their confidence

and their ranking before they head down to the Clay Court Championships

in Savannah in October.

"The key

to success in doubles play is communication," said Cobb. "You

have to enjoy playing with that person and be able to trust them in any

situation." Cobb also cites Doohan's professional experience as something

that helps give the team confidence and inspires Cobb to play his A-game.

In 20 matches,

Cobb and Doohan are 19-1. After an attempt to win the Clay Court Championships

in October, Doohan will head to his native Australia to participate in

the Australian Senior Grand Masters Tournament. Cobb will continue to

play tennis and remain sharp for next year's tournaments. He may play

a bit with his wife Dot, a former tennis player at UGA, or one of his

two children Kristin, a student at McIntosh High School, or Preston, a

student at the new Cleveland Elementary School.

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