With colorful team names like Pound (My) Puppy and Porn Starz, last year’s edition of Team Tennis by the San Diego Tennis Federation (SDTF) was one of the most popular and competitive events run by the league all year, and it returns in just a few short weeks.

Some teams are already forming, but don’t worry. A total of eight will be created, with 10 players each. In addition to those 80 players, several slots as alternates will be available, making Team Tennis the largest (and most inclusive) competitive “season” the SDTF runs each year.

Teams are formed at a “draw party,” and team captains choose from the 80 eligible players who have signed up to play. The event is usually one of the social highlights of the season, as friends become rivals, and longtime rivals learn they must play as doubles partners.

You see, the format for Team Tennis calls for players to compete in one singles match and one doubles match per week. Because team captains try to create the best teams they can, players who may compete at tournaments as a doubles tandem will often find themselves on opposing teams, ranked identically, and therefore destined to meet up in a singles match where friendship takes a back-seat and the team’s success becomes the main objective.

Each player on each team is assigned a number: one, two, three, all the way down to 10. The numbers are usually commensurate with a player’s skill level, so a player in the No. 1 slot will be the most competitive, while the player in the No. 10 spot might be new to the game and still working on fundamentals. When two teams face each other, both No. 1 slots will play each other in singles matches, followed by both No. 2 slots playing each other, and so on.

But singles matches then give way to doubles, and players in the No. 1 and No. 2 spots will team up to play the same combination of players on their opposing teams. Every player on a team will play doubles matches, and the total wins and losses will be compiled to determine which team wins the overall match.

Entry fees are $20 per player, which defrays most of the costs, and the deadline to enter is midnight, Jan. 12.

The draw party, where teams are formed, will be held on Friday, Jan. 18, at 7 p.m. at the Balboa Tennis Club Clubhouse and play begins Sunday, Jan. 27 at 9 a.m.

For more information or registration forms, visit www.sdtf.org and click on the Team Tennis link on the menu bar to the left.

I’ve been writing this column every week for a little over nine months now, and the most common feedback I get is from people who were surprised to read about a sport they like having a gay franchise, so to speak.

Of all the leagues and teams I’ve covered or profiled, the fact that there’s a gay wrestling team probably generated the most surprise.

Formed in 1998, the San Diego Bulldogs Wrestling Club isn’t the oldest sports group by and for gays and lesbians in San Diego, but its dedication and camaraderie will rival any of the more established leagues in town.

While the club usually holds practices twice a week (Sundays at 4 p.m. and Wednesday nights at 7 p.m.) at The Center, during the Christmas holiday they’ll be taking a break from practice, but not from activities.

The club is working like elves to put together the 2nd Annual 2008 SDWC Wrestling Tournament.

According to the club’s coach, Greg Lines, the tournament will take place on Saturday, Feb. 16 (President’s Day Weekend) in the main auditorium of The Center in Hillcrest. The tournament will be the centerpiece of four days of wrestling events, including a freestyle wrestling clinic and a beach wrestling/picnic event.

Things kick-off Thursday, Feb. 14 at 7 p.m. with a “Meet, Greet, and Roll” wrestling practice.

On Friday, Feb. 15 at 6 p.m., the team will host a freestyle wrestling clinic as well as the official tournament weigh-ins.

Tournament bouts begin Saturday, Feb. 16 at 1 p.m. and the post-tournament barbecue will be hosted by the club on Sunday, Feb. 17 at 1 p.m. with a beach wrestling/picnic outing. (Location is TBD.)

All wrestling events, except beach wrestling, will take place in the main auditorium of The Center in Hillcrest (3909 Centre St., San Diego, CA 92103).

For more information regarding the tournament, visit www.sdbulldogswrestling.org/.