There will be one Bermudian face in the XL Capital Bermuda Open after all - at least in the qualifiers.

The Island's top player James Collieson has been granted a wild card entry into the qualifying round of the tennis tournament slated for Coral Beach Club from April 13 to 21.

Tournament director Alec Anderson has confirmed that he has agreed to give one of the discretionary berths to Collieson to guarantee him a place in the qualifying segment which takes place the weekend before the XL Open commences properly.

"He has requested a wild card in qualifying and I have said I will hold one for him," stated Anderson, adding that Collieson's request is to ensure he has a place in the preliminary competition.

He said that the Bermudian met the qualifying requirement of having an ATP Tour point but could be edged out if too many players with higher ranking turned up for the qualifying rounds.

"The minimum requirement to get into qualifying is to have an ATP Tour point and because, last year, we gave him a wild card in the main draw he got one point for that," he said. "However, if you have a qualifying draw and a lot of players show up from the Tour with points and he is not one of the guys with a high ranking he might not necessarily get in.

"There are six wild cards (for the qualifying round) and it's a bit of discretion for the tournament director and the ATP supervisor (to choose who gets these).

"He's generally regarded as our No.1 player in Bermuda and we like encourage young Bermudians to aspire in their tennis to playing in bigger events."

If successful in the qualifying stages of competition, Collieson could advance to the main draw which will feature former French Open champion Michael Chang of the United States.