Borgs in Stockholm

[jimlosaltos]

From: Bastien Fachan
@BastienFachan

This is pretty amazing: 45 years ago, Bjorn Borg won his last-ever match in Stockholm - 6-3 6-4 in the 1980 final. Tonight, his son Leo Borg won his first-ever match in Stockholm - 6-3 6-4 in the 2025 first round.

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[don_budge]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9p2an5e-24

After a couple of looks at the menu I saw the Nordic Tennis was on in Stockholm. Flipped the switch and lo and behold it was young Borg. I've seen him before. Not so impressive and nothing that sticks out. The same sort of player you see on tour nowadays. Blasting away. The audience in the King's Tennis Hall was only at about 30 percent capacity. It must have been around ten when it mercifully concluded. A third set would have taken it towards midnight. I went back and forth between "The Deer Hunter" and Borg Jr. Never committing to either. "The Deer Hunter" an American war film about the Vietnam War. A war that I escaped participating in by the slim margin. They quit the draft in 1972 when I turned 18. God interceding again in my favor. They started the lottery system for future participants that year. My number was 300 something. That would be a rather decent ATP ranking but it cleared me of any chance of a vacation to the rice paddies in Southeast Asia.

I saw Leo serve out the match without any drama. The sparse crowd was delighted. Stockholm Syndrome. I went to a war game the other day at the regiment in Sk?vde. My wife used to live there as a child. In those days it was nothing but fields and fields surrounding the regiment. There were the stables where the horses hung out. The cavalry. She had a wonderful childhood. Running around barefoot much of the time. Hiking three or four kilometers to school all year round. Never wore a helmet. During the war games they enacted a fake battle scene. All of the bad guys were killed and the victors were triumphant. In reality everyone would have been blown to smithereens. Body parts and bits and pieces all over. It's the nature of war.

Meanwhile at the tennis hall they were playing tennis somewhat oblivious about what could happen. You know...worse case scenario. Worse case Leo loses in three after winning the first. Didn't happen. Shapovalov next. Dennis the Menace. I wrote of him at length once upon a time. Lefty with a one handed backhand. Hmmm...a matchup somewhat reminiscent of Father Borg and Johnny the Menace. Just another night in the middle of nowhere. I went outside to relieve myself in the night. Not to worry...nobody around. Except the stars and the moon. Was that a bear we saw the other night driving home. That was a moose in the driveway this morning coming home from the vet. Good luck to Leo against Dennis.

[seano]

I love nature. Presently have another month staying in Dingle Ireland, It's amazingly beautiful. My wife and I have made it a tradition to come here every October when the off-season begins and rates go down in price. Earlier this year, started teaching a little at a prominent country club in Maryland to help pay for our vacations. Hopefully own a second house in Dingle, someday.

[don_budge]

BBBF824A-0BC3-4F8F-9152-DD73C967EC04_1_201_a.jpg

Ilva...Means female wolf in Swedish.

I love nature. Presently have another month staying in Dingle Ireland, It's amazingly beautiful. My wife and I have made it a tradition to come here every October when the off-season begins and rates go down in price. Earlier this year, started teaching a little at a prominent country club in Maryland to help pay for our vacations. Hopefully own a second house in Dingle, someday.

Amen to that. Dingle looks amazing. A long ways from home. Once you leave "civilization" you realize just how out of touch humans are with nature. I used to be a city slicker. Now a country bumpkin. Wait a minute...is that a wolf in the backseat? On the way to the vet...

[seano]

DB -

Is IIva a wolf or a wolfdog? I used to have Alaskan Malamutes for most of my adult life. Miss them dearly. Always curious about owning a wolf or wolfdog.

[don_budge]

DB -Is IIva a wolf or a wolfdog? I used to have Alaskan Malamutes for most of my adult life. Miss them dearly. Always curious about owning a wolf or wolfdog.

She is a rather high content wolf dog. We have had five wolf dogs since I've been in Sweden. My wife's idea. She thinks it would have been fun to live in Viking times. She is definitely in touch with her inner Viking, which is a rather lost phenomena these days in this Nordic country. Amazing you've had the Malamutes. What an animal! Many of these wolf dogs have Malamute lineage along with German Shepherd and Husky. We've had a couple of Huskies. I can hear in your words how you miss them. I get it. They have a knack of really getting close to you. There really isn't anything like it on the face of this earth. When they pass on it is like a religious experience. A sacred happening. It leave its mark. That speaks volumes of you...seano. These animals are our way of contacting our inner nature. Much as the inner Viking. The inner wolf. "Steppenwolf" is a fascinating work by Hermann Hesse. A man tries to reconcile his inner wolf. As much as I do nowadays.

[QUOTE=don_budge;n108461]Good luck to Leo against Dennis.

https://www.atptour.com/en/players/leo-borg/b0jg/player-activity?matchType=Singles&year=2025&tournament=al l

Nice try for Leo Borg. If you look at his recent activity he has really been struggling to make any kind of impact on the professional game. Trying to follow in his father's footsteps must be incredibly frustrating. Or maybe he is having a ball...it all depends on his attitude. I guess genetically he is inclined to chase the ball. Interestingly...it isn't the same game his father played. That is beyond ironic. Bj?rn Borg being the epitome of the wood racquet game. His reverence for his beloved Donnay tennis racquet is an indication for his reverence for the game. It had to be incredibly painful to see the game change so abruptly once he had eaten his way to the top of the game. Coupled with the fact that he was reputedly burned out from the effort. What a legacy he left. His rivalry with the American volcanic counterpart was a thing of legend. Oddly...it has been swept under the rug over the years. It's a great example of how controlled information is. History under house arrest. Most tennis fans nowadays are so certain of the superiority of the modern game. They actually do not have a clue about the Classic game.