June 21, 2004

WIMBLEDON, ENGLAND - Charlotte native and former North Carolina men's tennis All-America Tripp Phillips will begin play Wednesday in the main doubles draw of the Wimbledon All-England Championships.

Phillips, the 2000 Patterson Medal winner, is currently ranked No. 105, while his partner, Devin Bowen is ranked No. 91. Phillips and Bowen face Martin Lee and Ian Flannagan of Great Britain in the first round of doubles slated to begin on Wednesday.

Under the direction of Coach Sam Paul, a Tar Heel men's tennis player has now appeared in 45 grand slam events, including representation over a span of 11 consecutive years. Those events include 41 grand slam appearances by Don Johnson (beginning with the 1993 U.S. Open and extending through the 2003 U.S> Open) as well as three by David Caldwell (US Open Singles/Doubles in 1996 and Australian Open Singles 1997/1999).

Phillips reached a career best 98 in the ATP World rankings on June 7, 2004 after reaching the finals of the $125,000 ATP event in Prostejov, Czech Republic.