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July 16, 2001
Charlottesville-Upon graduation from the University of Virginia, Cavalier Men’s Tennis players Brian Vahaly (Atlanta, Ga.) and Huntley Montgomery (Chapel Hill, N.C.) turned pro both individually and as a doubles team. In early May, Vahaly and Montgomery left for the NCAA Individuals Tournament. While there, Vahaly advanced to the finals, and as a doubles team they advanced to the semifinals of the doubles tournament, which is the farthest round that any Cavalier players have gone.
Following the NCAA Tournament, Vahaly and Montgomery traveled to Toronto in early June for the Toronto Open. Montgomery finished with three match victories. They also participated in tournaments in New York, Pittsburgh and Montreal.
The former ‘Hoos don’t travel and train alone, according to Montgomery.
“On the road Brian and I are traveling with a friend of mine from Duke named Andres Pedroso and a few friends of Brian’s, so we are getting good practice,” he said.
“I’m just working out with pros that are better than me. I’m just trying to learn from them,” said Vahaly.
Vahaly has matched up against some of the world’s top players such as Lleyton Hewitt, ranked fifth in the world, Vladmir Voltchkov, ranked 16th in the world, and Roger Federer, ranked 22nd in the world.
Becoming a professional player has been a life-long ambition for both players.
“It has been a dream of mine since I was a little kid. I feel blessed to have had such a great college career and just given the opportunity to get out there,” said Vahaly.
Montgomery agreed, “I have always wanted to turn pro ever since I was little. I truly feel I have the ability to make it to the next level, so I’m just trying to live out a dream I’ve had for a long time,” he said.
Though they have competed in several tournaments, the process of turning pro has not been easy.
“We are trying to do well in smaller tournaments. If we do well enough and earn points, then we can get into bigger tournaments,” said Montgomery.
“Some players sign with an agent if they can,” added Vahaly, who recently signed with SFX. “Otherwise you just head to the first tournament and go through some qualifying tournaments to make it.”
In comparison to their student-athlete careers, both maintained that there are advantages and disadvantages to being a professional athlete.
“There are definitely fewer distractions, but it’s helped me learn to enjoy practicing and training a lot more, ” said Montgomery.
“It’s nice to be able to devote all my time to sports, but it’s also much harder because tennis is such a mental game and you never get a break from it,” said Vahaly.
They also acknowledged that it will be a long journey to reach the top level since they will have to compete 35-40 weeks a year. But as for the near future, Vahaly and Montgomery will next compete in Missouri and Southern Illinois. In addition, Vahaly is working on his schedule for 2002 in which he might travel throughout Europe, South America and Australia.