Why $o Few Fan$ at $taple$ Tenni$?

Why all the befuddlement at the dismal attendance at the women’s tennis championships at Staples Center? There are three reasons for the paltry turnout -- prices, prices and prices!

The cheapest seats within the same ZIP code as the court sold for $50. Add to that the $15 for parking, and it’s obvious that this event was priced to exclude all but the ultra-rich or those with connections.

If Staples Center set the prices, it should be excluded from consideration for all future tennis events. Instead of being a supreme showcase, this tournament was an embarrassment to the game of tennis.

Bruce Janger

Santa Monica

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Maybe all the column space wasted on whining tennis players would have been better used for the women’s Gold Cup soccer tournament. Instead of a few people nice and warm inside Staples, there were thousands of screaming fans ignoring the cold, rain, wind and fog to cheer on the U.S. women at the Rose Bowl.

What you missed while fawning over the tennis brats: Mia Hamm leading the U.S. to victory in overtime in the championship game; Tiffeny Milbrett putting on a show with a five-goal game earlier in the tournament and Aly Wagner proving she can pull the strings at midfield.

Lorraine Boyd

Chino Hills