The event is July 8-10 south of the HB Pier and it comes on the heels of the Fourth of July weekend, making Hermosa one of the hottest places to be at any California beach to start July. This marks the return of the tournament after it being absent the past two years.
The AVP Pro Series Hermosa Beach Open has sone of the sport’s top as well as up-and-coming players smacking the ball over the sand for a $125,000 purse.
General admission for the tournament is free, with premium seating options available. The beach volleyball-loving LA Beach Cities community turns out for this event to watch the games, meet and mingle and have libations at the Hermosa Beach bars on and near Pier Plaza.
Courtside boxes are available for purchase at www.AVP.com.
Play is approximately 9 a.m.-6 p.m. PT with the women’s final scheduled for Sunday at 2 p.m. and the men’s final to follow at 3 p.m. Live coverage rom Stadium Court and Court 1 all weekend are on the AVP’s YouTube channel, @avpbeach. The men’s and women’s finals will air nationally Tuesday, July 12 from 11 p.m.-1 a.m. on FS1 and Saturday, July 16 on Bally Sports.
For those looking ahead to the “Wimbledon of Beach Volleyball,” the AVP Manhattan Open a mile and a half up the California coast, those dates are Aug. 19-21
“Beach volleyball is truly a way of life in Hermosa Beach, and we’re very excited to be back competing in the heart of such a vibrant area that lives and breathes the sport,” said Al Lau, CEO of the AVP. “To be able to have the AVP Junior Nationals running concurrently with the Hermosa Beach Open will provide an amazing opportunity for young players who aspire to reach the top level of the sport watch and learn from the best of the best. We’re looking forward to an amazing week in the South Bay.”
Top AVP Hermosa Open Players
MEN:
- Phil Dalhausser/Casey Patterson – Dalhausser is a four-time Olympian and a 2008 gold medalist, and won the Hermosa Beach Open alongside Todd Rogers five straight years from 2006-10. Patterson is a 2016 Olympian anda 18-time winner on the AVP Tour, including two wins in three events last season. Dalhausser has won two tournaments already this season, including the Pro Series New Orleans Open, when he partnered with Patterson.
- Tri Bourne/Trevor Crabb – Bourne is a 2020 Olympian and a five-time AVP winner. Bourne (a USC product) and Crabb (Long Beach State) are the defending champions of the AVP Manhattan Beach Open.
- Andy Benesh/Nick Lucena – Lucena is a two-time Olympian and has 16 career AVP tournament wins. Benesh (USC/Rancho Palos Verdes) was this year’s Pro Series Austin Open champion with partner Phil Dalhausser.
- Troy Field/Chase Budinger – Field (Laguna Beach) and Budinger (Encinitas) advanced to the men’s final of the season-opening Austin Open. Budinger won twice on the AVP Tour last season, teaming with Casey Patterson to secure tournament titles in Atlanta and Chicago. His first career victory was at the 2019 Hermosa Beach Open. He played 407 games in the NBA over seven seasons from 2009 to 2016 with the Houston Rockets, Minnesota Timberwolves, Indiana Pacers, and Phoenix Suns before transitioning to beach volleyball in 2018.
- Taylor Crabb/Taylor Sander – Crabb is an eight-time AVP winner and won the 2017 Hermosa Beach Open with former partner Jake Gibb. Crabb (Long Beach State) and Sander (Corona) advanced to the final of the Pro Series New Orleans Open in May.
- Chaim Schalk/Theo Brunner – Schalk represented his native Canada in the 2016 Olympics. Brunner won the Hermosa Beach Open with John Hyden in 2018.
- Logan Webber/John Hyden – Hyden, 49, won the Hermosa Beach Open in 2018.
WOMEN
- Betsi Flint/Kelly Cheng – Flint is a six-time winner on the AVP Tour. Cheng, a 2020 Olympian, owns two AVP victories and won twice internationally last season. Flint (Loyola Marymount) and Cheng (USC) partnered to win the year’s Pro Series New Orleans Open in May.
- Sarah Sponcil/Terese Cannon – Sponcil (LMU/UCLA) was a 2020 Olympian with Kelly Cheng and has formed a new partnership this season with Cannon (USC). The duo placed fifth at the Austin Open in May and return for their second AVP event this year.
- Kelley Kolinske/Sara Hughes – Hughes (USC) partnered with Kelly Cheng at the 2017 Chicago Open to become the youngest team to ever win an AVP title, and has since won twice more on the AVP. Kolinske (Pepperdine) is also a three-time winner on the AVP Tour.
- Zana Muno/Lauren Fendrick – Muno is a Hermosa Beach native and UCLA product, and her first career main draw was at the Hermosa Beach Open back in 2019, when she and former partner Crissy Jones placed third. Fendrick (UCLA) is a four-time AVP winner. The 40-year-old was a 2016 Olympian.
- Liliane Maestrini/Larissa Maestrini – The Brazilian duo debuted on the AVP Tour last season after distinguished international careers. Larissa is a three-time Olympian (and a bronze medal winner in 2012) and holds the all-time record with 62 FIVB tournament titles. In June, the pair won the Tour Series Muskegon Open in Michigan.
- Emily Day/ Savvy Simo – Day is a Torrance native and LMU graduate who has thrived in professional tournaments in her backyard. She won the Hermosa Beach Open in 2017 and 2019, and has two plaques on the Manhattan Beach Pier (2016, 2017). In 2017, she completed the SoCal sweep, also winning in Huntington Beach. Simo (UCLA) is playing in just her seventh career AVP event.
- Hailey Harward/Falyn Fonoimoana – Harward is a USC product and two-time national champion. Fonoimoana is a Hermosa Beach native and USC product.
- Geena Urango/Julia Scoles – Scoles (USC) is a two-time national champion. Urango (Los Alamitos) was the first scholarship recipient for the USC sand volleyball program.
It’s a full beach volleyball weekend of competition with the AVP Junior Nationals taking place from July 5-10.
Leave a Reply