By David Jenkins

Staff Writer

Another big step in Ashley Harkleroad's chosen career will be taken this week.

The 16-year-old Flintstone, Ga., native, coming off a roller-coaster summer of tennis that saw a big victory on the heels of a major disappointment at Wimbledon, enters her first adult Grand Slam this week as a wild card in the U.S. Open women's draw. Should Harkleroad handle her first-round opponent, American Meilen Tu, she likely gets a chance to face No. 4 seed Venus Williams in the second round.

In a similar scenario in a smaller tournament this spring, Harkleroad lost that first-round match. But don't expect her to be looking to the Open's second round prematurely.

"It'll be hard not to be looking ahead," Harkleroad said last week following a practice session for the New York tournament. "But I won't be any good if I do that. ... I was honored that I was given a wild-card spot in the field. I hope to do some damage."

In the three years since she left Flintstone to move into the Saddlebrook tennis enclave in Wesley Chapel, Fla., she has grown two inches to a sturdy 5-foot-8 and has weight-trained to better suit her growing power game. But in a recent New York Times article, she said she still patterns her game after Martina Hingis, the longtime No. 1 player who thrives on finesse.

"I'm not going to be able to overpower anybody out on the court," she told the Times. "I've got to be quick and use my head and feet. I'm not Venus Williams out there."

But her father, former Chattanooga Valley High School quarterback Danny Harkleroad, said his daughter's style could equip her to stand up against Williams' blistering power.

"She's always improving, it seems like, but it's hard to gauge it because the more matches she plays, the better the competition," said the elder Harkleroad. "But this is what she has been working for since she was eight years old. And in order to get from Flintstone, Ga., to the U.S. Open, you have to set the goals very high.

"We were very, very fortunate that there were so many good coaches and facilities in the Chattanooga area. All the people who worked with her were absolutely great. Being in Flintstone, 20 minutes away from all of these facilities, we had the best situation possible."

Manker Patten head pro Ned Caswell was the last local coach to work with the young prodigy. The Champions Club's Phillip Tuckniss was the first, giving her lessons at age 4. Others included UTC then-coach Jim Thompson, Sue and Billy Bartlett and finally Caswell.

"I'm sure she has improved, but when she left Chattanooga, she had already made her breakthrough," Caswell said. "It was a group effort. Jim Thompson (former UTC coach) was one of the main ones when she was younger, but someone like her needs five hours a day."

But, ironically, Harkleroad has recently fired her coach, Jimmy Brown, and goes into the Open without a fulltime adviser.

"The last one helped me a lot, but was also very negative," she said. "He had good and bad points. Things are going pretty well, so I'm not worrying about a coach right now.

"I did not play well at all at Wimbledon (losing a third-round junior singles match), even though it was good to win the (junior) doubles," Harkleroad said. "I took a two-week rest, the first in about a year and a half. But I think I've had a great summer."

An outstanding clay court season jump-started Harkleroad's season, as she has moved from 669th in the world to the somewhat lofty perch of 275th at present. Caswell, for one, predicts a top 50 ranking for her within two years.

That climb begins now.

"I like hardcourts the best, and did pretty well on them in two years as a junior," she said. "But I was a lot smaller than I am now and I feel a lot stronger. I can hit it harder, move better. I'd say I'm pretty comfortable with everything."