ATLANTA – Atlanta native and former top-15 player Robby Ginepri has been given a wild card into the Atlanta Tennis Championships (ATC), an ATP World Tour event that will open the Olympus US Open Series at the Racquet Club of the South, July 18-24, Tournament Director Bob Bryant announced.

The American has won three ATP World Tour titles dating back to 2003, where he captured his first in Newport. His other two came in Indianapolis in 2005 and 2009. He is back on tour after rehabilitation sidelined the hometown hero from Kennesaw for the first half of 2011. Last September he fell off of his bicycle when trying to avoid hitting a squirrel, breaking his left elbow.

His last tour-level tournament was in 2010 at the US Open, an event he reached the semifinals of in 2005. Last year at the Atlanta Tennis Championships, Ginepri reached the second round before losing to eventual champion Mardy Fish.

"I’m so thankful to be back playing tennis and for the opportunity to play in front of my hometown fans in Atlanta," said Ginepri. "It’s a great tournament, and I hope that people from all over the area can come out and support me and the other amazing professionals."

Ginepri joins six other American stars in the singles main draw event, including Fish; John Isner, who won the title in Newport this past weekend; Ryan Sweeting, who captured his first ATP World Tour title in Houston earlier this year; Alexander Bogomolov, Jr., who has one win this year on the Challenger circuit; 10-year tour veteran Michael Russell, who will be looking to back up his quarterfinals appearance last year in Atlanta and former top-10 American James Blake.

"Robby is a great addition to our strong player field," said Tournament Director Bob Bryant. "He has a lot of talent, and I think his Atlanta roots will gain him quite a bit of fan support at this year’s championships."

In addition, qualifying-draw wild cards were given to 18-year-old American Denis Kudla and 14-year ATP World Tour veteran Nicolas Massu. Just last week, Kudla rose 57 spots to a career-high ranking after defeating Ivo Karlovic and Grigor Dimitrov en route to the quarterfinals in Newport. Massu reached a career-high ranking of No. 9 in the world in 2004 after winning two gold medals for his country in singles and doubles (with Fernando Gonzalez). He has five other ATP World Tour singles titles in his career.

Daily tickets and weeklong ticket packages, which include tickets to all 11 sessions of the Atlanta Tennis Championships, are now on sale. For ATC ticket information, call 678-495-3279, e-mail tickets@atlantatennischampionships.com or visit www.atlantatennischampionships.com.

About the Atlanta Tennis Championships
The Atlanta Tennis Championships will be played at the Racquet Club of the South, 6350 Courtside Drive, Norcross, GA 30092, July 18-24. The facility hosted the 1990 Fed Cup final and a men’s World Championship Tennis tournament in the 1980s. A USTA Regional Training Center, the facility is the home club of one of the top American players, Melanie Oudin, of Marietta, Ga. In 2010 top competitors included Andy Roddick, Lleyton Hewitt, James Blake and Robby Ginepri, of Kennesaw, Ga. More than 41,000 spectators attended the inaugural tournament that offered $600,000 in prize money. The ATP formally awarded the ATP 250 sanction Atlanta Tennis Championships to the USTA Southern Section in December 2009. For ATC ticket information, call 678-495-3279, e-mail tickets@atlantatennischampionships.com or visit www.atlantatennischampionships.com.

About the Olympus US Open Series
The Olympus US Open Series has established itself as a true regular season of hard court tennis, linking 10 summer tournaments to the US Open. Fans follow the action throughout the summer through national television coverage, culminating each week with back-to-back men’s and women’s finals on Sunday afternoon. Players battle for $40 million, including a chance for bonus prize money at the US Open. In 2008, Olympus became the first title sponsor of the Series. The Olympus US Open Series is also supported by sponsors American Express and Evian. Andy Murray won the 2010 Olympus US Open Series men’s title and Caroline Wozniacki won the women’s title. In 2007, Roger Federer collected the biggest paycheck in tennis history – $2.4 million – for winning the US Open and the Olympus US Open Series. In 2005, Kim Clijsters also captured both the US Open and the Series, winning $2.2 million – the largest purse in women’s sports history – and again equaled that amount in 2010, winning the US Open and finishing the Olympus US Open Series in second place.

About the ATP
The ATP is the governing body of the men's professional tennis circuits - the ATP World Tour, the ATP Challenger Tour and the ATP Champions Tour. With 62 tournaments in 32 countries, the ATP World Tour showcases the finest male athletes competing in the world’s most exciting venues. From Australia to Europe and the Americas to Asia, the stars of the ATP World Tour battle for prestigious titles and South African Airways 2011 ATP Rankings points at Grand Slams (non ATP events), ATP World Tour Masters 1000, ATP World Tour 500 and ATP World Tour 250 events. At the end of the season only the world’s top 8 ranked men’s singles players and top 8 doubles teams, based on their performance throughout the year, will qualify to compete for the last title of the season at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. Held at The O2 in London, the event will officially crown the 2011 ATP World Tour No.1 in singles and doubles. For more information, please visit www.ATPWorldTour.com.

About USTA Southern
The USTA is divided into 17 sections, of which USTA Southern is the largest. The 187,000+ USTA members living in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee make up USTA Southern, and account for approximately 25 percent of the total USTA membership. The section owns and operates the Atlanta Tennis Championships, an ATP World Tour 250 tournament. A professional staff housed in Norcross, Ga., carries out USTA Southern’s daily operations, but policy is formed and much of the organization’s work is executed via a board and committee structure of over 200 volunteers. For more information about the types of programs and services offered by USTA Southern, visit www.southerntennis.com.