KEY POINTS:
New Zealand tennis player Ellen Barry has won her first professional singles title with victory in the ITF US$10,000 ($12,590) women's singles at the ASB Pro Circuit in Hamilton.
Barry, the tournament third seed, can expect her WTA professional ranking of 419 to move to around the mid-380s after her three-set triumph over Australian qualifier Anna Wishink.
Barry, from Canterbury, beat Wishink 6-7(1), 6-1, 6-4, but won't have any time to dwell on her success as she flies to Perth today for two US$25,000 Challenger tournaments.
The match took a shade over two hours and earned Barry, 19, around US$1500, but it's the ranking points which are of more value and will help her gain direct acceptance into stronger tournaments.
"In the first set I was waiting a little bit. I felt like I was trying to do too much with the ball. I was a little flat footed at first but in the second set I started going for my shots. In the third I tightened up again but got an early break and managed to come through from there," said Barry, who proved she has a forehand which can now win her free points in matches.
"I hope to continue doing well now in US$25,000 and $50,000 events. I hope it's going to be a good year for me now," she said.
For Wishink just making the final was a reward after she lost in qualifying last week in Wellington and managed to fight her way through qualifying in Hamilton, including a big three-set victory over Kiwi Kairangi Vano in Saturday's semis.
The US$15,000 men's title was won by Australian 18-year-old Brydan Klein, who is on his way up the international rankings, having won the Australian juniors title last year and is already inside the top-500.
His 6-4, 6-4 victory over Korean qualifier Young-Jun Kim should see him move to close to breaking the top-400. Hamilton was his third Futures title with no doubt many more to come.