Defending Champion Steve Johnson, Six-time Winner Bryan Brothers Returning to River Oaks
(November 14, 2017) HOUSTON – Defending singles champion Steve Johnson and six time doubles champions Bob and Mike Bryan will return to River Oaks Country Club for the 2018 Fayez Sarofim & Co. U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship which will take place April 7-15. The announcement of the commitments from Johnson and the Bryans comes just weeks before single session and Champs Pass weekend tickets for the 2018 event go on sale Dec. 1. Johnson won the 2017 title in dramatic fashion, rallying from a break down in the third set of both the semifinal and the title match. Those were two of a tournament record 16 three-set matches that took place in 2017. A quarterfinalist or better at nine events in 2017, Johnson finished the in the Top 50 for the fourth consecutive season. His win at River Oaks was the second title of his career. Johnson is enjoying pro success after a collegiate career that included two NCAA singles titles while helping to lead the University of Southern California to four team titles. He ended his college career with a 72-match winning streak. Johnson has played at River Oaks five times. He will be bidding to be the first player to repeat as US Clay champion since Andy Roddick won back-to-back titles in 2001 and 2002. The Bryan twins will be playing US Clay for the 16th time. They own a 38-9 record at the tournament, having won titles in 2007, 2009-11, 2014 and 2016. In 2017, the Bryans claimed two titles raising their record tally to 114. They have finished 10 seasons as the ATP’s No. 1 ranked doubles team. The brothers have won more than 1,000 matches together since making their debut at the 1995 US Open. The Bryan Brothers are ending their season this week at the ATP World Tour Finals in London after qualifying for the season-ending championship for the 15th year in a row. Last week, it was announced the Bryans had won the ATP World Tour Fan Favorite award for the 13th year in a row.
