Klahn advances to finals of Costa Mesa Pro Classic

COSTA MESA — No. 3-seeded Bradley Klahn of Poway upended second-seeded Tennys Sandgren Saturday to advance to the finals of the Costa Mesa Pro Classic at the Costa Mesa Tennis Center.

Klahn will face Min Hyeok-Cho, who had little problem dispatching fellow South Korean Jin Sun Nam.

The championship match will begin at 11 a.m. on Sunday. Following the championship, a 10-and-under tennis play day will be offered at the Costa Mesa Tennis Center.

Klahn, 22, ranked No. 226 in the world, fell behind, 3-0, in the first set to Sandgren, ranked 216th. However, Klahn rallied to 5-6 and held an advantage in the 12th game, only to drop it, giving Sandgren the 7-5 victory.

Klahn then broke Sandgren’s serve in the first game of the second set, propelling him to 6-4 victories in the final two sets.

“I didn’t come out focused in the first three games, but eventually I got my energy back up and got on track,” said Klahn, who won the 2010 NCAA men’s championship while playing for Stanford University and, in 2012, became the first men’s qualifying wild card to win a round at the U.S. Open. “That first break [in the second set] was where I felt the momentum turn.”

Klahn played Cho last week in the semifinals of the USTA Men’s Pro Tennis Championship in Calabasas, winning, 6-3, 6-2.

“He’s a solid player and makes you move around a lot on the course,” Klahn said in a release. “I just have to come out with a game plan and stick with it.”

Part of the USTA’s Pro Circuit, the $15,000 Costa Mesa Pro Classic features 32 singles players and 16 doubles teams. All players are seeking to boost their world tennis ranking through participating in USTA Pro Circuit events held weekly across the country.

— From staff reports