Awards for most improved were taken by Ilana Goossens and a split award was shared by Ryan Eggers and Thomas Chiang.
The main award is for contribution to tennis in the province and while being in rep teams and playing at the highest level is part of that, the honour, especially in the case of Hopwood, also recognises the valuable difference a player can make in other areas.
Sizemore had a very solid year but came up against a better player in each of the main tournaments. He lost the final of the Otago Indoor to former American college player Alex Hunt and beat all but former Berkeley (California) player Riki McLachlan in the Queenstown Open.
In the recent Otago Open, he lost to the eventual winner, Aucklander Charlie Tomlinson, but held a consistent winning record over his main local rivals, except for a loss to Eggers in high winds and against his Southern rivals in team events.
Sizemore was a mentor in junior teams' events and was available as a willing hitting partner for emerging players.
Hopwood played in every available event, in contrast to a number of higher-ranked women who have come to the province. She umpired all afternoon at the early season Shootout and helped recruit entrants for it.
She revitalised the relationship with the university and encouraged increased participation of tertiary students. She travelled back from her home town of Ashburton to play for Otago B and, as a qualified referee, was available in an administrative role at junior tournaments.
Goossens was an obvious choice when looking at gains in national ranking points against her fellow players.
She won her last 11 matches in a row and several were against higher-ranked rivals. After being picked for Southern at national junior level she had an eye-opening experience, in her words, and returned with a lift in motivation.
Chiang and Eggers made similar gains in rankings but had contrasting backgrounds. Chiang shifted from Southland to attend school in Dunedin and began to quickly gain results after an early-season trip to the United States for tennis.
He represented Otago Boys' High with distinction at the South Island finals and won a consolation event at the Otago Open.
By contrast, Eggers has been around the local scene for more than 10 years, but he began to get wins against rivals he had previously struggled with and made notable gains in doubles, especially in a successful partnership with Paddy Ou.
