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ATLANTA — Andy Roddick, America’s top men’s player, has accepted a wild card into the Atlanta Tennis Championships. Roddick won the last ATP World Tour tournament in Atlanta in 2001. The Atlanta event, owned and operated by USTA Southern, will serve as the kick-off to the 2010 Olympus US Open Series.

The 2003 US Open champion and current world No. 9 Roddick will be the tournament’s top seed. He won the Olympus US Open Series in 2005 and 2006.

On Apr. 29, 2001, the 18-year-old Roddick was ranked No. 89 when he defeated Belgian Xavier Malisse 6-2, 6-4 in the Atlanta clay court final. He was the first American teenager to win an ATP title since Michael Chang in 1992.

Malisse also returns to Atlanta and is projected to be seeded seventh.

Roddick will also play doubles with American Mardy Fish.

“Bringing the best tennis player in America back to Atlanta, where he won his first ATP World Tour title, is extremely exciting,” Tournament Director Bill Oakes said. “In speaking with Andy, he expressed how happy he is to return to the site of his first victory, a city that is truly devoted to playing and watching tennis.”

Roddick comes into Atlanta with a 32-7 match record in 2010. He opened the season with a title in Brisbane and, in April, he won the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title in Miami. He leads the ATP World Tour this season with a 26-4 hard court record (most wins).

The former World No. 1 has 29 career titles on the ATP World Tour, He and Roger Federer are the only active players to finish in the Top 10 for the past eight years and are also the only active players who have won at least one ATP World Tour title the past 10 years. He’s appeared in five Grand Slam finals, including three at Wimbledon.

Fish won his fourth career title Sunday, defeating Olivier Rochus to take the Campbell’s Hall of Fame Tennis Championships in Newport. The victory advanced Fish 30 spots to No. 49 in the South African Airways 2010 ATP rankings.

James Ward of Great Britain will receive the third wild card.

Taking place from July 19-25, the Atlanta Tennis Championships will feature some of the world’s top ATP players, plus the US Open National Playoffs – Men’s Championship.

The Atlanta Tennis Championships will feature a 28-player singles draw and 16-team doubles draw. Roddick joins John Isner, Lleyton Hewitt, James Blake and Robby Ginepri in the main singles draw. Concurrently, the men’s winners from 16 US Open National Playoffs Sectional Qualifying Tournaments will battle for one spot in the 2010 US Open Qualifying Tournament in Flushing, N.Y.

About the Atlanta Tennis Championships

The Atlanta Athletic Club, Johns Creek, Ga., will be the tournament site. The ATP formally awarded the ATP 250 sanction Atlanta Tennis Championships to the USTA Southern Section in December 2009.

Premium tickets and daily tickets are now on sale. To order daily tickets by phone, call 866-840-8822. For an order form or other ticket info, call (678) 527-2138 or visit atlantatennischampionships.com.

About the Olympus US Open Series

Now in its seventh season, the Olympus US Open Series has established itself as a true regular season of hard court tennis, linking 10 summer tournaments to the US Open. Fans can follow the action throughout the summer through national television coverage, culminating each week with back-to-back men’s and women’s finals every Sunday afternoon. Players battle for $40 million, including a chance for bonus prize money at the US Open. In 2008, Olympus became the first title sponsor of the Series. The Olympus US Open Series is also supported by sponsors American Express, Evian and Grand Marnier.

Sam Querrey won the 2009 Olympus US Open Series men’s title and Elena Dementieva won the women’s title. In 2007, Roger Federer collected the biggest paycheck in tennis history — $2.4 million — for winning US Open and the Olympus US Open Series. In 2005, Kim Clijsters also captured both the US Open and the Olympus US Open Series, winning $2.2 million — the largest purse in women’s sports history.

About the ATP World Tour

With 62 tournaments in 32 countries, the ATP World Tour showcases the finest male athletes competing in the world’s most exciting venues. From Australia to Europe and the Americas to Asia, the stars of the ATP World Tour battle for prestigious titles at Grand Slams (non ATP members), ATP World Tour Masters 1000, ATP World Tour 500 and ATP World Tour 250 events. At the end of the season the world’s top 8 ranked singles players and top 8 doubles teams, based on their performance throughout the year, will qualify to compete in the season’s climax – the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. To be held at London’s O2 arena, the event will officially crown the 2010 ATP World Tour Champion and determine the final South African Airways 2010 ATP Rankings. For more information, please visit www.ATPWorldTour.com.

About USTA Southern

The USTA is divided into 17 sections, of which USTA Southern is the largest. The 185,000+ USTA members living in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee make up USTA Southern, and account for approximately 25 percent of the total USTA membership. The section owns and operates the Atlanta Tennis Championships, an ATP World Tour 250 tournament. A professional staff housed in Norcross, Ga., carries out USTA Southern’s daily operations, but policy is formed and much of the organization’s work is executed via a board and committee structure of over 200 volunteers. For more information about the types of programs and services offered by USTA Southern, visit southerntennis.com.