Saluting the year's best with the 2007 Baggie Awards

How did Roger do? Three Slams, a Masters Cup and more than $10 mil in prize money. The discussion for men's MVP ends now. Jessica Kluetmeier/SI

MAILBAG Jon Wertheim will answer questions from SI.com users in his mailbag every Wednesday. Your name: Your e-mail address: Your home town: Enter your question:

So the ATP busted out a new marketing slogan last month: "Feel It."

Not bad. And infinitely better than the infamous "New Balls Please." But we have an alternative suggestion: "Tennis. The sport that persists in spite of itself."

While Hollywood writers continue to strike, studios and producers could do worse than looking to tennis for inspiration. A star fails a test for cocaine, proclaims her innocence, but then decides to retire rather than fight charges. A top-ranked Russian who barely gets noticed in his own living room, suddenly becomes an international cause célèbre. Alas, his spike in popularity owes to his role in an alleged match-fixing scandal.

A German star is purportedly poisoned before a Davis Cup match (tests proved negative). But the mere fact this scenario was treated with utter plausibility tells you all you need to know about contemporary tennis.

Yet, as always, there were enough forces of good to offset both the evil and the maddening madness. Roger Federer has just about planted his flag at the summit of Mt. Tennis. Just as important, he remained as professional, conscientious and accommodating as ever. It'll take some detachment to fully appreciate his records. But same goes for his comportment.

This was also the year Justine Henin established herself as the preeminent female player. And we finally got to see her smile. The Williams sisters again showed that they're still capable of winning majors -- and immune as ever to conventional tennis wisdom.

Rafael Nadal may have had another second-half fade, but not before solidifying his reign as the King of Clay. Thanks to Novak Djokovic, Ana Ivanovic and Jelena Jankovic, notice was Serbed (sorry) that a smaller country with the population of the Chicago metro area is a new tennis power. The U.S. won the Davis Cup for the first time since 1995.

All of which is to say it was a typically wacky year in the Kingdom of Tennis, order and chaos breaking each other's serves.

Before we get to the awards, a sincere thanks to all of you for stopping by and writing in. While I can't respond to everyone's questions, please know that all of your e-mails -- even the ones wishing me cold sores and chronic gout for doubting Kim Clijsters' Hall of Fame bona fides -- are read and appreciated. I say this every year, but if you get half as much fun and enjoyment out of reading this thing, as I get out of writing it, we're all doing pretty well. Looking to forward to another round in 2008.

That spasm of affection of out of my system, we now return to our regularly scheduled cynicism. The votes have been tabulated and certified by PriceWaterhouseCoopers and delivered to us by Tommy Haas' room-service attendant. Without further ado, the envelopes please:

MVP, men: Federer. Just another year of three Slams and a Masters Cup shield. Yawn. Oh, and he won more than $10 million in prize money. The question of whether he'll topple the mighty Pete Sampras is one of "when" and not "if."

MVP, women: Henin. As with Federer, it wasn't even close. The moral of the story: A complete game trumps power. (And it helps to stay relatively healthy.)

Coach of the Year, men: Federer. He ensures that his player is prepared and rested. He stresses professionalism. He schedules wisely. And he has an exceptional ability to make changes mid-match and mid-tournament.

Coach of the Year, women: Carlos Rodríguez. The outspoken Argentine is an emotional anchor for Henin. Though props to Oracene Williams for her two-Slam campaign.

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