Over at Yahoo! Sports blog Busted Racket, Chris Chase wrote a coma inducing post on why he feels Serena Williams’s AP Female Athlete of the Year was undeserving. While he acknolwedges Serena’s accomplishments on the court, grand slam successed in singles & doubles and ending the year #1, he decides to regurgetate the unfortunate incident during the Williams v. Kim Clijsters US Open semifinal.

Yes, we can all admit it was not the brightest moment in Serena’s career, but anyone who’s ever played tennis (especially at any level higher then you know, pick up games with your buddy) can probably understand her outrage, and since so few of us are in the situation to be playing a heated match during the semifinals of a grand slam, who are we to judge that reaction? A foot fault call at that time is ridiculous.

I remember one year my college team was playing a USTA sanctioned event against a team from Emerson (at the gorgeous Harvard University complex, which was fantastic by the way. The bathrooms smelled wonderful, I just passed by that the other day and it brought back good memories, but I digress), and their captain wanted ME to call a foot fault on my partner. I was like excuse me buddy? What are you asking of me? It was a ridiculous notion, I mean not only to expect me to call it on myself, but to actually expect it to be called in this situation? He ended up calling an official, and the official pretty much was like, get over it. I ended up screaming at him after he said something a few points later, not nearly as bad as Serena’s rant, but it wasn’t pretty. So, I see where she’s coming from.

It’s hard to compare Serena’s reaction to any other tour member, past or present, because a double fault-foot fault call that late in a second set at a grand slam semifinal, just doesn’t happen. It simply doesn’t happen. We can compare it to Jon McEnroe in his heyday, and say that he never got that out of line. However, if a call that ingregious was ever made against him, on that stage, I’d venture to say all bets are off as to how he reacted.

The foot fault call is so much more painful then a long ball being called good, or vice versa. It’s so rare, so random, and almost inappropriate at that stage.

So, I disagree with Chris Chase in saying that Serena’s US Open outburst was her defining moment of the year. If anything that situation gave haters more fuel for their fire for why Serena has been so bad for the game over the years (no dedication, not trying hard enough, outside interests). So, it appears to me Chris Chase took the easy way out. Good on ya Chris!

Anyway, if Tiger Woods can be Athlete of the Decade whilst having unprotected sex with every hooters girl this side of the Mississippi, I’m proud to say that Serena Williams is our AP Athlete of the Year.