The $18,000 he won for capturing the XL Bermuda Open was part of it, of course, but the victory was also significant as far as the professional tennis computer was concerned.

The latest ATP rankings released yesterday showed a whopping jump of 13 spots for the Belgian Davis Cup player -- all the way up to 83rd in the world.

Van Herck came into the clay court tournament unseeded and ranked 96th but five impressive victories, including 6-1, 4-6, 6-0 over number seven seed Sargis Sargsian in the final, earned him 92 ranking points.

That actually leap-frogged him over five fellow Bermuda Open participants ranked higher prior to the ATP Challenger tournament: Sargsian, Patrik Fredriksson, Dennis Van Scheppingen, Javier Frana and Mariano Zabaleta.

Frana also made a move, climbing from number 100 to 94 after losing in the singles semi-finals and winning the doubles along with Mark Knowles.

Van Herck checked out of Elbow Beach on Monday -- but not before living up to a promise he made to his coach, Koen Gonnisson, if he won the tournament: Get a haircut.

The 23-year-old was probably unrecognisable as he passed through the airport without his long, golden locks.

If his victory was a surprise to many observers, it wasn't to Gonnisson, who said Bermuda was hand-picked because of the Har-Tru courts at Coral Beach Club.

"This surface was made for him,'' said Gonnisson, noting the court's texture was conducive to the wide array of shots and styles Van Herck is capable of playing.

Other clay courts, particularly in Europe, are much softer right now, said Gonnisson, and would penalise Van Herck's hard, accurate strokes.

"When you're playing well, you can win with any kind of game on this surface,'' Van Herck said after his victory.

As clay court preparations continue leading up to the French Open, one of the XL participants flew to Barcelona after his exit. But Scott Draper's trip to the Godo Seat Open was not a fruitful one: The Australian, ranked number 73 in the world, was knocked out in the first round yesterday by Richard Fromberg.

Draper and top seed Jason Stoltenberg, another early casualty last week, formed a doubles team here that witnessed an extreme high and bitter low.

The Aussie duo knocked off the top pair of Byron Black and Grant Connell in a third-set tiebreaker to open the tournament but in the semi-finals blew match point in the second set and were eventually upset by Argentina's Lucas Arnold and Daniel Orsanic.

JOHAN VAN HERCK -- XL Bermuda Open winner makes big rankings jump.