The Lipton will always be an important tournament for Thomas Muster. Prior to 1997, however, its significance to him had been primarily negative. The 1989 Lipton was the site of one of Muster's greatest victories, quickly followed by agonizing misfortune. A win over Yannick Noah put Muster in the singles final . . . a final he never played due to a run-in with a drunk driver which nearly ended his career. Tireless determination brought Muster back, all the way back to brief stints at #1 in the world. Nevertheless, the #2 seed was not considered a favorite to win this year's event. A notorious clay court specialist, his perpetually fit but frequently aching body wasn't supposed to hold up for a week and a half against world class competition on hard courts. Alas, Thomas Muster has a habit of surprising those who underestimate him.

Muster's tournament did not get off to the most auspicious start -- he received a first round bye and was then pushed to a third set by journeyman Grant Stafford

in their 2nd round encounter. The wins came easier after that. At least they looked easy on the scoreboard -- wins rarely come easily on the court for Muster. He does not possess the smooth, balletic grace of a Stefan Edberg or the natural instincts of a John McEnroe. Nearly every point for Muster is a baseline-hugging test of wills in which he just keeps hitting the ball back until the opponent crumbles.

Easily or not, Muster would advance through the remainder of his draw without losing a set. Lanky German teenager Tommy Haas was issued a 6-2, 6-1 lesson. Gritty Spaniard Alex Corretja bowed out 6-4, 6-4. Jonas Bjorkman didn't have enough left after big wins over Marcelo Rios and Mark Philippoussis to pull the same feat against Muster, falling by a 7-5, 6-2 count. Even native Floridian Jim Courier was only able to get seven games in two sets against "the Moose Man". While all of these players had scored impressive wins to reach Muster, it was worth noting that he had yet to face anyone ranked in the world's top 20. Surely that would change in the final.

Lo and behold, there was no Pete Sampras or Michael Chang waiting for Muster on the tournament's last day. They had both fallen prey to a most unlikely finalist -- Spain's Sergi Bruguera, on the comeback trail after nearly three years marred by injuries and disappointing results. If Muster had come in lightly regarded on hard courts, that goes double for dirt-loving Bruguera. Despite his dramatic run to the final of the 1996 Olympics, few could have foreseen Sergi's valiant and highly successful Key Biscayne showing.

The #30 seed (at the only tournament which issues more than 16 seeds), Bruguera took a bye into the second round, where he survived a predictably difficult 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 showdown with Jason Stoltenberg. We'll never know how the tournament would have turned out if Bruguera hadn't passed that test. Michael Chang would probably like to find out -- the #3 seed was shockingly knocked out of the event 6-4, 6-3 by the resurgent Spaniard. Qualifier Gaston Etlis went down next in straight sets and Andrei Medvedev (another former top 5 player working his way back into form) was lucky to get three games. The stage was set for a semifinal against the #1 player in the world, Pete Sampras.

Sampras was not as match tough as he probably would have liked, having recevied a quarterfinal walkover when German upstart Hendrik Dreekmann dropped out with a bizarre walking injury. Whatever the explanation, Bruguera's tenacity and accurate groundstrokes were finally too much for Sampras, who was ousted 5-7, 7-6, 6-4.

What remained was a fairly anti-climactic final. Bruguera was able to test Muster in the first set, but it was all downhill for the Spaniard after he lost it in a tiebreak. The utterly tireless Muster continued to chase down shots and return them with interest, making his baseline game hum even on a hard court. Bruguera kept the second set competitive, but admittedly had no energy left in reserve for the third. Muster rolled 7-6, 6-3, 6-1. It was clearly an emotional accomplishment for Thomas, who declared it "a great day of justice." After eight years, Thomas Muster finally got to play his Lipton final, leaving with a championship trophy and a greater reputation as an all-court threat.

There were other noteworthy moments and accomplishments along the way. Miami (Fisher Island) resident and former Lipton champ Jim Courier had a stellar week, dispatching two of the top five seeds (mercurial ace-meisters Goran Ivanisevic and Richard Krajicek). Perhaps most indicative of Courier's gutsy run was his battle with Australia's Scott Draper (who had dispatched Andre Agassi in the previous round). Trailing 4-1 in the 3rd set, Courier rallied to win the final five games of the match.

It had been a big week for former top contenders recapturing old glory. He's still just 22 years old, but Andrei Medvedev has seen just about as much as Bruguera and Courier. Finally back in good form after a series of injuries and off-court distractions, Medvedev turned up in Key Biscayne with virtually no hair on his head and virtually no fear in his heart. "I'd rather die like a man than live like a chicken," said the Ukranian of his newly aggressive style. It paid off in three remarkably tight victories in a row, as Medvedev ousted #21 seed Petr Korda in a third set tiebreak, #11 seed Albert Costa in another third set tiebreak, and Nicklas Kulti 7-5 in the 3rd set of their fourth round match. Medvedev can certainly be forgiven for running out of gas against Bruguera in the quarters.

Other men who will take fond memories away from the 1997 Lipton include Jonas Bjorkman (whose strong season continued with the upsets of Rios and Philippoussis), Mikael Tillstrom (who stunned #7 seed Carlos Moya before a big crowd on the Grandstrand), Draper (who considered the win over Agassi the biggest of his career), and Dreekmann (who surpassed expectations by reaching the quarterfinals). However, it was the indefatigable Thomas Muster who walked away with the title.