PENN TWP— Butler Country Club's annual pro-am tennis tournament has a new name and honors an old favorite.

The BCCDave Barnes Pro-Am is named for the facility's first tennis pro. Barnes, 68, served as club pro from 1974 through 1981.

He also coached the Butler High boys tennis team for 35 years and the girls program for 25 seasons. His final year of high school coaching was 1999.

"Because it's the 100th year, the club thought this was the appropriate time to honor the man who has done so much for tennis throughout this area,"said BCCtennis pro Whitney Snyder.

Barnes was on hand for the pro-am Aug. 31, which also commemorated BCC's 100th year.

"I am so grateful for that day," Barnes said. "I put in so many years coaching tennis, but what I got back in friendships and memories is a lot more than I ever put into it."

The pro-am format features eight club pros, eight male and eight female club members. Three-person teams were formed by taking one player from each category. The mixed doubles, men's doubles and overall team champions were determined through round-robin play.

Melissa King played in the men's division and teamed with Kenny Nieser to win the men's doubles crown. King became the first woman to be part of the men's doubles championship pairing since Katy Trostle in 2004.

Koach Conroy and Rachel Diehl won the mixed doubles title.

Bill Pilardi, Ann Gatty and Chuck Lenns won the overall team championship, but the day belonged to Barnes.

"I can't think of anyone who would be more deserving of having this event named after him than Dave," longtime club member Jack Barkley said. "Whitney Snyder has been there for 20 years, but Dave took it from nothing and turned it into a program."

Barkley was one of the players Barnes coached during his tenure at the country club.

"I learned a lot about the game playing for him,"Barkley said. "He was a disciplinarian. One of his former players commented that Dave's theory was if you were on time, you were 10 minutes late."

Barnes was known for his ice cream socials when he was club pro. He showed up Sunday with crates of homemade ice cream.

One of Barnes' assistant pros, Brian Miklavic, participated in Sunday's competition. One of his standout female players at Butler High, Alisa Green, now is one of Snyder's assistant pros and the current Golden Tornado girls tennis coach.

Barnes estimated 25 current or former country club tennis members were on hand Sunday.

"It was Labor Day weekend, a lot of family stuff going on. ... That meant a lot," he said.

Health issues prohibit Barnes from playing tennis these days, but he still helps Slippery Rock University tennis coach Matt Meredith with summer tournaments.

Barnes lauds the efforts of Snyder, who now holds the position he started.

"The job Whitney is doing out there is second to none,"Barnes said. "What I admire most is the rapport he has with kids. ... Those kids will be playing tennis 50 years from now."

Butler Country ClubDave Barnes Pro-AmAug. 31First:Bill Pilardi, Ann Gatty, Chuck Lenns: 13 points

Second:Brian Miklavic, Annie Succop, Evan Kowalski: 12

Third (tie):Kenny Nieser, Jenna Kanterman, Melissa King andJose Raymundo, Nance Conlon, Dick Yoder: 10

Fifth (tie):Koach Konroy, Rachel Diehl, Jack Barkley: 9 and

Jeff DelPresto, Katelyn Latuska, Doug Johnston: 9

Seventh:Jay Barkley, Melissa Jenereski, Kit Barkus: 5

Eighth:Brad Slamecka, Madeline Konesni, Stefan Kemp: 4