The 2009 U.S. Open was off and running and the ball was being struck with big time force from the ladies and the guys too! It’s been a well-played tournament to this point, but everyone’s new favorite tennis star has finally lost up in New York.

Her name is Melanie Oudin and this little girl from the Peach State of Georgia won the hearts of many tennis fans all across the country. It was cool to see big time celebrities making comments about this 17 year old rising tennis star that lives just north of Atlanta, Georgia. Mel was simply fantastic on the court this year in the U.S. Open and she had a lot of support up in the Big Apple of New York. It’s not often when Georgia Peaches and Big NY Apples mix well together, but it did in this case. Melanie wasn’t just representing her city of Marietta, or the tennis club in Norcross, Georgia, but she represented so much more. The whole USA was behind this teenage superstar and it was a lot of fun to watch her play on the courts in New York. If you think a big buzz has been going around the country about Oudin’s tennis game; you should see the folks in Georgia. The tennis fans and even people that are not usually watching tennis was watching Mel hit that ball.

It was sad to see it all come to an end and it was 9th Seed Caroline Wozniacki that figured out the magical formula to beating this young star from Georgia. Women’s tennis looks to have a very bright future, because Wozniacki is only 19 years old! From what I am hearing, the tennis fans in Georgia are rooting for Caroline now and we do hope she wins the U.S. Open this year. She was very nice taking a backseat to an ESPN interview that started with Melanie Oudin first. They said they normally don’t interview the loser first, but made an exception in this case. When Caroline Wozniacki finally got her chance to speak; she actually apologized for beating Melanie, because she knew everyone was rooting for her to win. That comment went a long ways here in Georgia and she deserves to move on in the U.S. Open Tennis Tournament.

To recap Melanie’s most impressive victories, check this list of women she beat in this year’s US Open.

* 29 Maria Sharapova

* 13 Nadia Petrovia

* 4 Elena Dementieva

That’s a nice list considering that Melanie Oudin is not even a top 50 player and she beat 3 Russians that were ranked 29th or better! If you’re still fascinated with this young tennis star; then you can catch Melanie on the Ellen DeGeneres Talk Show and the Tonight Show on Monday (Sept. 14th). And it appears the main thing she wants is a Rolex Watch and she will buy this with the $175,000 purse she is taking back to the South.