News

GARY NETS AN INTERNATIONAL TENNIS CALL-UP -Saturday 3rd April 1999

Kirkby Stephen Grammar School staff member Gary Payton has been selected to play tennis for his native Wales in a four nations event - and among his opponents will be former British number one Jeremy Bates.

Gary, who joined the school as sports development officer in February last year, will play in the senior (over 35s) event at the National Tennis Centre, Cardiff, from 1st to 3rd May.

It is the first time Gary has been eligible for the competition, but he has played for Wales at open age group level before and, as a junior, was one of the top few players in Britain, being ranked number one in Cheshire, Lancashire and North Wales.

He has played county senior tennis for North Wales for 20 years and hopes to play more competitive tennis in this area in summer.

"I think Wales will be looking to finish in the top two" said Gary. "England might be the strongest team on paper but they will not necessarily win it. Every match will be close.

"I am likely to have to play Jeremy Bates who was England's number one player a few years ago" he added.

Gary is a qualified tennis and football coach and hold numerous coaching sessions at Kirkby Stephen Grammar School. He also set up the seven-a-side football league, based at the town's grammar school.

Welsh number one Gary hopes for four nations success - Sauturday 18th March 2000

Kirkby Stephen-based tennis coach Gary Payton has received his second international call-up for his native Wales.

The Kirkby Stephen Grammar School sports development officer, who also coaches county tennis playersfrom the age of 12 to 18, will play in a four nations event in Ireland at Easter.

Gary aged 37, will compete in the senior (over 35s) event and, as Welsh number one, will take on English number one Nick Fulwood who is one of the world's best players at this level.

Last year was the first in which Gary has been eligible for the competition, but he has previously played for Walses at open age level and, as a junior, was one of the top few players in Britain, being ranked number one in Cheshire, Lancashire and North Wales.

Gary, who is a member of Kirkby Stephen Tennis Club, plays tennis around the county as often as he can and regularly enters tournaments. He is competing in two before the four nations event, one in Cambridge and one in Staffordshire.

A qualified tennis and football coach, Gary holds various tennis courses at the Grammar School and also set up the successful floodlit seven-a-side football league, based at the school.

Record-breaking tennis season at Kirkby Stephen - Saturday 16th September 2006

IT has been a bumper year for Kirkby Stephen tennis players,with teams winning titles across all age groups.

The first successes of the year belonged to Kirkby's Men's National League team who ended the season in third place, equalling their highest ever finish.

Along the way, they were regularly victorious against some of the biggest clubs in the north of England and Midlands, and they continue to be Cumbria's only representatives playing at this highest level of league tennis in Britain.

Over the last few years Kirkby have fielded no fewer than six international in their line-up.

The individual successes of their players was highlighted earlier this year when former team member Colin Fleming was selected for the Great Britain Davis Cup squad which played Serbia and Montenegro in Glasgow at Easter.

INTERNATIONALS

Kirkby's team this year included Welsh Internationals Gary Payton and Martyn Lewis, Cumbria Captain Adam Brown and county players Scott and Chris Whittle, Adrian Robson, Nick Walls and Stuart Oldham.

A little later in the summer, Kirkby's ladies joined the men as the county's top performing team at national level when KSGS Sports College student Lucy Potter and Penrith's Joanne Wilson took the ladies' county club title at Windermere, beating Burneside in the deciding match.

This success was all the more astonishing considering that Lucy, ages 15 and 17 year old Joanne are both still Junior players.

Nex up was Kirkby's 14 and Under boys' team, comprising players who trained regularly on the community tennis program last winter. They took the county 14 and under junior title and the went on to reach the final of the North play-offs where they eventually lost to Northumberland's top squad.

The men's first team, won the Kendal and District League first division title for the first time in their history, the mixed team won the Division 2 title and the 16 and under team won the junior league for the second year running.

The successful junior team, which included Lucy Potter, Richard Tunstall, Ben Lindridge, Joss Livesey, Daniel and Andrew Todd, Jamie McAllister, Steffan Lewis and Innis Linn, matched the men's team in going through the entire league season unbeaten.

RATINGS

Individually as well, things have rarely been better. KSGS Sports College year 11 student Lucy Potter celebrated her county squad call-up by winning the Kendal Open 16 and under girls' singles title earlier this summer. It is a National Rating event which attracts players from all over the north of England and beyond.

Lucy was not Kirkby's only representative in the county training squads. No fewer than eight juniors who trained regularly on Kirkby's community tennis programme last winter were invited to the squads this year.

Payton nets GB place alongside former British number one - Friday 9th February 2007

Kirkby Stephen Grammar School Sports College community sports officer and head tennis coach Gary Payton has been selected for the Great Britain Wolrd Team Cup senior team, in which he will line up alongside former British number one Jeremy Bates.

Payton's selection for the event, which takes place in Antalya, Turkey, from 20th-29th April, comes hot on the heels of his success in the British Open Seniors Championship in Birmingham, when he performed impressively to reach the final, in which he lost to Bates 6-2, 6-2.

Payton, aged 44, was returning to the International Tennis Federation Tour, and on his way to the final he defeated two-times British champion and number two seed Graeme Adams.

The ITF Seniors Tour runs along the same lines as the current pro tour and is made up of hundreds of events all over the world, although Payton will have to choose his events carefully due to work commitments.

The British Open was particularly important to the accepted British players as it forms the basis of the slecetions criteria for the GB team.

"I did have a World Team Cup place in mind, but you don't like to say anything", said Payton, who plays in the "45s"category. Joining him and Bates in the team will be Chris Hearn.

Payton's next stop on the seniors tour is Glasgow later this month, hopefully followed by events in Austria and Belarus over the Easter break before representing his native Wales in the Four Nations Championships in Scotland in May.

Gary rises to 14th in the world and second in GB - Friday 18th July 2008

ONE of the country's top senior tennis players, Eden-based Gary Payton, has risen to number two in the British rankings and 14 in the world.

His rise comes after he reached the final of the seniors International Tennis Federation world ranking tournament, played on 16 Grass courts at Frinton, Essex.

In the final of the over-45s event, Gary, who is community sports officer at Kirkby Stephen Grammar School Sports College, lost to Nigel Mann, of Middlesex, 6-3, 6-7, 8-10, after having two match points at 5-4 in the second set.

In the quater-finals he beat British number 15 Paul Hammond 6-1, 6-2, and in the semis he was a 6-1, 6-3 victor over Germany's Frazer Beech.

He was also victorious in the final of the men's double, winning 6-0, 2-6, 11-9.

"I should now go to 14 in the world and two in Great Britain above Jeremy Bates when the next senior ranking are published", said Gary.

SEMI PROFESSIONAL

He has also now been asked to play semi-professional seniors tennis in the German Bundesliga next year. Matches are at weekends, with players flown in the play.

"Most of the world's top seniors, including Pat Cash, Andres Jarryd, etc. compete in the German league, which has one of the best league tennis structures in the world.

"Although it's tempting and the tennis will be top class, I am going to take a little more time to think about it as it;'s a pretty big commitment to make", said Gary, whose next tournament is at Devonshire Park, Eastbourne, from 22nd August.

Payton ranked 15 in the world - Friday 26th June 2009

THE latest seniors tennis rankings show that Eden's Gary Payton has risen to number 15 in the world.

The rankings are produced bu the International Tennis Federation (ITF), the world governing body of tennis. The seniors tour takes in around 250 tournaments worldwide all graded from one to four, one being the highest.

Payton, aged 46, who is Kirkby Stephen Grammar School Sports College head of community sports, is next in action in the Frinton International tournament, in Essex, next month. A win there should secure a top 10 world ranking.

The current British senior champion, Payton is also playing tennis this year for Dusseldorf in the German Bundesliga.

Dusseldorf are currently in forth place in the league with one match to play, but he will miss that match due to the Frinton event.

British number one Gary heads for world top 10 - Friday 11th December 2009

FOLLOWING what he describes as "probably his best year ever", Eden tennis ace Gary Payton is now the official British number one and world number 12, according to the latest International Tennis Federation (ITF) seniors rankings.

The final year end rankings are due out at the end of December, and Payton is likely to finish this year in the world top 10.

The ITF Seniors Tour takes in hundreds of tournaments per year all over the world. Britain hosts a number of these, the biggest and most prestigious of which is the Grade 1 International Clay Court Championship in Bournemouth in May, which 46 year-old Payton won this year.

His outstanding season also included winning the ITF seniors international grass court tournament in Frinton-on-Sea, Essex, which attracts players from all over the world due to the number of ranking points on offer. He beat former world number eight Ricardo Schutt, from Brazil, on the way to the title.

In June this year, Payton, who is Kirkby Stephen Grammar School Sports College head of community sports, also made his debut for DS Dusseldorf in the German Bundesliga. He played a further three matches for the team, helping them to third place.

The previous month he captained Wales to first place in the Four Nations Championships at Bolton Arena, beating England, Scotland and Ireland.

From May to September he led the North Wales, county team to first place in the national inter-county seniors group, beating Cheshire, Shropshire, Nottinghamshire, West of Scotland and Hereford and Worcestershire.

Next year Payton expects to be selected for Great Britain again to play in the world team championships in San Luis, Potosi, Mexico, in spring.

"I will probably play the first tournament of the year at the British Indoors Championships in Birmingham in January and i expect to play at the Scottish Indoors and clay court events in February and May, along with the Bournemouth again at the end of May".

"I will also be playing German league again for Dusseldorf in May and June before heading to Frinton in July and the British Grass Court Championships at Wimbledon in August.

Gary back to number one in GB rankings - Friday 13th July 2013

EDEN tennis star Gary Payton returned to number one in the Great Britain over-50 rankings following victory at a tournament in Essex last week.

Payton, who is Kirkby Stephen Grammar School's head of community sports and part of Cumbria tennis team, was competing in Frinton International, a renowned International Tennis Federation (ITF) grade three seniors (over-50) tournament.

As a grade three event it attracts players from all over the world as well as Great Britain because a lot of ITF world ranking points are at stake,.

This year, countries represented included, Great Britain, India, Australia, New Zealand, Germany Holland, Russia, USA, France, Finland, Denmark, South Africa, Mexico, Italy and Austria.

The event is part of a worldwide seniors tour covering all five continents and including around 500 tournaments. It is a grass court tournament and is played at Frinton Lawn Tennis Club on the Essex coast a well-known and respected grass court venue.

Although croquet and bowls were original activities of the club, it is for tennis that it has become world famous. Next to Wimbledon, it was, in the past, regarded as the major venue in the tennis calendar, offering 22 grass courts to it's member and visitors, and a social standing in a par with Henley and Ascot. As a tournament venue, it has attracted the world's leading tennis players for more than 70 years.

Last week's event was played in hot, sunny conditions, with temperatures approaching 30 degrees in finals day.

Payton's seeding going into the tournament was two, behind top seed and British number one going into the competition, Rajiv Batra, and final ended up being between the top two.

After receiving a bye in the first round Payton beat Cezar Ansari in the second, sixth seed Paul Panayi in the quarter-finals, and fourth seed Tony Cherry, of Great Britain, in the semis. In the final he defeated Batra 6-4, 6-2.

Batra is a former Davis Cup player for India and ATP Professional who now plays in Great Britain. Payton's victory will now take him back to number one in the GB rankings.

Since September last year Payton has played and won three tournaments the South of England Championships at Devonshire Park, Eastbourne, which is a grade 2 event; the Scottish Open in Glasgow, a grade three event; and Frinton.

"My highest previous ITF world ranking in the seniors was 12. The win at Frinton should mean a jump back into world top 20", said Payton.

His next event is on grass at Eastbourne in August.

Father and Daughter team Gary and Hannah Payton finish third in national competition - March 10th 2016

GARY AND Hannah Payton narrowly missed out on a prestigious Great Britain national father and daughter tennis title when they finished third on their first attempt in the competition at Birmingham - but will be going for gold next time around.

The pair, who lives in Preston and play in Torquay, took on doubles from all over Great Britain through a series of qualifying rounds which began in April last year and culminated at the MEC in Birmingham in December.

Their journey ended when they lost in the semi-finals t Graham and Hayley Tallin from Buckinghamshire, who went on to win the title.

"The semi-final was tight from start to finish and could easliy have gone either way" said Gary Payton, with the outcome a 6-4, 7-5 defeat.

This meant the pair went into the third-place play-off match in which they beat the previous year's winners 6-4, 6-4.

Gary, 53 who is a member of Torquay Tennis Club, has represented Great Britain and has been ranked as high as 12th in the world in the ITF Seniors World Rankings.

Hannah, 17, was a member of the Cumbria County Junior Squad before moving down to Devon.

The Payton family also own and run the Victorian Times Tea and Coffee Shop in Torquay Road opposite Crossways Shopping Centre in Paignton.

"All in all, i think it was a great effort at our first attempt in the tournament," said dad Gary.

"We vow to do even better next year and try to take the title outright!"

Former GB tennis star Gary is back to serve up new coaching programme - Saturday 3rd April 2021

A NEW tennis programme led by former Great Britain international Gary Payton, who has returned to cumbria after several years in Devon, is coming to the Appleby and Keswick and Braithwaite clubs over the next few weeks.

It will include mini tennis sessions (red.orange and green categories) using smaller rackets and slower, lower bouncing balls for children from age 6, junior sessions for 11-18 year olds, and adult sessions. These will start in Appleby from mid April and Keswick and Braithwaite from 8th May. The Appleby sessions will be based on the courts at Appleby Grammar School and the Keswick and Braithwaite sessions will be based at the Braithwaite Site.

The programmes are being organised and coached by Gary, who is former number 1 and world number 12 in the International Tennis Federation seniors rankings and GB International player as well as a Level 4 qualified and licensed LTA Coach.

Gary recently returned to Cumbria following a 5 year coaching stint at the EF International school and Cary Park Tennis Club in Torquay. following 16 years coaching in Kirkby Stephen, where he was also Sports Development Manager at the Towns Grammar School.

His 22 year old Daughter Hannah - a very accomplished player herself - with whom he finished 3rd in the 2016 National Father and Daughter competition in Birmingham, will be helping him ti deliver the sessions.

"It's great to be back in Cumbria and i'm really looking forward to the new sessions. They are filling up very quickly", said Gary.

Gary is also currently coaching the Cumbria county girls Under-18, Under-14, Under-12 and Under-11 teams.

Details are: Appleby Sessions will be: Red, Orange and Green (6-8 years and Under 11's)m Every Tuesday from the 20th April, 4:00pm-4:50pm. Under-18's every Tuesday from 20th April, 5:00pm-6:00pm. Adult Sessions every Tuesday from 20th April, 6:00pm-7:00pm.

Anyone interested in taking part in any of the above sessions should contact Gary directly on 07890615926. Sessions must be pre-booked as spaces are extremely limited. Appleby Tennis Club is a friendly club basked at Appleby Grammar School and welcomes players of all standards. Anyone interested in joining the club should email applebytennisclub@hotmail.co.uk.

Gary Payton Tennis