Federer Is Masterful at Houston

The joint was rocking for Andre Agassi as usual, but there were a few signs sprouting among the 7,500 onlookers that hailed the other guy: “FEDERER EXPRESS ARRIVES!”

And the other guy, the “Basel Dazzle” from Switzerland, Roger Federer, was rocking Agassi as seldom happens.

Thus the newest Master of the game was inducted at the Westside Tennis Club as Federer conducted a scorched asphalt policy against Agassi, 6-3, 6-0, 6-4.

At least it was reasonably painless -- 88 minutes -- as Agassi failed to win a Masters title as a bookend for the one he won in 1990. Failed to break the mighty serve. Failed to even coax a break point out of Federer, or get to deuce more than once.

“How could I have imagined that the final would be my easiest match?” Agassi said with a grin, meaning time and energy expended. He had won two of three in the Masters’ early round-robin phase, even held two match points on Federer in the one loss.

But Federer this time was a different, thornier proposition. He glided and gunned without letup, keeping balls one step ahead of Agassi, spewing winners all over the place -- and making hardly any mistakes.

Agassi did have one providential letup: the 2 1/2-hour rain intermission as he served at 0-2, 0-30 in the second. But by that time the handwriting was on the purple paving of the court, and the successor to faded Lleyton Hewitt (who plummeted to No. 16), was all but crowned.

“Roger was an inspiration the way he played. It’ll make me work harder to know he’s out there,” Agassi said. “And I will work harder and be back here [among the elite eight] next year.”

Agassi called Federer a “target server -- hitting the lines and corners.”

He should know. As the day and night’s (the match finished under floodlights) designated target, maybe Agassi should have gone to the mattresses to hide -- bedding of course provided by the local promoter called “Mattress Mack” (Jim McIngvale), a furniture tycoon who put up the $27 million to build the stadium and bring the event to his hometown for 2003-04.

Power and speed in the manner of Andy Roddick (whom Federer razed as thoroughly in the semifinals) isn’t Federer’s style. None of his serves exceeded 124 mph, but his accuracy was deadly in skewering Agassi with 11 aces and four service winners in 12 serving games. During the week he lost serve but three times in 55 games, twice to Agassi in the round robin, once to David Nalbandian, none of those setbacks harmful.

Nor did he much resort to serve-and-volley, a style he showed off so slickly in winning Wimbledon. His lusty groundstrokes were quite enough, the forehand a missile and the backhand a joy to behold -- unless you were Agassi -- in changing speeds: flat, topped or sliced.

Federer, elevated to No. 2 for the year in this closing victory, said, “Andy [Roddick] deserves to be No. 1. I’m very happy with No. 2, and the fact that I won seven titles -- and won on all four surfaces. Grass, clay, hard and indoor. You know, I didn’t have to volley because I was finishing points so early and well with my forehand and backhand,” 39 winners to Agassi’s 13.

It was a very good year for Agassi too: four titles, including the major at Australia, and a No. 5 ranking. His first four matches here, all three sets and more than two hours, “took my edge off,” he said.

A semifinal loser to Hewitt a year ago in Shanghai, Federer accurately appraised his performance as “really great from beginning to end.” “I felt better than the first match against Andre,” Federer said, “because I was used to the conditions.”

Federer went home with $1,520,000 from the tournament’s pot of $4.25 million.