In a thrilling final, second seeds Nathaniel Lammons and Jackson Withrow capped off a solid week at Hollyburn Country Club by capturing the Odlum Brown VanOpen men’s doubles championship on Saturday. The American duo outlasted the collegiate pairing of Dylan Milavsky and Benjamin Shick in a 7-6(7), 7-6(1) victory lasting 88 minutes.

The title victory marks the pair’s second championship in three weeks, signalling a decisive turnaround after a challenging stretch on tour.

“It’s been a tough year and a half for us just results-wise and struggling a little bit,” Withrow admitted after letting out a triumphant roar upon clinching match point. “Now we’ve had two titles in three weeks and starting to feel good about myself again and feeling good as a team. So just trying to keep the good energy. We enjoyed this week. It was incredible having the great fans out, great atmosphere.”

Facing off against Milavsky and Shick – who entered the final after some good singles results earlier in the week in addition to their doubles run – Lammons and Withrow knew they were in for a dogfight.

Lammons and Withrow were nearly impenetrable on their delivery, winning 89 percent of their first-serve points and 80 percent on second serves while saving both break points faced. Milavsky and Shick matched that resilience, erasing both break points against them to keep the match deadlocked.

Lammons credited their opponents’ form and chemistry for making the final such a tight contest.

“They had a deep run in singles as well, and they’ve played and had a lot of success with each other this year, so they’re kind of on a hot streak,” he noted. “Jackson mentioned they were 10-0 in tiebreaks leading up to this match. Good tennis players serve well – they played in school, so they know a lot about (doubles).”

Having gone winless in previous visits to Vancouver, lifting the trophy at Hollyburn Country Club was a special milestone for both players before taking a well-deserved breather.

“It’s an amazing week – great host, great tournament organization, a lot of familiar faces,” Lammons reflected. “Jackson mentioned that we hadn’t won a match here before, so it’s great to get one, let alone four (this week). Getting a bigger title, getting a triple-digit score on the scorecards, is no small thing. We look forward to keeping that going.”

Photo credit: Jon Benjamin Photography