It was a great week in Sacramento.  I was able to squeeze out a couple of tight matches in the semifinals and finals to get my first professional singles title.  I am pretty excited about it.  It didn't come easy by any means.  I was really happy with the way that I fought all week long.  It came down to a couple of points here or there in multiple matches, and luckily I was able to tough it out.  I look forward to more tournament wins to come.  It has been a long journey to get this one.  The Journey isn't over yet though.  I have to say that It is nice to finally have a real positive stepping stone.  I feel pretty good about it.  I hope that I can keep this positive momentum going through the coming weeks.  This tournament will push my ranking into the 450's which is a nice hundred spot jump.  It is nice to keep things moving the right direction.  Also I would like to give a special shout out to the Ariza family (my housing family for the week) for taking such good care of me.  They really went above and beyond on their housing duties and I really appreciated everything.  Thanks for a great week guys!

     So now it is on to Chico, CA for tournament number two in the series.  Jordan Cox and I had a little bit of trouble picking up our rental car in the Sacramento airport this morning.  Luckily Jordan put the charm on early on to get the nice lady on our side.  After all the issues were sorted out, we ended up with a free upgrade.  We went from a Ford Focus to a Chevy Malibu.  I can't say it was much of an upgrade but an upgrade nonetheless.  Shortly after we made a quick pit stop at Jim Denny's Hamburger and Chili.  After I won the tournament I thought, "What better way to celebrate than by eating until I want to pass out?"  So I went online and discovered Jim Denny's which is home of the HUBCAP pancake (below).  There is a plate underneath there somewhere I promise.  At first I actually thought it would be a good time to try and destroy this monster. I thought wrong.  Midway through I realized I had no shot at doing it justice.  I could have pushed through, but since I am still in tournament time I decided to stop a little bit early.  I will include the after picture though (double below).  I love food.  What can I say?  It is hard not to being born and raised in the great state of Mississippi. 

     Back to what I was saying.  We finished the meal and hit the road for Chico, CA.  It was a roughly two-hour drive and a nice one at that.  Chico is a pretty nice little city from what I have seen so far.  The courts are a little bit quicker this week, which is nice.  There is a small college downtown area.  Also Jordan and I were lucky to get another great housing family this week.  The people seem really nice and they own a Mexican restaurant.  That in itself is way more than I could ever ask for.  Mexican food and I are like soul mates.  That is probably the easiest way to describe my feelings about it.  So overall things are beautiful on my side of the country. 

     I will be starting singles this week on Wednesday.  Jordan and I play our first round of doubles tomorrow afternoon not before 4:30PM.  I was pretty upset seeing this start-time, as the NBA finals are tomorrow night starting at 6:00PM.  You have to make some sacrifices in tennis though.  That is just a fact.  I find it hard to sacrifice my Lebron James time though.  It pains me, but I know it is something I might have to do on the odd occasion.  I hope you aren't taking me too seriously here.  Purely sarcasm.  I do love Lebron though.  That is real. 

     I look forward to updating you guys again on Wednesday.  Hopefully there will be some positive news to bring.  I meant to get pictures after I won the tournament last week, but I failed on that part like usual.  I figured pictures of pancakes were probably more important.  I can't be perfect every time out.  Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this update.  Feel free to comment and ask questions.  I am all ears.  Other than that, I hope you guys all had a blessed day.  Hotty Toddy. 

All the best,

Devin Britton